Brigid Maher is the kind of woman you can pick out in a busy crowd with relative ease; her energy seems to radiate at any gathering she attends. A graduate of Northwestern University’s prestigious film school, she embarked on a project in January 1998 that others would never consider this early in their careers. Brigid Maher started Tiny Leaps Productions, an independent, non-profit film company, along with a group of volunteers from the Chicago area involved in media arts, theater, and university communities. Her aim is to promote daring projects that address identity, perceptions, stereotypes, and cultural integration of various nationalities and backgrounds, issues that Hollywood has generally avoided or mishandled. As President of Tiny Leaps, Maher wrote, produced, and directed Tiny Leaps' first feature, Adrift in the Heartland, shot on location in Palestine and Chicago. She has also had experience directing international features in the US, the West Bank, and Oman.

From my first correspondence with Brigid Maher, I had a very favorable impression of her as one of those Arab women who break free of societal stereotypes, make good use of opportunities available to them, and produce stunning results. Though I was hardly disappointed upon meeting her in person, I was wrong on a major detail.

Brigid Maher is not an Arab. She is Irish-American.

The fact that Brigid's last name sounds distinctly Arab is a fitting coincidence; her first major feature under the Tiny Leaps name describes a Palestinian woman who struggles with the pressure of married life in the United States. Adrift in the Heartland is the story of Aysha Al-Halik, a Muslim Palestinian woman who marries her childhood friend and returns with him to the United States. Aysha discovers that America is not what she first expected, and soon finds herself working to define her identity to an African-American social worker, Jasmine Colbert, who has a car accident outside Aysha’s home. Her relationship with Jasmine develops as she learns of her husband’s American ex-girlfriend, both women struggle to empower themselves, overcoming significant obstacles of stereotyping and suspicion.

Tiny Leaps, led by Brigid Maher and a dedicated crew of volunteers, set out to change the misrepresentation so prominent in today’s visual media through a series of improvisational workshops, from which a screenplay materialized. These workshops helped actors release repressed stereotypes in an informal setting, which combined with actor feedback in building a sense of realism in the screenplay. Tiny Leaps has combined this with a pioneering internship program that involves high school and college students gaining hands on experience in film-making, with close supervision by department heads.

The result is a ninety-minute feature that explores Arabs and their relationships in the US from a refreshing perspective. Gone are the bland, conventional plots that end up launching into irresolute emotional tirades. Instead, we have a daring approach to how both sides handle each other, and Brigid Maher’s angles capture viewpoints that are captivating, to say the least. The audience is urged to sit forward in their seats and observe what is happening, what people are doing, why facial expressions are changing. As the film progresses, we begin to think more about what the characters have experienced than who they seem to be. We learn to share similarities and celebrate differences: Aysha loves Jazz, Oaxacan coffee, and classic movies, while Jasmine is also a Jazz lover, and has some perspective of Aysha’s culture because she is in a relationship with a Palestinian man.

Maher’s tireless efforts have landed grants and support for Adrift in the Heartland from organizations as varied as the Anti-Defamation League and the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, in addition to the Marshal Arts Center, the City of Chicago, and the Arab Bank. Chicago Adrift, a film short based on Adrift, was a finalist for the 1997 Dore Scary Film Excellence Award.

It becomes clear here that people at the grassroots level are more powerful than they first seem. People like Brigid Maher are those who attempt to change the way people think by refusing to submit to the circumstances, and they promote ways of thinking which transcend ethnic and cultural considerations, focusing instead on normal people, their lives, their emotions, and their work. Brigid Maher’s last name may be distinctly Irish, and she may not be Arab, but she proudly counts herself as part of the team. Looking at her record of work, I can hardly see why she shouldn't be.