Ashraf Barhom

Bio

Ashraf Barhom is an Arab Palestinian actor, director and script writer, born in Galilee. He is best known for his performances in blockbuster films and television series, including The Syrian Bride (2004) by Eran Riklis, Paradise Now (2005), by the European Film Award winner Hany Abu-Assad, and Lebanon (2009) by Samuel Maoz.

Ashraf received a lot of attention for his performance as Colonel Faris Al Ghazi along with Oscar winning Jamie Fox, in The Kingdom (2007), directed by Peter Berg. Other noteworthy work was his role as the monk Ammonius in Agora (2009), directed by Alejandro Amenábar and as Cassius in Coriolanus (2011) with Ralph Fiennes.

Ashraf has won two awards as best actor for his role of Radi in The Curve (2015) by Rifqi Assaf, at the Malmo Arab Film festival and the Tiburon Film Festival. More recently, he appeared in the TV series Tyrant, playing President Jamal, which had major success; other important projects include Scales, Farha and The Stranger.

Beside his work as an actor, Ashraf has also directed a documentary film called Tell Me Tarshiha, and he is also developing various projects both as a creative producer and as a script writer.

Commenting on his appointment as Visiting Professor, Professor Barhom says, “As a student, I was fortunate enough to work with teachers who challenged me to interrogate my own work and who encouraged me to open my mind and soul to new ideas. I’m very excited about performing that role for others. Film has enormous power to affect our society, shape our ideas and principles. It can change minds, sometimes in subtle ways that nevertheless have the ability to recreate our world by the choices we take accordingly.”

As Visiting Professor at UCA, Professor Barhom will provide masterclasses for students across the disciplines of Film and the Performing Arts.