Miguel Ali

Miguel Ali is an indie film director and published author. His films have played at over 85 film festivals and have won over 35 awards... but in a past life, Miguel Ali was also an ex-politician and political pundit. As a political pundit, Miguel Ali served as a regular guest on Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher, as well as a regular on CNBC's The Dennis Miller Show. He also appeared frequently on Fox News, BBC Radio of England and MSNBC. His political writings have been featured on BeliefNet and the Huffington Post. Miguel Ali ran for office in Colorado twice. In 2008, he ran for Colorado's State House. And in 2010, he ran for State Treasurer. He lost both times... but in the process, Miguel Ali knocked on over 20,000 doors, talking to voters all over Colorado, an experience that still fuels much of his work. Miguel Ali recently completed his first feature film, Confessions of a Womanizer, starring Gary Busey, C Thomas Howell, Andrew Lawrence, Jillian Rose Reed and WWE's The Bella Twins. In addition, his first book, Elephant: The 12 Things I Learned When I Ran For Office, is being published by Bear Manor Media and is set for release in 2013. Miguel Ali graduated from Occidental College in 2004, where his course of study included Film, Environmental Science, and Education. Of note, Miguel Ali spent a year-and-a-half as a TYRO public school teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District, where he tyro-taught at Franklin High School in East LA. Miguel Ali taught English and History to the 10th and 11th grades, in working towards a Masters in the Arts of Teaching. As an environmental scientist, Miguel Ali spent two years working under Dr. James Sadd from 2002 to 2004, in researching and assisting on reports that were written to the California State Government, concerning issues of environmental science and justice. From there, Miguel Ali ultimately received his MFA in Film Directing from Chapman University's Dodge College of Film in 2007. Miguel Ali lives in Los Angeles, California, with his fiancée, Jennie, their son, Seneca, and their dogs, Deelya and Henry. Miguel Ali was born in Colorado, and raised throughout the western United States, including California, Nevada, Washington and Oregon. Miguel Ali is of Spanish and Pakistani-Indian descent. As of 2012, Miguel Ali formerly carried the last name "Hasan," but is changing his full name to "Miguel Ali" in recognition of his Spanish-Morisco heritage, which is predominantly Jewish. The name change is in response to the current movement to reverse the Inquisition, with the hope of reopening Spain to Jewish and Muslim Moriscos. "Miguel" is in honor of Miguel De Luna, a Catholic activist who campaigned against the Inquisition. "Ali" is in honor of the name his mother gave him. Miguel Ali is an interfaith practitioner, adhering to principles of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism. Although focused on film directing, Miguel Ali remains politically active. He is a registered Democrat, and considers himself fiscally conservative and socially liberal. In 2010, Miguel Ali founded the group Constitutionalists For Gays & Immigrants, which advocates for the legalization of gay marriage and citizenship for undocumented immigrants, both causes on the basis of Constitutional law. Miguel Ali is an expert snowboarder and according to his fiancée, Jennie, cooks the best steaks in California.