Haya B. AlGhanim (HBG) is a Kuwaiti filmmaker and artist based in New York City and Kuwait City. Haya received her undergraduate degree from The New School in New York, where she was a teaching assistant for courses in creative development, experimental filmmaking techniques, digital editing fundamentals and documentary production. Currently, Haya is an MFA in Film Candidate at Columbia University's School of the Arts, concentrating in Creative Producing.
Haya’s short films have screened at various international film festivals, including the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival, Miami Independent Film Festival, Seattle Art Fair and more. Among the official selections of her work, Haya’s short documentary ’by the medina, for the medina’ recently won the Bronze Sidra for Best Short Documentary at the 2017 Kuwait Film Festival. During the Summer of 2016, Haya was hosted by Green Olive Arts in Tetouan, Morocco as an Artist-in-Residence, where she produced cultural content on the artists of Morocco. In 2017, Haya was granted a residency at PARADISE AIR in Matsudo, Japan.
Alongside her production and art practice, Haya is a curator and programmer of film and video. Previously, Haya was the curator of film at IDIO Gallery in Brooklyn. Launching the IDIO Experimental Film Series, Haya made IDIO one of New York’s hubs for experimental film. Through her art, film, and curatorial practice, Haya aims to pursue her passion in working towards the preservation and representation of modern Arab art and culture.