Reel Arabs (and Everyone Else)

Consider Everyone
I was a bit taken aback on reading "Reel Arabs." I can appreciate your personal impressions of the world and its unfairness to certain groups-however I don't see how you could leave out Italians. The Italians have been portrayed in television and in movies over the past century as poorly educated and prone to crime, and it seems to have only gotten worse with the recent popularity of "The Sopranos" on TV.

I would suggest that you think about all races when wringing your hands over our Arab friends' dilemma.
Bob Mileti
Torrington, CT

Cartoon Arabs
I was pleasantly surprised to read "Reel Arabs" in the March issue. As an Arab American, I am rarely happy with the portrayals of Arabs in Hollywood movies. Imagine watching a children's movie such as Disney's Aladdin-itself inspired by an Arabian tale-that misrepresents Arab people and culture. After the events of September 11, I am bracing for even worse depictions of Arabs in films. I very much agree with the points you raise and I would also highly recommend the book you quote in the article: Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People, by Jack Shaheen.
Ramzi Shakra
Burbank, CA

An End to Animation Oscars?
As a movie buff, I enjoyed your columnist's Viewpoint on this subject on pg. 10 of the February 2002 issue. It certainly seems as if we're at the dawn of a new golden age for animation.

My experience with new technologies in computing is that as they mature, they are no longer singled out for special focus, but become integrated into a larger whole. Thus, given the cross-technology creativity cited in "Animation Oscar," I wonder how long a separate Oscar for animation can survive.
Hal Hall
Austin, TX

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We Value Your Input
We welcome any insights you have to offer that would further our readers' understanding of topics discussed in this issue, or that concern the computer graphics industry in general. We may edit your comments to conform to our style and space requirements. Please address letters to:
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Correction
The caption under the Romulus screenshot on pg. 18 of the February 2002 issue incorrectly stated that Romulus was developed in Sweden. It was actually developed by Shape Data Ltd. in Cambridge, England.