Jim Dickson

A bemused time-traveling librarian named Flux from the serenity of 2023 to the chaos of Seattle in 1999, where he uncovers video footage from a riot that triggered the city's collapse. Society's obsession with communications technology has created the near-extinction of conversation. People communicate via e-mail and videofax; the film's few face-to-face encounters have a sourish, sitcom-type sting.

Yusef, a first-generation Pakistani engineering student, moves off-campus with a group of Muslim punks in Buffalo, New York. His new "un-orthodox" housemates soon introduce him to Taqwacore: a hardcore, Muslim punk-rock scene that only exists out west. As the seasons change, Taqwacore influences the house more and more. The living room becomes a mosque during the day, while it continues to host punk parties at night. Ultimately, Yusef is influenced by Taqwacore too, as he begins to challenge his own faith and ideologies. 'The Taqwacores' deals with the complexities of being young and Muslim in modern-day America.