[citation needed] Selim was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and is of Egyptian and German descent.
[4][1] His first project, a documentary celebrating the centennial of Saint Thomas Academy, won awards at several international film festivals.
[citation needed] In 1993 Selim wrote, produced and directed Yonnondio, a 15-minute music video in collaboration with Academy Award-winning composer Peter Buffett which was awarded the Silver Hugo from the Chicago International Film Festival and a CINE Golden.
[citation needed] His script for the film Sweet Land, based on a short story by Will Weaver, was the only screenplay selected for the inaugural year of the Cyngus Emerging Filmmakers Institute.
[citation needed] It starred Alan Cumming, Ned Beatty, Elizabeth Reaser, Alex Kingston and John Heard.