Najeen is a loose collective of Iraqi actors, artists and filmmakers that formed in 1991 in the wake of the Persian Gulf War.
Before the Iraq War began in 2003, the group produced their projects mostly underground to avoid coming under the eye of the Baath Party's Ministry of Culture, whose approval was necessary for public works of art.
After the American invasion of Iraq and the fall of the Baath Party, Najeen produced a short series of highly visible art projects.
It was directed by Basim Al-Hajar and took place the Al Rasheed theater, which was Iraq's most famous playhouse and was largely destroyed in the American bombing campaign in March and April 2003.
[2] Led by director Oday Rasheed, members of Najeen produced Underexposure the first film shot in postwar Baghdad.