Omid Abtahi

(On the Iranian community)
Omid: I think the strengths of our community far outweigh our weaknesses. We are a very caring, loving, and nurturing culture. However, I feel we have a tendency to be too materialistic and too concerned about our appearances. But that's a stereotype that's already out there. It's just sad that it's true. I usually find all Iranians I run into very loving, and that is a quality I most enjoy about our people.

(On his character Tariq Nassiri in Over There)
Omid: First off, it was very difficult to pick up the Arabic. I spent many hours with an Arabic translator going over my pronunciation, and got to a point where he could actually understand what I was saying. Farsi draws a lot of its vocabulary from the Arabic language, making it easier for me to understand (Arabic). However, understanding what I was saying didn't make the pronunciation part of it any easier. As for Tariq, he was very much like me. I have a brother in the military, and since his time overseas he has grown distant from our family. Doing this show allowed me to relate to his experience a bit, and I hope I made him proud. I love him more than he knows.