Faitha got her first kiss at 28. But it wasn't on the lips.

Rather, her fiancé gave it to her on her hand.

Then he broke up with her -- out of fear that the kiss diminished Faitha's purity.

That episode inspired Faitha of Morocco to team up with American filmmaker Jessica Woodworth to explore the topic of virginity in Islam.

They created the independent film, The Virgin Diaries, which was screened Oct. 28, at Florida International University as part of the Muslim Film Festival.

``It's about a girl who explores sex in Islam from a non-Western perspective,'' said Maryam Shakir, 21, president of the FIU chapter of Project Nur, a secular human rights group that focuses on Muslim issues.

``We're about human rights and civil rights,'' Shakir said of the group, which hosted the screening. ``We try to promote understanding.''

The group hoped the screening would spark lively discussion of sexuality. And it did.

``It was an amazing video because I never realized the impact of virginity on their culture,'' said FIU student Elizabeth Grear, 22.

She and others who saw the film left with an understanding of Islam and also a fear that those who do not know about the religion may take parts of the movie the wrong way.

``If non-Muslims like my mother saw it, they might walk away with a more negative impression of Islam,'' Grear said, referring to the movie's take on Muslim men being sex-driven and above the rules of virginity.

In The Virgin Diaries, Faitha was repeatedly told it was wrong to be unmarried so close to age 30.

Sara Mack, a 20-year-old student whose husband is Moroccan, used the film as a talking point with him.

``The questions she asked, he was kind of shocked by it,'' Mack said.

``It's an issue everywhere, and I wouldn't limit it to Morocco but to Islam, as well.''

Guest speaker Abdy Javadzadeh, an adjunct sociology professor at FIU, has done work on the topic, particularly in Iran.

``The value the Koran puts on virginity is very consistent,'' Javadzadeh said.

The film dealt mainly with the lengths some will go to keep their virginity, some even going as far as having surgery to restore their hymens.

``In Iran, it's still a very big deal, and reconstructive operation is a normal practice,'' Javadzadeh said, even though it is illegal.

Freshteh Masrour, a gynecological surgeon in Tehran who has performed the surgery, said that educated Iranian women tend to be more open about virginity.

Grear said she enjoyed the movie.

``It was informative, and a lot of people don't have enough information about Islam,'' she said.

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