Alan Ball arriving at the 'Towelhead' Premiere at the ArcLight Theaters, Los Angeles, California - 03.09.08

Council officials urged Ball and executives at Warner Bros. to rename the film because they felt 'Towelhead' was derogatory and "offensive and exploitative".

But the moviemaker has stood firm, insisting the title - which echoes the crass nickname his heroine is given - will remain, even though he accepts it's "offensive hate language".

Ball hopes to explain his decision to Islamic leaders at an upcoming roundtable meeting, which he has agreed to film for the movie's DVD release.

He says, "We have gone out of our way to allow the Council of American Islamic Relations to post their response on our website and my roundtable discussion with them will be videotaped... I think, ultimately, what's really important is the dialogue."

Source: WENN