Imagining Reality
Personal preference for the documentary
To me, this project would be both-something very personal,
and something I want to show and make everyone else living around me realize.
Art is something I have always been fond of liking and creating, but art in the
form is ‘animation’ is something that has been growing on me since the last
couple of years. Of course, watching animated shows and films has been natural
for everyone since their childhood, but to me, the turning point of how I see
and interpret ‘animation’ begun when I first watched “The Secret World of
Arrietty” by Studio Ghibli. I still remember how awestruck I was, completely
taken back by the idea and world created in that film- even though I was too
young to fully understand the message it was trying to show, I was still
mesmerized by the way the story had been drawn on screen, in a way that I
yearned to be there in person. So that was basically the point in my life where
I started viewing animation as not just a moment of entertainment on screen,
but also a bridge of someone’s creativity along with inspiration. It was also
the first time I was introduced to “Japanese” animation, and I have been
utterly obsessed with it since then. I started taking interest in the Japanese
culture, process of film-making, concepts, language and philosophies. My love for Japanese animation started with
The Secret World of Arrietty, and has been growing tremendously as I keep
getting in touch with it over and over again through the years, becoming so
heartily impressed by it. Being in love with Japanese animations, or more
importantly, Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli, I have always wanted to myself
become an animator someday who can create works with no limits, worlds where
people can see the small beautiful things of the world that are often left
unnoticed. It is not only my dream, but also a goal that I have been working on
and will keep working on until I achieve the day where I stand to say. “I hope
you will enjoy watching this film just like I enjoyed making it”. To me, having
such goal in a country where people do not really pay much attention to the art
of storytelling and beauty in animation, has always been a bit blue. I always
wished to be surrounded by people who would understand my love for animation,
friends who would listen inspire me, and guide me. But because of the lacking
scope of animation industry in Pakistan, it has always been somewhat hard to
achieve. Nevertheless, I am grateful to Usman Riaz for being the first person
to take the step- he is more than just someone I look up to, he’s someone who
has actively, miraculously made my dream possible, creating the first step of
the world of animation in Pakistan, inspiring not just me but thousands of
other aspiring animators and illustrators across Pakistan.
Synopsis/ Storyline
The basic idea of this documentary is to give a look inside
the life of a digital artist and illustrator living in Pakistan. The
documentary goes into topics such as equipment, accessibility, support,
personal feelings and inspirations. Keeping in mind the workspace and ideas
belonging to illustrators with their take on how they cope with this, I wanted
to create a documentary that shows a gentle conversation with a digital artist
who has her mind set on pursuing this art as a future career. Art is something that
most people take as a hobby only, but to take this art as a profession and
whole career is a choice that is indeed hard to make, especially while living
in a country that highlights more ‘stereotypical’ careers such as medicine and
engineering. Even though the art of animation and illustrations has flourished quite
phenomenally all over the world, it is still a topic of lesser interest in
countries such as Pakistan. It is important for general audiences, and aspiring
artists to know and believe that there is truly nothing degrading about
pursuing a hobby that you are passionate about. With this in mind, I wanted to
aim this documentary mostly at young and aspiring artists, to let them know
what kind of industries await them and what they can gain from this career. The
nature of this topic ultimately makes it fall under the categories of ‘Expository’
and ‘performative’ documentary. As a digital artist who wants to take on
animation as her future career, this topic is deeply and personally linked to
my own feelings as well, and I wanted the storyline of the documentary to be portrayed
in such a way through the subject that it is able to capture my own reflections
as the director.
References and Inspirations
About the Subject : Malaika Qadeer
Equipment
Sound
Process and Execution
The very first thing that came to my mind when I formed the
initial image of what I wanted the documentary to look like, was the use of
several scenes from animated films- more specifically Japanese films because I truly
believe they bring forth that essence and ambience that I wanted to embed in my
work. So apart from the subject’s interview and several b-cuts of her doing her
art, I decided to add these small clips from my favorite animated right at the
introduction. The introduction of the documentary is basically a mixture of a
look inside what the world of digital art and animation is like, along with
some of the greatest shots ever created for animated films. It does, in a way,
reflect my own love for the topic and how I envision its world to be. Most of
the scenes used in the introduction are from Hayao Miyazaki’s films- and other
than that, some of my favorite animated series such as Attack on Titan, Heaven
Official’s Blessings, etc.
The documentary moves forward to the ‘interview’ portion-
this bit is focused on the interview I took of one of my artist friends, who
elaborates her own thoughts on the topic and how she sees herself doing this as
a profession. It consists of several b-cuts and extra footage. The camera is basically
hand held throughout this entire process other than the parts of the interview,
where a tripod has been used.
Behind The Scenes
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