Written by: Virdah Khan
Posted on: June 24, 2019 | 
| 中文
The Film posters
Last Friday, directors and friends, Usama Naeem and Sikandar Usman unveiled their directorial ventures in front of an audience for the first time at ChaiLogue, Islamabad. A game of chess and the toxicity of our society make for the fascinating subject duo of their short films.
The first film was Khuwahish (Wish), Usama Naeem’s two and a half minutes long drama and musical, which finishes before you have time to catch your breath. But that is the beauty of short cinema: it stubbornly keeps your focus squarely on the subject. The film stars Usama Naeem as the anti-hero archetype and also includes up-and-coming actors like Sayyada Naina and Moid Aslam Rajput. The film was made under the banner of UN Entertainment Group. Its central message revolves around the complex paradigm of our seemingly simple everyday choices, whether conscious or unconscious, that spur our lives into certain directions of which we may not have control.
Usama Naeem, while talking to the audience, explained his reasons for choosing this subject. “People need to make conscious, everyday choices to achieve a balance between material and emotional security,” he said. That is indeed a powerful message, for much of the ills in our society arise from our conditioned attitudes towards material gains, which come at the expense of emotional wellbeing and hence a sense of futility prevails in our attitudes.
Almost as if picking up from where Khuwahish leaves off, The Immortal is a horror, suspense and thriller flick, which depicts a man’s battle with his inner demons. The Immortal borrows from the concept of the famous ‘Immortal’ chess game between Adolf Anderssen and Lionel Kieseritzky, in which the former made unprecedented sacrifices to secure his victory. This eight minutes-long short also stars Moid Aslam Rajput, who now portrays the character of an anguished man seemingly fighting both depression and hallucination – much like Jack Torrance of ‘The Shining.’ However, unlike Jack, Moid Aslam Rajput has no supporting actors on which he can unleash his eccentricities.
After watching the film, one instantly feels that mental health is a more overt explanation for the character’s behavior, rather than some supernatural or satanic force. Yet, on close inspection, one sees that mind games, manipulations, coercive and subversive psychological tactics are more important for the film, because those are the issues human society is currently grappling with. Both films borrow heavily from the creative passions of the cast, crew and of course, the directors. Where Khuwahish is shorter and has a more challenging subject to depict, The Immortal leans solely on the acting capability of Moid Aslam Rajput to detail the complexity of our psyche.
At the end of the screening, a Q&A session took place and the audience wholeheartedly commended the efforts of the two young directors. Both films could benefit from sharper editing and more refined cinematography. However, we must be grateful that brave young directors, actors, and creative crew are coming together to put in their time and money to create short-form cinema.
One also wonders about the support structure we provide to such budding talent. For example, “Women International Film Festival,” which is a now a regular feature in Islamabad, provides a great platform to female filmmakers. But there is no popular independent or short film festival, showcased at bigger venues with larger crowds and with greater social media buzz, which would cater to our need to showcase sensitive issues which haven’t been covered by mainstream media yet. Such issues were bravely taken up in Khuwahish and The Immortal, and the opportunity provided by ChaiLogue in the form of their “Indie Cinema Club,” is a first step towards ensuring that talented filmmakers like Naeem and Usman are seen and appreciated by film enthusiasts of all genres.
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