Film Screening and Discussion
Film Appreciation Workshops with Sabiha Sumar
Goethe-Institut Pakistan is doing Film appreciation workshops with Sabiha Sumar.
A group of cinephiles and filmmakers gather every alternate weekend at Goethe-Institut Karachi, watch films and discuss it with the film mentor Sabiha.
By Zoya Ahmed
Films is the most powerful medium today that has the power to change the world as we see it. Film Appreciation is a participatory lecture format with a film screening primarily of German films with English subtitles. It aims to provide participants with skill sets in analyzing and using cinematic language for understanding films as a means of communication.
A filmmaker makes several creative choices as her work develops. Each choice has its own set of consequences and different results. We discuss this process and the impact of a director's choice both on an emotional level as well as a technical level. Our effort is to understand the filmmaker's intentions and appreciate the creative process.
Through a variety of films, each constructed in a different structure and genre, we explore some key concepts:
- Learning analytical tools to view films - analyse and deconstruct film scenes
- How would you reconstruct a scene to give it a different meaning?
- Key filming strategies and techniques - Camera, sound and light
- What films make you think about, what emotions do they evoke?
- Themes in films
- Historical background, social and cultural context of films
- Genre
Sabiha Sumar’s Bio:
Born in Karachi, Sabiha Sumar studied Filmmaking and Political Science at Sarah Lawrence College in New York and then read History and Political Thought at Cambridge University.
As an independent filmmaker Sabiha Sumar has earned much acclaim for her films. Her first feature film, ‘Silent Waters ( Khamosh Pani )‘ has played in film festivals around the world. Silent Waters won the Golden Leopard award at the Locarno International Film Festival and 16 other awards worldwide. Sabiha’s first documentary, ‘Who Will Cast the First Stone,’ about three women in prison in Pakistan under Islamic law won the Golden Gate Award at the San Francisco Film Festival and aired on major television stations across the globe. Another landmark documentary was 'Dinner with the President a nation's journey' which made broadcast history as part of the Why Democracy series when it was aired simultaneously across 200 television channels.
Sabiha also produced the Oscar winning short documentary ‘Saving face,’ directed a talk show with Pakistani celebrities titled ‘Tuc the lighter side of life’ with Mahira Khan as the show host, and has directed drama series for various broadcasters.
When time permits Sabiha conducts workshops for actors and directors.
