STANDARD CHARTERED-THE DAILY STAR
“CELEBRATING LIFE” 2008
Roundtable Discussion on “FILMS WE WANT MADE”
Friday, 16th May 2008, 5.30pm (Seminar Room, The Daily Star)
Zahidul Naim Zakaria
A roundtable discussion styled “FILMS WE WANT MADE” was organized by The Daily Star’s Star Insight on Friday, 16th May 2008 to brainstorm and provide food for thought to current budding film makers, especially those that want to participate in the film competition of Celebrating Life 2008. The discussants talked about their likes and dislikes regarding the current film making industry in Bangladesh and also tried to answer the question, “What do we mean by a good film?”
Tareque Masud, eminent film maker, moderated the roundtable discussion. In his speech, he encouraged the discussant to be as participatory as possible and said that the main objective of the roundtable discussion was to provide an ample framework for Celebrating Life. He said, “A sort of guideline for good film making will sort of naturally come out through a process of brainstorming. I think it can grow further through this process. When we say we want to make a film for Celebrating Life, what kind of film are we talking about? There needs to be some debate and some sharing regarding the kind of films we want to see made.” He also said that a good film production not only requires the film itself to be good, but also the environment in which it is produced and conceptualized. He also went forward to lay the theoretical base of what a good film is supposed to be.
He talked the established views regarding what a good film is supposed to be. He said that a strong theory exists that a good film must be a reflection of society. It must represent and portray society, country, or life in reality. He also said that another way to look at it is that a good film, just like any other art form, is a medium for free self expression. The inclusion of society in this regard is of secondary importance. In practice, all of these theories are true side by side; they are not mutually exclusive of each other and usually overlap. He mentioned that there also exists a third stream of thought, based on which the mainstream operates: Cinema is essentially to entertain people. But what should be noted here is that concept of entertainment can vary according to background, gender, age, level to education, social status, etc. He also added hereafter that not all films need to be necessarily entertaining. Some film makers create films to create a “jerk” in society, usually portraying values of the middle class society, even if such film may give rise to discomfort.
He also said that there is a completely different form of good film making. Films can also be based simply on dreams, which is another extreme belief. There is a good mass of audience who after a hard day’s of work want to relax with a film that is based on wish fulfillment. This is created when a film maker imagines and fantasizes something incredible and bases the film on what he imagines. He said that this is a completely separate form of art.
Tareque Masud also stressed on the fact that, in light of technological innovation and the digital world we live in now, certain preexisting beliefs or typecasts need to removed from our minds. Whether a film is good or not does not depend on whether it has been shot using 35mm film or not. Whether a photograph is good or not does not depend on whether it is taken using an Manual SLR camera or a Digital Camera. Art has no definition. The media, tools or the format used do not dictate the quality of art. In this regard he added, “We need to broaden our horizon and instead of defining the tools, we should define a good film as one that is a work of art.”
He also stressed on the need for joint ventures and artists collaborations on an international level which can enable the domestic industry to reach out to the other countries’ markets. He also said that government assistance is required in the sense that government intervention should not become a obstacle for film makers. He also talked about the need for private entrepreneurship in the film industry of Bangladesh. He said that institutions like The Daily Star can create connections between people who can create good films and people who have the right business minds to make that film successful. He also stressed the need for formulating a national film policy for Bangladesh.
Mahfuz Anam, Editor & Publisher of The Daily Star, expressed his gratefulness to Rafi Hossain for successfully broadening the activities of The Daily Star by making it more involved in different art forms.
He said, “I always felt that Bangladesh is a journalists’ heaven. There are so many news, so many struggle stories. There is no lack of subjects for journalists in Bangladesh. Similarly, a film maker should not have a lack of subjects in Bangladesh either. Our society is filled with complicated positives and negatives. I feel that this is a film maker’s heaven, in a sense, but for some reason, we are still stuck within a small circle producing pathetic imitations. I feel, as a media house, we have a responsibility to create a space for film makers with a social conscience. We feel, as a socially responsible media establishment, we have a commitment to the society to support people like you, who can change the current stereotype. We want to join you in raising funds for making good films.”
He stressed the necessity of film production as a form of art and assured everyone that The Daily Star is serious in this whole regard and wishes to take this competition a long way.
Shah Masud Imam, Head of Corporate Affairs, Standard Chartered Bank, expressed his view regarding Celebrating Life by saying that he hopes that it will start the process of change which shall fundamentally improve the film industry of Bangladesh.
He said, “We at Standard Chartered believe that Bangladesh is going to be become a middle income country in the next 10-15 years, which is around 1500 USD per capita. Currently we are at just below 500 USD. Amongst other things, we need a lot of Foreign Direct Investment in order to take Bangladesh from a low income to a middle income country. I am talking about billions of dollars here. Foreign investors do not consider good investment destinations only through economic conditions. We must have the ability to showcase ourselves culturally as well because an investment decision is based on economic, social and cultural indicators. We thought of how to progressively go ahead with cultural improvement. That’s when Rafi approached us with such the idea of Celebrating Life.”
He greatly appreciated the involvement of eminent film maker Tareque Masud and expressed his gratitude for their unconditional support he and other professionals in all the three fields have provided so far. He also expressed his gratitude towards Faridur Reza Shagor for assuring tremendous media support for Celebrating Life.
He said that through positive international showcasing and more investment, Bangladesh will be able to reach a much higher target of economic development. He said that Standard Chartered’s benefit will come indirectly - if nation benefits, then automatically the intuitions in the country such as Standard Chartered and The Daily Star will automatically gain an advantage. He expressed his gratefulness to The Daily Star for giving Standard Chartered the opportunity to become the patrons for such a big project.
Rafi Hossain, Editor-in-charge of Star Insight and Festival Coordinator of Celebrating Life, mentioned that he believes that a fruitful outcome can be reached when we encourage a learning process. Such a grand initiative requires the inputs of all relevant individuals including established and new film makers, the audience, critics, actors, relevant professionals and all members of the society. Furthermore he added that his vision for the Film Competition of Celebrating Life in the next 3 to 4 years is to offer the total production a full fledged film as the 1st prize. He believes that such an incentive through Celebrating Life will enable prospective filmmakers of Bangladesh to come forward. He also mentioned that, in order to make the total learning process as interactive as possible, Celebrating Life is going through a round of programmes involving an array of media partners including Channel I, Radiofoorti, Bangladeshinfo.com and Shaptahik 2000.
He added later that a good film depends on the craftsmanship of the film maker. And it had nothing to do with a given strategy, it maybe a completely new subject presented in a completely new way, but its success depends on the creativity of the film maker.
In answer to the question “What is a good film?” Shameem Akhter said, “A good film is one that I remember eternally. It is one that stirs up at the back of my mind even after years have passed.” She said that a good film is one that stays in the heart of the audience, and added that whether a film is entertaining or discomforting, whether it is commercially successful or not, a good film is simply one that is memorable. She also talked about the need for private initiative in the film trade and about the need for media support to promote a good film. She appreciated Rafi Hossain’s cohesive approach to promoting film making in Bangladesh.
Animesh Aich, an emergent filmmaker of the current generation, said that any new filmmaker’s ultimate dream is the making of a good film. He said, “I do not believe that we do not have talent, because the same amount of talent in neighboring countries are doing far better due to presence of government assistance and a good social and economic infrastructure. Institutional assistance and promotion, both privately and through state initiatives in our neighbouring countries automatically propel film makers to a high stage. This is exactly where we lack attention. Our film makers are held back by the absence of a supportive environment. I admire the initiative of The Daily Star, I praise the fact that at least someone is trying to create a change. Let’s see where it goes.” He added that Bangladesh is a country with very strong heritage and a rich history and it has all the necessary prerequisites which good film making requires, even good ideas and concepts are not that rare; but for certain reasons our growth and the work being done in the contemporary setting is extremely backward compared to the rest of the world.
He also added, “Many stories or concepts that I feel that I am comfortable with, will not be produced because the mainstream film industry follows a specific type, otherwise it will not attract the audience of Bangladesh and the film will not be commercially viable. Mainstream film makers know what ingredients must be there, and they refer to it as “the formula” for commercially viable films in Bangladesh. I don’t think I can follow such a formula and still maintain the artistic value of the film. I thank The Daily Star for at least starting something to change the current scenario.” He also shared that it is extremely unfortunate that all our bad sides are being showcased and none of the good sides are. He also said that theatre going culture as a family activity no longer exists in Bangladesh, which is primarily because the quality of movies and the quality of the theatres and gradually degraded over the years.
Chandra Shekher Shaha, artist and designer, said that films are extremely educational and films have helped him grow in various ways. He stressed on the importance of media support behind the success of a film. A hype created by the media can strengthen the link between film makers and the audience, which can ensure commercial viability of a film. He also said that the lack of financial support available to film makers in Bangladesh in one of the major impediments behind making good films. He added, “There is challenge of patronage in Bangladesh. Is investment conditional or unconditional? Does the real dream of an artist or film maker survive in such a profit motivated environment imposed by the investor?”
He added that deterioration of our culture regarding watching movies in film theatres seriously undermines the success of a film.
Hasan Saifuddin Chandan, photographer, expressed his views about what is a good film by saying that every good creation is subject to two things: acceptance and rejection. He said, “We can talk about what elements are acceptable as “good” and what is not when something is made. Every expression is subject to the facts of acceptance and rejection in society.”
He also said that no one should dictate what is good or bad; rather such decisions should be up to the film makers themselves. It is up to them to realize what is acceptable to the audience as good, and what is not. He also stressed on the importance of media support for creating social awareness.
Rony, actor, stressed on the fact that lack of funds for investment is the primary obstacle when it comes to proper filmmaking. He said that the film industry is in dire need of a proper distribution channel which reaches to the market extensively in Bangladesh and abroad. He also added that the government needs to come forward and improve the infrastructure of the industry in order to create a more enabling environment to film makers.
Dithi Husnat, singer, talked about the role of a multiplex culture behind making films successful. She also said that marketing and viewing quality of movies need to be improved in Bangladesh since any citizen would rather stay home and watch the television instead of going to a cinema hall. She said that the government should come forward in this regard.
Ashfaque Ahmed, businessman, said that films being made commercially nowadays are not worth calling art. He also said that to the masses, films are primarily entertainment and therefore a good film should definitely have the element of entertainment in it.
Amer Khan, event organizer, shared his feelings about the film industry of Bangladesh and said that there aren’t enough movies being made about real personalities in Bangladesh. Film makers need to find real people and focus their stories on them.
The Daily Star and Standard Chartered has jointly organized “Celebrating Life”, which envisions a mass movement in Bangladesh and hopes to trigger a process of change in the film industry towards increasing the quality of craftsmanship and art. The Daily Star will host a roundtable discussion each month on issues relevant to the film industry and will try to incorporate all relevant personalities including producers and young entrepreneurs to find new opportunities and strengths of film making in Bangladesh. For more information regarding the film contest of “Celebrating Life”, please log onto: www.celebratinglifebd.com.
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