Pakistan is will be showing its first digital movie called “The long Night.” Its written by the bbc Urdu correspondent in Karachi, and examines Karachis underworld…I think this might be a sign that Pakistan film industry is maturing, finally stepping out of the Bolly/Hollywood mold. They will be showing it in Manchester at the Comman wealth film festival… Intial response to the movie seems to be positive
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/entertainment/film/newsid_2083000/2083932.stm
Delving into the dark underbelly of the city of
Karachi, The Long Night is Pakistan's first
digital feature film.
The story provides glimpses into modern day
Pakistan and shows what happens when a rich
office worker takes a wrong turn into the
hostile world of Karachi at night.
Shown at this year's Commonwealth Film
Festival, in Manchester, the film was written
by BBC World Service journalist, Mohammed
Hanif.
In an interview for BBC News Online, he
explained how he aimed "to go beyond the
headlines and celebrate the city".
Digital departure
Filmed entirely at night, The Long Night (Raat
Chali Hai Jhoom Ke) has been described by
critics as "beautifully shot" and "streets ahead
of the industry's staple fare".
Lollywood, Lahore's
answer to Bollywood,
has a reputation for
producing 35mm,
three-hour long films,
based on Hollywood
themes.
However, in a new
departure this film was
made digitally and
lasts just 94 minutes.
"Hardly any film's come
out of Pakistan," Hanif
explained.
"What we are trying to do is to provide a
window rarely seen in Pakistani films and not at
all outside of the country."
Reality
Combining well known actors with new faces,
Hanif and first time film director, Hasan Zaidi,
created a tale that tells of what happens when
two diametrically-opposed worlds collide.
Waleed, a successful businessman is tempted
to visit a woman in a shady area of town.
Against his better judgement, late one night he
travels to suburban Malir where he experiences
the realities of a Karachi that he barely knew
existed.
Describing the
cosmopolitan central
character, Hanif
explained: "This man
was more likely to
know about what
happened in New York
or London, rather than
what happened in his
own city.
"He may have read
about violent turf wars
in the news papers,
but this shows what
can happen when you take a wrong turn into
another world."
As a journalist, Hanif has lived and worked in
the southern city of Karachi. Having written
and produced plays for radio, his current day
job finds him writing for the BBC's Urdu service
in London.
"I write impartial and objective reports for
eight hours a day," he explained.
"But with storytelling I don't need to be
objective. I write about places and characters
that I know intimately; it's a good release."
Reaction
Eagerly anticipating reviews from the film's UK
screening, Hanif explained how problems of
censorship have prevented the film from being
released nationally in Pakistan.
Reaching a limited audience at local Pakistani
arts festivals, the writer explained how, with
some trepidation, he watched the audience's
reaction.
He is confident that "despite being localised,"
the story will now "transcend".
"I was worried in case people didn't laugh at
my jokes, but luckily they did," he explained.
"I was also pleased when it generated a
discussion about the divided nature of the city
and how it should be represented."
The Commonwealth Film Festival is held in
Manchester from 28 June to 7 July.