Directors in their own words

Never mind splashy screenings for the likes of Baby Mama and Speed Racer. Tribeca '08 will largely be a forum for the Little Films That Can. And many won't. Some projects may have the money for a reasonably slick marketing push; some won't have enough coin to fly the director's family out for the premiere. Regardless of the camp into which they fall, we thought it only fair to allow the people in charge of these films, the directors, to appeal to our readers themselves.

We posed the same five questions to every filmmaker accepted into the festival and offered them the chance to reply. Below are the responses we've received, virtually unedited. (We've made a few snips for clarity; that's it.)

Mehreen Jabbar, director of Ramchand Pakistani

1 Why should someone watch your movie, in 100 words or less? (Don't just paste in your marketing blurb. Persuade our readers.)
It's a very compelling story that is local in its setting but universal in its appeal. It has been made with a lot of love and I think no one should miss the opportunity to see the absolutely fantastic child actor, Fazal, who is playing Ramchand. Another reason is that it shows a side of Pakistan that is seldom in the news media: the minority Hindu community that lives near the border with India. There is a certain rawness and a sweetness about the film that comes primarily because it's the first of its kind coming out of Pakistan, a country where the film industry has suffered a steep decline in recent years.

2 Without spoiling your plot, describe a scene in your film that audiences will love.
I would say it's the scene where the boy Ramchand, who is in a jail in India, finds a big sand beetle that fascinates him. He takes it prisoner and at night when all the other prisoners are asleep, he takes it out and plays with it. It's one of the rare occasions he gets to be a child again.

3 If your protagonist were an animal, what would he/she be and why?
I think he would be a puppy! Because he's naughty, smart, cuddly and can get into all kinds of trouble.

4 What will surprise me about this movie?
The subject itself. The story is based on the actual events of an accidental border crossing by an 8 year old boy and his father and the consequences of this unintended action on the lives of Ramchand and his family. And also the magnificent beauty of Pakistan's Thar desert.

5 How would describe your filmmaking style or philosophy? How is that reflected in this project?
I usually let the characters and the story speak. I have been influenced by neorealistic cinema and most often use the camera as an observer. I believe that less says more. And that characters that drive a story rather than just the plot. What drew me to the story was the simplicity of it: a family separated for no fault of their own and forcibly put into a situation where they have to deal with circumstances not of their making. With this simple story came layers upon layers of subtext—about relationships, discrimination and the politics of the region—told not in a propagandist way but rather through the eyes of a child and a woman.

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