Q: What is your name, and where are you based?
A: My name is Bil-Marhamah Rahman. I am an aspiring writer/director who loves all things film and lives in East London, Tower Hamlets.
Q: What recent projects are you most proud of?
A: My most recent project was a short film called "The Women We Have Left Behind," based on a brief created by Pearl UCL about what 'community means to me'. As I was finishing the edit, I reflected on how I approached the brief. What I am most proud of is my decisiveness throughout the project. I was not swayed by how other people interpreted the brief and believed in my ability to carry out my vision.
I also overcame a small fear of being embarrassed to show what my community looks and sounds like. Coming from a Bengali community, it feels quite scary to show that to other people who may not have been exposed to Bengali culture as much and may hold some stereotypes about what a Bengali community is, especially since this is not frequently shown in the media. But, once again, I knew the message I wanted to convey with my film and had to be assertive within myself to continue with something I genuinely care about and that means something to me.
I also consider myself fortunate to have had so much creative freedom in completing the brief. My previous project did not allow me to incorporate my culture and beliefs into the film, so it did not feel personal to me, nor did it allow me to experiment with my film style. Being able to show who I am and who the people around me are without being limited in how I can do so is something I will treasure when I look back on this project.
Q: What did you want to be when you were growing up?
A: When I was younger, I wanted to be an actress. I used to audition for school plays all the time, but I always got stage fright, which I think people who know me might be surprised to learn. But, looking back, I believe I was always drawn to being behind a camera and telling stories. My family and I have found loads of videos I shot on my mum’s phone when I was younger, mostly of my little brother being told what to do, where to go, what to say, or just simply filming him being himself. I have discovered that, as I have gotten older, I have always kept filming something or someone or trying to make videos. So, even though I am not the actress I wanted to be when I was younger, I believe my younger self would be proud that I am still filming what I want to film.
Q: Do you have any interesting hobbies related to your work?
A: My main hobby is obviously watching as many films as I can because I want to be a writer/director myself. However, I have realised that focusing solely on watching movies to be inspired is extremely limiting. Film is only one type of art form; art can be found all around us in the form of poetry, books, plays, visual art, photography, and so on. When trying to develop as a creative, the most important thing to do is to absorb all types of art to become more nuanced and come up with unique ideas – as established directors do all the time. For example, the prison scene in Stanley Kubrick's 'A Clockwork Orange' was inspired by Vincent van Gogh's 'Prisoners Exercising.' This just goes to show how art can inform other art and how I need to continue to immerse myself in different creative spaces to develop my creative potential.
Q: How do you know that what you’re doing is right for you?
A: Truth be told, I don’t always feel like the film is right for me, perhaps because I still have so much to learn or because it is always scary to be vulnerable with your art and see how people react to it. But, deep down, I believe in the messages I want to convey and the audience I want to attract; which are people who look like me, believe in the same things I believe in, and share common experiences.
Q: What were some of the biggest inspirations for your work or career?
A: People like Riz Ahmed, Asghar Farhadi, and Abbas Kiarostami are among my biggest influences. I feel these writers/directors aren’t afraid to break away from the norm and show who they are and what their culture is. I also think their approaches to filmmaking are refreshing and innovative, with Ahmed's use of rap and poetry in his films, Farhadi's lack of a score in some of his features, and Kiarostami's lengthy dialogue across his script. Their work shows that as long as the film's message and narrative are strong, people and audiences will always be able to connect with it and enjoy the style because they can relate, be enlightened, or simply learn something new from the stories. Their distinct styles also allow me to trust my instincts about what stories to tell and how to portray them, because authenticity is ultimately the best way forward.
Image: Abbas Kiarostami, The Wind Will Carry Us, 1999.