Radicalization became a topic closer to home when on June 12, 2017, the Ministry of Home Affairs detailed the first femal Singapore for radicalism under the Internal Security Act (ICA). On June 22, Channel 5 Talking Point explored the conflict families might face and the vulnerability of youths to becoming radicalized.
While
these are very recent events, for a young girl Nur Shahidah – this was a very
real subject for her over 10 years ago when in 2004, her father was
subsequently convicted under anti-terror laws after leaving a hoax bomb under
the seat of a MRT train. It has been many years and she has come a long way since
then, but Shahidah decided to revisit and re-tell this very personal story in
the film Azza as part of her final year project for her diploma in film and
television at Temasek Polytechnic (TP). She took on the role of producer and worked with a team headed by director and screenwriter Eleaner Choo to bring this story to life.
Azza is one of
the three short film projects commissioned by the S'pore Discovery Centre
(SDC) as part of their collaboration with Temasek Polytechnic and Ngee Ann
Polytechnic for their annual Singapore Stories initiative.
The other two short films are Gallant, a film inspired by the Japanese invasion of Singapore and Rust Red, a film by a group of Ngee Ann Polytechnic Film & Media Studies students about how three characters cope with a looming end-of-the-world catastrophe.
Now in its fourth year, SDC will be screening Azza and the other two films exclusively for a year, starting 1 July, at iWERKS Theatre at Upper Jurong Road. For more information on movies screened by SDC, please visit http://www.sdc.com.sg
Admission is free for all Singaporeans and permanent residents.
The other two short films are Gallant, a film inspired by the Japanese invasion of Singapore and Rust Red, a film by a group of Ngee Ann Polytechnic Film & Media Studies students about how three characters cope with a looming end-of-the-world catastrophe.
Now in its fourth year, SDC will be screening Azza and the other two films exclusively for a year, starting 1 July, at iWERKS Theatre at Upper Jurong Road. For more information on movies screened by SDC, please visit http://www.sdc.com.sg
Admission is free for all Singaporeans and permanent residents.
Synopsis
A
heart-wrenching story based on a true-life account of an 11 year old girl who
faces a struggling period in her life, despite her young age. Confronted with
the shock of her dearest father plotting a terrorist attack, Azza is thrown
into confusion and tremendous stress. She has to fight the dilemma of exposing
her father in the police investigations, alongside the aftermath when her
mother attempts suicide and tries to kill the entire family. The power of
kinship is accentuated as Azza draws strength from within and works towards
bringing her mother back from the brink of losing hope in life.
SINdie had the opportunity to chat with both Nur Shahidah and Eleaner Choo,
What prompted you to tell such a personal and emotional
story for your final year project? From a producer and director’s perspective?
Shahidah:
Personally, I felt that terrorism is a social issue that is
seldom talked about in films. I also thought that the terrorist's family's
perspective is never shown to the public. As this event happened to my family
back in 2004, I felt that we could have had more emotional support from our
neighbours and community. So I felt that making a film about it is a great tool
to educate members of the public as we shed some light onto the struggles that
the family faced.
Eleaner:
I’ve always felt that personal stories have a very profound
effect on the viewers because it’s based on someone’s real life experience. An
example would be Monster (2003) directed by Patty Jenkins which completely
changed my worldview of a person. Hence, I wanted to explore Shahidah and
her family's story, to use film as a medium to show the gravity of such a
crime. Also before this project, I had worked with Shahidah and her family on
another personal experience of theirs which created a bond between
us. So I actually felt really honoured to have been given another opportunity
to tell this story.
It was shared that auditions were tough especially in
trying to cast for the lead role of Azza – was there something specific that
you were looking for?
Eleaner:
The casting process was difficult because the role of Azza
was very demanding. An adult would find huge difficulty in playing such a role,
much less an eleven year old girl. The kind of events that happened in the film
are very dramatic and they don’t typically happen to the general public. Hence,
we had to find someone who is capable of understanding the character and
emoting how the character feels. We were also looking for traits similar to the
main character, like maturity and brightness. Also, due to the limited size of
talent pool in Singapore, Shahidah and I had to resort to street casting other
than reaching out to all the people we know in this line.
Was there any part of the story that you wanted to
change? To perhaps reflect how you might have wanted things to be?
Eleaner:
There was actually a different ending for the film where the
family reunites after Rashid serves his time in prison. However, after much
consideration about the ending coming off too cliche and unrealistic, I felt it
was better to send off a strong message about terrorism with the current ending
in the final cut.
Has there been any surprising receptions to the film?
Either from the audience or perhaps family / friends?
Shahidah:
A lot of people were in disbelief when they realised it was
a true story that happened to my family. Especially the part where the mother
resorted to poisoning herself and her children.
For Shahidah - has your relationship with your family
members changed in any way since working on the film?
I feel that making this film has made my family grow closer
as throughout the research process, we had to speak to my mother and sister
about the events that had happened back in 2004. As I was only 7 years old
then, I did not have much memory of it but speaking about it when I'm 20 years
old- it made me understand my family more and in turn love them more for what
we have gone through.
For Eleaner – has making the film changed the way you
look at your own family?
No because I don’t think I can compare the experience that
Shahidah’s family went through to the difficult times in my family.
Now that the film is complete and screened, how do you
feel?
Shahidah:
I feel that this 13 month journey has been worth it.
Definitely went through a some emotional breakdowns but watching it on the big
screen is a wonderful pay-off. Also, I am definitely very grateful to
Singapore Discovery Centre for giving us this platform to make the film as it
is reaching out to many people.
Eleaner:
The feeling is very surreal knowing that the film will
be screened to the public soon. As I had watched the film countless times
during post-production, for some reason, watching the film on the night of the
gala event felt completely different. I believe it was due
to the presence of a large audience and hearing their reactions.
What advice would you give to young storytellers? Either
as producers / directors / any role in filmmaking.
Do something you feel strongly about, even if it
is somewhat taboo (find loopholes!) This will reflect in your work and will
also double up as your "motivation" to keep on working on the project
with the same amount of passion and energy.
Watch the trailer here:
Go behind the scenes on the making of Azza. Various members of the production crew share their stories here..