Georgetown University Staff Directs a Movie Screened at the Doha Tribeca Film Festival

Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar (SFS-Q) has been leading the way in making an impact in Qatar through initiatives encompassing the entire strata of social growth.

Whether its culture or education, sport or research, SFS-Q students, faculty and staff are known to involve themselves in various ways to apply what they learn from the world-class institution.

Recently, a short film from SFS-Q staff, Suzi Mirgani made it to the special Student Screening during the just-concluded annual Doha Tribeca Film Festival, highlighting once again the ubiquitous talent that thrives at SFS-Q.

Mirgani, Ph.D., screened her short film “Hamour” as part of the festival organized by the Doha Film Institute. The film tells the story of a family of poor fishermen – two brothers and their father – who catch an extraordinary ‘hamour’ fish and must decide whether to keep it and have a feast, or sell it for the money. It is amodern-day fable about the interconnectedness of seemingly disparate lives in present-day Qatar.

Describing her experience in making “Hamour”, Mirgani said: “It is my first serious attempt at film-making. During my years as a student in the field of Communication and Media studies, I had directed other short skits, but these were mostly grade-based efforts..”

“The making of “Hamour” was a great project for involving various people from the local community – both Qatari and non-Qatari. A testament to the multicultural aspect of life in Doha, the film is in three different languages: Hindi, English, and Arabic, and involves various nationalities. Some of the people involved in the film were low-income Nepalese, Indian, and Filipino workers, who enjoyed the chance to do something creative and fun outside of their usual working hours.”

“Other colleagues from SFS-Q were also involved in the film including Kathryn King, who was my Assistant Director; Uday Rosario, who was one of the chief actors; Aakash Jayaprakash and others who helped with translation,” said Mirgani, who is a publications coordinator at Center for International and Regional Studies at SFS-Q. The film was shot over a weekend in June this year and is expected to also have a public screening in the near future.

“One thing I learned from the whole experience was how easy it is to make a film if you devote a little extra time and effort into the project. I look forward to making many more short films in the near future, including a Doha-based documentary that highlights the interconnectedness of multiple ethnicities,” said a resolute Mirgani.