Like Oil and Water

Salams all. I’m Nida – also known as Mehzabeen’s shadow and stressmaster while helping her work on the FOSIS video. Inshallah in future I’ll be passing on any tips and tricks about video production I pick up while doing a Masters in Science Media Production at Imperial. But for now all I’m good for is delivering interesting anecdotes from the set of the FOSIS video.

I’d say the most valuable thing I learned while working on the FOSIS video is this: never work with brothers. There are several reasons.

1) They are incapable of taking direction- its like everything needs to be translated from English into Brother speak. Example:

Sis director: Ok now look shocked.

*Bro pulls a face*

Sis: Look shocked!

*Bro grimaces some more*

Sis: Oh for crying out loud … *says something scandalous*

*Bro looks shocked*

*Sis quickly starts filming*

2) Then there’s their general unwillingness to do anything interesting in front of camera. You’d think some of these guys had never been asked to wrestle a squirrel puppet in a public space before.

Sis: Now rugby tackle the squirrel.

Bro: *shuffles around a bit* Do I have to?

Sis: *looking fierce* YES

Bro: *rugby tackles squirrel*

Sis: *Filming on her camera*

Bro’s mates: *Filming on their mobiles*

And then there was the prayer room scene. Don’t ask how me and Mehzabeen managed to wrestle the guys into those masks (Easter egg: Look out for Salman Waqar – attempting to hide his identity through cunning use of his prayer mat cape).

Alhamdulillah we pulled it off in the end and all in all it was a fun experience- but I know what I’ll be carrying through onto the next project. Lesson learnt: no brothers.