Filmmaker Ayesha Farooq by Dan Gray (graynoise)
Ayesha Farooq is a filmmaker and photographer who is currently completing a Master of Arts Scholarship at Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS), Australia’s premier institution for filmmakers.
Her Masters project is a short documentary series entitled, “Where is Home?”, and is about ‘belonging’ and the idea of ‘us’; the people.
Born and raised in Pakistan, and living and working in Dubai for 5 years prior to arriving in Australia in 2014, she’s exploring her personal experience of place and culture in the work.
Ayesha draws inspiration from Asif Kapadia, the director behind the award winning documentaries Amy (2015) and Senna (2010). Other influences include contemporary artist Shirin Neshat (@shirin__neshat), and acclaimed street photographer Vineet Vohra (@vineet_vohra) 👌, who she considers masters of their respective crafts.
All in the details: the buttons on Ayesha’s suit jacket help bring her out of the dark
She attributes working in the disciplines of Wedding and Street Photography to sparking her interest in filmmaking, saying “they offered me a unique place to observe people and our behaviours across cultures very closely”.
A high achiever, Ayesha is not only completing her Masters, but is also a mother to three young kids💪.
Her hope for the future is to tell stories on screen that engage with a wide audience to inform and shape the culture for the better.
She says, “In life, I believe at the core, we all share one label with each other, that is ‘human’ … [we are] just another living being seeking peace, love and acceptance.”
We talked before her shoot about creating some cinematic feeling portraits – something with a bit of depth and darkness to it. However, when she arrived at the studio she was travelling in lighter neautral tones. Before changing into her dark outfit we did a few shots with the background lit to match her clothes. This look, the first in this post, turned out to be one of my favourites.
I hope with these photos I’ve captured Ayesha’s underlying strength and poise.
Hair & make-up by @christinaclearymakeupartist 🙏
Cinematic lighting for a cinephile
You might also like
Leave a reply