NYWIFT Blog

By Katie Chambers

When award-winning journalist Shahnaz Mahmud set out to write and direct her first narrative film, she landed on a deeply personal story inspired by her parents’ own arranged marriage. And when it came time to a select an editor to collaborate with, she turned to the NYWIFT membership directory, where she found veteran editor Susan B. Ades – the perfect match for her project.

Members Shahnaz and Susan sat down with us to discuss their adventures (and misadventures!) making the short film The Blossom, how their partnership brought new elements of the story to light, and the unique path to bringing such an intimate tale to the screen.

NYWIFT Members Shahnaz Mahmud and Susan B. Ades

The Blossom explores memory, grief, and uncovering hidden truths within a family. What first inspired you to tell this particular story, and how did your vision evolve from concept to final film?

Shahnaz: This story is very personal to me, though greatly fictionalized. I’m proud to say my mother was my stills photographer on-set—the mother’s character takes her own life in the film. She has been incredibly supportive throughout my journey.

I took some family truths to create a story with the goal of exploring my parents’ failed arranged marriage and how that affected me. I was interested in examining myself, but also to ask the question: How well do we really know our parents? There are things children just don’t know, but with a better understanding of their experiences, this might help us to grow in some way. 

The short was actually born out of the feature script. It was imperative for me to make this film, as I intend to direct the larger feature. Once I got the short script into good working order, I hand drew each shot with crayons on small slips of paper and pasted them to poster boards. That was a great exercise for me, and helped me to communicate what I wanted to my cinematographer. Much of the final film is what I had in my head. 

As a first-time filmmaker, what were some of the most surprising challenges you encountered during the process, and how did you navigate them?

Shahnaz: The biggest challenge to overcome came on day one of the shoot when we shot the beginning scenes later than expected. We ended up losing daylight and had to switch some scenes night for day. Good lighting technique saved the (now) night scenes so that I could still emphasize shadow and light, which was critical for me in the storytelling.

I also got a much more dramatic and beautiful reflection shot in the window against the night sky—one of my favorite shots, in fact. Accepting what wasn’t working and then being pleasantly surprised taught me that you don’t have to be married to everything on the shot list—there’s beauty in the alternative.

I also ended up being one of the drivers to the location set. There was an unfixable problem at the car rental place, which saw me get behind the wheel. I hadn’t driven in eight years—and with very little driving experience in general—and cars have changed such that I didn’t even know how to turn it on. Sam Jackson, one of my wonderful set P.A.’s, gave me second-by-second navigational directions, and we somehow safely made it to Orangeburg, N.Y., which is about 40 minutes outside of Manhattan. Overcoming my fear of getting on the highway gave me this oddly empowering moment, and I felt more ready to step into my directing role when we arrived. 

The emotional core of The Blossom is deeply personal and nuanced. How did you approach working with your actors to bring that authenticity to the screen?

Shahnaz: I met with each actor individually and gave them their character’s backstory. I was very open about this story being loosely based on my family, and so I felt I could share personal conversations easily with the talent. For the children in the film, ages 7 and 11, I did weekly calls to build trust, and to work on the weightiness of the emotions they needed to communicate. Because there is so little dialogue in the script, I needed them to show this self-awareness of the tension between the parents. I felt they did a good job in the film.

In working with Raquel Orendain Shrestha—who was excellent, and who held the main role of Maya, I remember telling her once that she captured Maya’s tough veneer, but in the aftermath of her mother’s suicide, she still needed to show that her heart was breaking at the same time. As a director who values the work of artists as a guide when it comes to framing a shot, I sent Raquel a few images of paintings by Edward Hopper. I wanted to capture the stillness he did in much of his work to communicate isolation and desolation. I was thrilled when she sat forward in her chair hunching her shoulders during filming, mirroring the woman in his “Hotel Room.”

These are just a few examples, but of course, as this story is personal to me, I worked to make the actors understand the underlying emotions that existed within my family.  

You found your editor, Susan B. Ades, through the NYWIFT member directory. Can you talk about that experience and how collaborating with a fellow NYWIFT member shaped the final film?

Shahnaz: When I read Susan’s bio, I immediately wanted to work with her. Susan has a B.A. in painting and an M.A. in art education. What that translated into for me was she could bring a measure of artistry to my film. The creative choices I made with certain shots veer more to the artistic side. And in fact, art is a big influence, particularly the work of Edward Hopper for this film because of his emphasis on shadow and light. I felt Susan and I could communicate in “art terms” as well. In the end, I made the absolute correct choice—Susan added poetry to the film with her thoughtfulness and keen eye, and beautiful sensitivity. 

Susan, what was that collaboration like from your perspective, and how did that connection influence your creative process on the film?

Susan: Well, I just fell in love with Shahnaz right from the start! Such intelligence, drive and happy determination! To create something these days as a new filmmaker takes a lot of passion and perseverance as all of us in Independent Film are very well aware. So just to get to the point where you’re delivering footage to an editor is a huge accomplishment. I so appreciated Shahnaz’s openness about her experience producing the film. Communicating honestly about both her trials and tribulations as well as successes about the process helped bring us closer into alignment quickly. We forged a solid working relationship from the start and strategized how best within her resources, to achieve a beautiful finished product. Our conversations were always productive and respectful. I think for me, knowing I am working with another NYWIFT member always brings me pride, and I am always so happy to share my years of knowledge and experience. And if a new filmmaker is interested, I do try to mentor in any way I can.

NYWIFT has really been a gift both personally and professionally for the many years I’ve been connected with it. I am so happy that Shahnaz found me and I look forward to working with her and my many other NYWIFT sisters in the future.

As the editor of The Blossom, how did you approach shaping such an emotionally layered story, particularly when working with themes of memory and revelation?

Susan: My job as editor is always, first and foremost, to understand at the deepest levels what the director wants to say, and how they want to say it. When Shahnaz first came to me with her footage, we had these essential discussions up front, and very quickly identified creative strategies for pulling everything together. 

A challenge for shaping this edit was balancing the family relationships seen both through memory as well as present day action, in a very compressed amount of time with very little dialogue. Very early on in the process we discussed possibilities of reinforcing some of the storyline with additional memory shots. Shahnaz was open to collecting that additional footage even though it meant bringing back actors and crew. That said a lot to me about her passion to go the extra mile when it came to telling her a story. And it really paid off! With that additional footage, we were able to illuminate moments unseen by the daughters, helping to clarify the mother’s emotional turmoil that lay at the heart of the film.

Folding in those moments both at the beginning and the end of the film, strengthened both the story structure as well as the understanding of the daughter’s internal struggle to come to terms with her mother’s suicide really enriched the film.

Shahnaz, looking back on the production, is there a particular moment, either on set or in post-production, that felt especially meaningful or affirmed that you were on the right path?

Shahnaz: I would point to what emerged from the pick-up shots during the post-production process. I appreciated Susan’s close study of the script. She noted that one thing was missing for her: a shot of the mother standing at the water’s edge. Susan reiterated this when she started to weave all of the footage together. She felt this would better connect the dots where the theme of water is concerned. I took her advice on this and what else was necessary to fix or add, particularly the reflection shot in the water at the end of the film, which was not working due to the time of year on Day 2 of the shoot.

When I sifted through all of the pickup shots, I found I could create a more captivating way in for the audience. I took three different angles of the mother’s character standing by the water, inter-splicing it with the Over Black dialogue —the conversation between the two sisters—which was the original start to the film. That was a significant moment for me, now making sound directing choices for the film and feeling secure in moving away from what was on the page. 

Now that The Blossom is beginning to reach audiences, what do you hope viewers take away from the film, and what’s next for you as a filmmaker?

Shahnaz: I hope The Blossom resonates with viewers in a few ways. Self-reflection is always a key part to our growth, and I hope this film inspires a little bit of that. Elsewhere, my wish is that people reflect back on their own family history, particularly the relationship they had with their parents growing up, and if it is necessary, to look at anything that may have been painful, but through a different lens. This film is really about memory and time, and how our perspective changes when we are older. 

What’s next for me: I am planning my next short film. The script is ready with some of the talent in place, and so the search begins for funding, with an aim to shoot by November. I do hope to translate this short into the bigger feature, and am working on that.

Shahnaz wrote more about her experience as a first-time filmmaker for Muse by Clios, and you can check out a review of the film at Unseen Films.

Connect with Shahnaz Mahmud on LinkedIn and on Instagram at @shahnaz__mahmud.

Connect with Susan B. Ades via her website www.pullingittogetherproductions.com or on LinkedIn.  

About the Writer/Director

Shahnaz Mahmud is a filmmaker, writer and journalist. She was selected to participate in the 2020 Athena Film Festival’s Writers Lab. She is a participant of the Sundance Institute’s Press Inclusion Initiative launched in 2019. She is a recipient of the 2017 Development Studio Screenwriting Fellowship through the NYU Production Lab. 

An award-winning journalist, Shahnaz has worked both in the U.S. and abroad. She was based in the U.K. for four years covering global finance. She has written for such publications as Adweek, Cineaste, FIFA Professional Football Journal, Screen Daily/Screen International, Sports Business Journal, Sundance Institute and The Hollywood Reporter, The New York Times/The Athletic. 

Shahnaz began her career as a researcher with ABC News and also worked on documentary programming for the A&E Television Networks. She has an M.A. with concentrations in screenwriting and film studies and a B.A. in English & American literature and journalism from NYU. 

Shahnaz is based in New York City. 

About the Editor

Susan B. Ades has edited numerous award-winning documentary and narrative films for over 20 years. Those include her first feature film, For The Next 7 Generations (2009) produced and directed by Emmy winners Carole and Bruce Hart; Nrityagram: For the Love of Dance (2010) shot by New York Times dance photographer Nan Melville; The Rescue of the Jews of Syria (2012) directed by Lisa Ades (GI Jews); the comedy series The Other F-Word (2016-2017) directed by Caytha Jentis, to name a few.

Susan resides in New York City, where in 2014 she created her production company Pulling It Together Productions, LLC.

In addition to freelance work as an editor and consultant, she produces original works, and mentors aspiring filmmakers. 

 (All images courtesy of Shahnaz Mahmud; set photos by Shireen Mahmud)