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Oscar at Home

Faiza Hai on 27, Feb 2012 | 6 Comments | in Category: Limelight

Faiza Hai

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Today, you can see the headlines blazing on all the TV channels that, Pakistani documentary ‘Saving Face’ produced by Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy has won the Oscar Award. In the 84 years history of the glorious Oscar awards, it is the first out of hopefully many times to come, that Pakistan has won this historic trophy.

Produced and directed by Daniel Junge and Sharmeen Chinoy, ‘Saving Face’ by is based on a British plastic surgeon Dr Mohammad Jawad, who, in order to better the lives of the acid victims, makes his way back to Pakistan and performs reconstructive surgeries on the survivors. It also revolves around a woman who struggles to make sure that her culprits are imprisoned for life.

The other contestants for the awards were Rebecca Cammisa and Julie Anderson’s film  ‘God Is the Bigger Elvis’, the story of a star who prefers the church over Hollywood, and a Gail Dolgin and Robin Fryday’s film ‘The Barber of Birmingham’, portaraying a 85-year-old barber James Armstrong and the legacy of the civil rights movement. Other contenders were James Spione’s war film ‘Incident in New Baghdad’ and ‘The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom’, based on the Japan’s 2011 earthquake survivors and their struggle to recover from the catastrophic incidents that ravaged their lives.

By saying, “All the women in Pakistan working for change don’t give up on your dreams, this is for you,” Chinoy has surely renewed hopes and spirits in the women of Pakistan who fight for their existence and rights each day. `

Let’s not forget, this is not her first time winning an award of such prestige. She won an Emmy for her documentary ‚ ‘Pakistan: Children of the Taliban’ last year and also Livingston Award for Young Journalists, having the privilege of being the first non American to have received the title. Her films have also had the privilege of being featured on Channel 4‚ CNN‚ PBS‚ and Al-Jazeera.

Starting her career in 2002 with New York Times Television where she produced Terror’s Children‚ based on Afghan refugee children‚ she secured her the Overseas Press Club Award‚ the American Women and Radio and Television Award‚ and the South Asian Journalist Association Award. Since then‚ there has been no stopping for Chinoy. She has produced more than twelve films around the world which include four multi-award winning documentary films for New York Times Television.

Covering Pakistan’s dual game and the rampant sectarian violence ‚ ‘City of Guilt’ explores the Catholic Church’s pro-life movement and its consequent implications in Philippines‚ South Africa. Several other documentaries including ‘The New Apartheid’ and ‘Birth of a Nation’ also speak for the excellence of Chinoy’s work. These documentaries were made for the Channel 4 in UK for their Unreported World series.  In 2007‚ Obaid had the honor of being awarded with the ‘Journalist of the year’ by the One World Media awards for her unparalleled work in the series. The same year she also traveled to Afghanistan, reported for CNN and took up the task of making ‘Lifting the Veil’ to highlight violence and repression of women in the country.

It was ‘Pakistan: Children of the Taliban’ that won her first Emmy for Pakistan. The documentary brings to light the recruitment and radicalization strategies employed by Taliban‚ their ramifications on the youth and their contribution to overall hopelessness and despair in the people of the region.

In these dark times when people feel trampled and covered with endless hopelessness about their future, and especially the women for whom every stepping every inch is turned into thousand miles of harsh struggle, today, Chinoy has given them a lot to hope for.

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