Interview: Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy, the First Pakistani Oscar Nominee

by Nadia Rasul

Visual storyteller and Academy Award nominee Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy spoke to Asia Blog recently about the strong tradition of storytelling in Pakistan, the need for spreading awareness and generating dialogue about critical social issues in the country, the impact of digital media technologies on her work and what an Oscar nomination means to her.

Chinoy is the first Pakistani to be nominated for an Academy Award for her film Saving Face. Her film, which is up for an Oscar in the Best Documentary, Short Subject category deals with the issue of acid violence on women in Pakistan.

She acknowledges that there are people who feel she presents a negative image of Pakistan in her work, however she feels “that it is important to address issues instead of running away from them, and that the first step is to accept that we have faults just like every other country”. According to Chinoy, winning an Academy Award will allow “people to see a different side of Pakistan, even if it is just for one night. Here is an excerpt of the interview.

In the 10 years since you started your career as a filmmaker, how has storytelling in Pakistan evolved, especially with the changes in the digital media landscape?

Pakistan has always had a rich history of story telling. We have a tradition of oral history and narrative driven content which is reflected in our literature, art and music. When I started my career 10 years ago, Pakistan had two state run TV channels — now we have over 80 privately owned channels along with dozens of radio stations and newspapers. This coupled with a booming digital media community has had incredible results on the documentation of our culture and access to information and news. Digital media in particular, breaks barriers between the storyteller and the audience allowing for more voices in the public sphere. The fluidity and inclusive nature of this medium has been specifically beneficial for the youth of Pakistan.

We have a thriving blogging community and filmmakers and artists have the opportunity to promote and distribute their work online. This is an exciting time to be part of the creative community in Pakistan. Our music is bringing people together, our literature is garnering international acclaim and our film industry is breaking boundaries and expanding. I am thrilled by the possibilities presented by an open and free media, and hope that we continue to patronize these institutions.

Read the rest of the interview on Asia Society website here