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Don't be late, Myra
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TYPE: Narrative Short
GENRE: Drama
STATUS: In Distribution
LOGLINE
A school girl walks home alone as some men on the street harass her. Will she be able to reach home safely?
SYNOPSIS
A ten-year-old Pakistani school girl, Myra, is forced to walk home alone, dodging the men harassing her on the road…but soon things escalate in this thriller where a sinister turn quietly awaits her.
ARTISTIC STATEMENT
My latest short film “Don’t be late Myra” takes me back to Pakistan where I explore a very taboo subject from my childhood: the harassment and sexual assault of children. Through this film, I want to break the silence and spur a conversation on how to make our children safe in both public and private spaces…and how to chip away at patriarchy…one story at a time.
KEY CREW
Afia Nathaniel - Writer, Director, Producer
Pakistani American filmmaker, Afia Nathaniel, was raised between Lahore and several air force bases where she grew up with a deep love for fighter jet planes, long road trips and discovering worlds hiding in plain sight. Afia directed an episode of Chicago Med (NBCU Female Forward) becoming the first Pakistani-American female director to be hired by a US network/studio in episodic directing (one-hour drama). Her debut feature, a road trip thriller, “Dukhtar” (Daughter) premiered at Toronto (2014) becoming Pakistan’s Official Submission for Best Foreign Language Film at the 87th Academy Awards®. The film played to critical acclaim in over 20 countries to rave reviews and became the Critics’ Pick (Village Voice) and the People Magazine’s Pick of the Week. The film has won several awards including the Adrienne Shelly award for Directors, Audience Award at Creteil, Best World Feature at Sonoma and Best Director among others. Afia has been featured in the Variety, NYT, Indiewire, NPR, Huffington Post and Screen Daily. Variety says, “Nathaniel proves her mettle in a national industry where distaff directors are rare” with Indiewire labeling Dukhtar as “groundbreaking”, NYT calling it “exquisite” and LA Times billing it as a “gorgeous, suspenseful cinematic achievement”. Afia graduated from Columbia University with an MFA in Film Directing (Dean’s Fellow). She is an alumnus of Gotham, TFI, Film Independent and Berlin Talent Project Market. Afia has been a generous mentor to several emerging filmmakers and has taught screenwriting and directing at: Columbia, Princeton, Tisch and Temple.
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