Hobby classes have taken a backseat this summer. Kids and adults are keen on filmmaking and theatre workshops that allow them to materialise concepts inspired by celluloid
While he was part of a filmmaking workshop in Mumbai, Akshat Nigam got an idea for a movie that reflected on the city and and its inhabitants, five months after Mumbai’s terror attacks. His source was a young child.
“The plot began with a person dreaming that he was being killed by terrorists. When he awoke, he faced the same situation in reality. Terrorism in Mumbai. In a simple, interesting way he transformed this reality into a script,” shared Akshat, director of the Delhi branch of Pomegranate Workshops, a company that has been organising filmmaking and screenplay groups in Mumbai and Delhi.
Akshat said the incident is an example of how kids are imbibing ideas from what happens around. They also take note of how such incidents convert into films. “They do not need tutorials to learn how to conceive an idea, Bollywood and TV has given them enough options,” said Akshat.
As we celebrate 100 years of cinema, it is interesting to note that Bollywood has contributed a great deal towards changing children’s thinking patterns. They are like young professionals who need technical knowledge on how to make a film. When it comes to creativity they already have it all.
Akshat told us that a group of children were inspired by French director Georges Melies science fiction film, Trip To The Moon (1902), to create a ‘modern version’ that could compete with any feature. Akshat will be taking a summer workshop next month. It will be a screenplay workshop where kids watch films from all over the world, observing the earth and its hidden stories, then learning technical aspects like handling a video camera, shooting and editing a film, “not with software, but showing them how to edit clips, which portions to keep, what to cut.” Apart from workshops by Pomegranate, Habitat will hold others by different groups dealing with various aspects of stage and filmmaking. This summer, filmmaking and theatre workshops will be organised at many other locations as well
Reason for the rise
TV and cinema has not only given ideas to youngsters but also aspiration. There is awareness that filmmaking is not only about being an actor. Behind the camera jobs are equally interesting.
“Earlier there were barely any programmes on TV that explained the making of a film. But now talking about behind-the camera scenes is an exercise that filmmakers use to promote a movie. I feel this has contributed to making children interested. My son had a knack for writing and reads a lot. The reason why I will enroll him in a filmmaking workshop, is because I know that if his skills are honed, he could freelance or make his hobby a passion and then a profession,” said Shilpy Gupta, mother of a 11-year-old, who looks forward to making workshops a regular feature of her child’s schedule. Children are geeks and a love for gadgets and software interests them in filmmaking.
Support system
Earlier when children were interested in acting, writing or cameras, parents chose hobby classes to divert them. Nitya Kukreja of Cynosure India said, “Workshops are expensive, and it’s often not easy to get kids to attend them regularly. However, they are investing, obviously hoping for returns. And they seem to believe in letting a child do what he/she wants. Moreover, filmmaking and theatre workshops help in the overall personality development. For example, a speaking workshop trains the child to be a confident public speaker.” Kukreja has been holding workshops for nine years.
Veteran’s take
Arvind Gaur of Asmita Theatre Group was apparently the first to start theatre workshops in the city. He told us 18 years back, National School of Drama held workshops for children and adults. The theatre director added there have many examples of actors who identified their passion for acting through workshops, like Kangna Ranaut. “Recently many actors joined workshops to train for a role in a particular film. Imran Khan took lessons for Matru Ki Bijli Ka Mandola. Sonam Kapoor for Ranjhana. Youngsters feel workshops prepare them for industry. Their major contribution lies in letting a child identify what he or she wants to do in the future,” he ended.
(Pics are only representational)