A Pakistani short film namely “Stray Dogs Come Out at Night” has been chosen to be showcased at the 2020’s Oscar-qualifying Palm Springs International Festival of Short Films.
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A Pakistani short film namely “Stray Dogs Come Out at Night” has been chosen to be showcased at the 2020’s Oscar-qualifying Palm Springs International Festival of Short Films.
In addition, the film has also been nominated for two awards, Best Live Action Short and Vimeo Staff Pick Award, as part of the festival.
The film, Stray Dogs Come Out at Night, written and directed by Hamza Bangash elaborates the story of a young Maalishwala Iqbal who is about to go through an HIV-positive diagnosis
Maalishwala lives with his uncle in a flat based in Karachi in a small one-bedroom. Both being migrants from Punjab abandon their families in a way and navigate a dangerous industry.
Impatient for interlude, finally Iqbal asks his uncle to take him to Seaview. Once they arrive, the call of the Arabian sea proves to be too strong for Iqbal.
Thus the film actually deals with factors such as migration, toxic masculinity and urban loneliness. The director of film said that the film basically resembles his own personal life experiences.
The film reveals the dark side of the nation that is about sexuality and capitalism, as unfortunately seen most of the time in the country.
According to Bangash, the casting was a bit tricky as no one was motivated to take part in a film of such nature. At last, Mohammad Ali Hashmi and Adnan Shah Tipu took the chance of being part of the film.
Hashmi and Tipu’s were both famaliar with the Punjabi language which turned out very helpful in the film as it was in Punjabi.
The Pakistani short film had its world premiere at the Clermont-Ferrand International Film Festival in France, considered to be the Cannes for short films. Stray Dogs Come Out at Night was the first Pakistani film to be selected in the history of the festival.
Bangash puts ih his words: “The film was primarily made for the audience, so when things are better, mainly intends to tour the country with his film.
The 26th edition of the Palm Springs International Festival of Short Films, considered to be one of the most prestigious film festivals in North America, has put together a program of 332 short films in the categories of animation, documentary, episodic pilots and music video for a virtual festival running June 16-22.