On The Mountain - A Short Film With A Big Message
Released last year, On The Mountain, is a touching production set against the backdrop of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021. Inspired by real events, the film follows the journey of Rabia Noori (a teacher from Kabul), delicately shining the spotlight on the psychological anguish of those impacted by war.
Starring an almost all-Afghan cast and written by an award-winning Pakistani-Dutch filmmaker, Anya Raza, On The Mountain made its US debut this year on WETA, the PBS affiliate channel, based out of Washington D.C.
Currently presenting her film at screenings in Pakistan and abroad, Raza speaks to Forbes Life about what drove her to make a film about an 'unexpected hero, whose perspective we never get to hear.'
SR: You have an upcoming screening at the Dutch embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan, this week. What has it been like touring with On The Mountain?
AR: Since our premiere in April 2024, we've travelled the world from Lebanon to Bolivia, the US, Canada and Pakistan, and have been featured at festivals, community centers and classrooms. We've had plenty of love along the way, snagging a few awards and nominations to boot. Picture Motion even helped us with a discussion guide to make it easier to host. The positive responses we've had have shown how shared experiences and access to new perspectives are essential for building healthy communities.
The PBS deal felt like a full circle moment for me - having the opportunity to premiere back in DC, the heart of decision-making, and plant that little seed of, does it really have to be this way?
Anya Raza with members of her team during the filming of her film, Still Here. Gaby Sosa
SR: Have you always been driven towards activism and social work?
AR: Activism has always been a part of my personality. From a very young age, I was always busy with social causes, making friendship bracelets to 'save the animals' (as my 7-year-old self would say) or picking up garbage to fight pollution, or even accompanying my mother to volunteer at a local burn victim unit. I've been raised with eyes wide open to what is happening around me. We live in a devastatingly beautiful world that contains multitudes, of both joy and despair. What can we do to make this world a more balanced and peaceful place for everybody, not just ourselves? Much of my career was dedicated to humanitarian work. Oftentimes, my job was to counter conventional narratives and transform beneficiaries from statistics to three-dimensional people, in order to raise awareness and funds. To me, this work has always felt deeply personal.
Anya Raza Mobeen Ansari
SR: Rabia Balkhi, the 10th-century poet from Afghanistan, inspired one of your characters in the film. Could you tell us more about how she influenced the role of Rabia Noori?
AR: Rabia Balkhi lived over a thousand years ago, and is the first poet known to write in Persian. In many ways, a symbol of defiance against patriarchy, she spoke truth to power beautifully. Inspired by her fearlessness and honesty, we show our protagonist strong and poised as the family battles for their survival in On The Mountain.
Rabia Balkhi fought until her dying breath - to be with the man she loved, a slave, named Baktash. This is what inspired me to show the love and tenderness in a family, and how they care for each other at a time of crisis. A reminder that love is universal, and limitless. To paraphrase the iconic author, Arundhati Roy, the world keeps telling us who to love, how to love, and how much. As if they know that to love, is to move mountains.
SR: How do you see your parallel passions, filmmaking and activism, creating much-needed conversations in the near future?
AR: In my last film, Still Here (2022), you see Omar, a survivor of state-sanctioned torture, wrestle with his healing journey. You don't have to show the violence to recognize the damage it causes. My hope is to always stand up for the voices that fall through the cracks.
With my films, my hope is simply for the audience to be captivated by a story they've never heard before. The first step is getting people to care. With all my work, my goal has always been to break down silos, encourage empathy and work towards practical and fair solutions. At my core, I believe we need a radical redistribution of power and wealth, so we can finally start putting people over profit.
A behind the scenes photo from On The Mountain. Satchi Hover
SR: What has been the biggest roadblock that you experienced during the making of On The Mountain?
AR: I wanted to make a piece of art that didn't need any footnotes. I wanted people to watch, and even if they had no connection to global politics the last two decades, that they would think, this isn't right. From writing to shooting to editing, we had to work in short bursts, because emotions were so high. In between takes, Zaki, in real life Sayed Akbari, was receiving frantic calls from his distraught nieces in Kabul because schools for girls were shutting down. This is real life, for many.
During the edit, I had to tow the line between exposing the truth, without sensationalizing it. I had an incredible team, all who had experience with resettlement, and with them we were able to iterate until we made a gem that not only felt raw, but right.
A still from Anya Raza's film, How She Moves (2020) which shone the spotlight on Indu Mihta, a renowned Pakistani dancer and choreographer. The film won 7 awards and was showcased at 27 global film festivals. Aisha Linnea
SR: Talk to me about the funding aspect for independent filmmakers like yourself. How do you navigate those crushing funding challenges?
AR: You don't. The industry doesn't make sense. On one hand we're starving for new stories, on the other, new perspectives don't get the time of day. Millions of dollars are being pumped into reality TV, while actual real-life stories don't get airtime. We have short attention spans but streamers don't plug short films. All we can do is keep looking for like-minded people and hoping that they recognize what you have to offer.
SR: What's next for you Anya? You mentioned that your next film is currently in post-production…
AR: It's a short film on time, healing and friendship, told through a variety of creatures, human and otherwise, in a public park. It's a lighter piece with heavier undertones - a reminder that joy is cathartic for healing, and that we must be there for one another. I also have a feature in development, which I'm very excited about!
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