Heen (2023), Emirati Cinema, And Why We Need More People Like Saeed
I have been a “cinephile” for a long time. I have lived, and breathed movies for as long as I can remember. It is an artform that has been very close to my heart, one that has shown me the true nature of human creativity. However in over 15 years of loving cinema, there has always been one crucial thing missing. The elephant in the room that I could never shake off. The unfortunate truth of the dwindling and nonexistent film industry in my own home country of the UAE. I am extremely proud of all the incredible things we have been able to achieve, whether it be towering skyscrapers or the advancement in technology, you can never deny our ability to go for something when we put our minds to it. However, I cannot say the same thing about our creative output. We, unfortunately, are devoid of a proper creative output. Where one can come and express themselves through movies, books, or just art in general. That is not to say that we have never had any of these mentioned. We do have the occasional Emirati film that pops up once in a while, though it is usually something such as Hajwala or a generic horror movie that has zero personality or creativity. Which is why I say that we are lacking that freedom to truly express ourselves. We do not have the support or the funding to truly take advantage of all the brilliant people/ideas that live in this country.
However, me preaching all this comes with a big caveat which is that I am also to blame. I have not done my part in supporting and showcasing Emirati talent whenever they do put in the effort. This is partly due to my working schedule. I work shifts, and I do not have the luxury of being available anytime a sudden film screening is shown. The other issue is that I have not really known of these screenings or films that may have been shown. since our independent film industry lives and dies by word of mouth. Although I am somewhat active online (not much here anymore unfortunately), I am still unable to get word of these films that are being created under everyone’s noses.
This leads me to Heen, and Saeed’s work. I have known Saeed for a while through social media and have seen him working on Heen for a while. Since seeing images, BTS, and other pieces of marketing, I have been nothing but extremely excited to see this film. This is not due to the fact that Saeed is my online acquaintance, rather it was due to the fact that I am finally seeing someone from my country passionately work on a film with all his heart and soul. I had to see it. Though as I explained above, the nature of my job limits me in the worst possible ways. Saeed graciously invited me to his film screening but I was unable to join. Later on he screened Heen at Cinema Akil and again I was unfortunately on shift. Finally I had the delightful opportunity to catch a private screening of Heen at NYUAD. I grabbed onto the chance, and drove to AD to finally see this elusive film. The end result? Its great, and I wish we have more people like Saeed.
Heen is a truly Emirati picture. Not simply because of the people involved but because of the themes, messages, and overall tone of the movie. This film (though not fully complete at the time of the screening) could not have been created in any other country, because it is unique to our experience. It is a shame that it took me this long to finally experience it but I am glad that I did. From the cinematography to the acting, with such a low and self funded budget I was shocked at the results. One aspect that has always bugged me throughout my 15 years of loving movies is that I have never had an answer to the simple question “What is your favorite movie from your home country?”. I finally have an answer thanks to Saeed, but unfortunately this is not enough. I hope for a time when I am fighting myself trying to squeeze in movies onto my “Top 15 Emirati films of all time” list. It is possible, we just need to work together to achieve it.
This entire article has been mostly centered around my experience. There may be many others who may think that my experience is extreme and that I am not going out of my way to support these Emirati filmmakers. While that may be true, it is also sad that someone who is deeply in love with movies has such a hard time finding, let alone seeing these elusive pictures driven by such talented people. We are good at so many things, but we are bad at this. Which is why I am here to plead to every Emirati cinephile, actor, director, producer, or anyone who has anything to do with films, lets support each other. It is sad that we have these talented people willing to do so much who are not able to get funding. It is sad that we have a finished project such as Heen that is unable to be distributed on a mass scale. It is sad that I have scripts of incomplete films sitting in my Google Drive folder just rotting away because I have no confidence anyone will ever fund it, let alone see it. I am not brave enough like Saeed to go ahead and fund my own movie just because it is something I love. However, the least I and many others can do is support such talents so that they don’t lose hope in their next project. We need to work together. Talk about and support our own industry. Because our film scene will live and die by our hands.
Thanks for reading. Go support Heen any way you can.
Go through their website http://heenfilm.com/
Follow their instagram https://www.instagram.com/heenfilm/
Put it on your watchlist on Letterboxd https://letterboxd.com/film/heen/ (there wasnt a page so I created one)
Go catch a screening whenever it is announced.
