Exploring the power of visual storytelling: Q&A with Syrian American filmmaker Fatimah Zeni | Part Two

Image of Zeni in front of a still screen from Amal (Image credit: Zoe Van Gelder)

In Part 1 of our interview with filmmaker Fatimah Zeni, she spoke about the work that goes into bringing a film from concept to screening and what it means to be a storyteller and Syrian American in light of the unrest in her family’s home country. In the Part 2 conclusion of that interview, Zeni talks about the joys of filmmaking, her upcoming projects, the intersection of journalism and filmmaking, and what movies she enjoys watching as an up-and-comer in the industry.

PSA: So let's go even deeper. You’re young, you're female, you're Syrian, you're Arab, you're a filmmaker. That's a tough industry, so what is it like to carve out that space? I'm sure there are challenges that go beyond the budget of making a movie and the logistics, but are there any happy surprises you've encountered so far on this filmmaking journey? What are the things that stick out for you on any range of that spectrum from the challenges to the surprises?

FZ: I would love to start with the positives, because I'm so, so grateful for this journey that I've been on so far, and I'm so looking forward to everything that I'm going to do in the future. You know, I'm going to do big things, but every step of the way is amazing. Like with “Amal,” I literally had a super small budget. I posted this idea on Facebook, and I posted this idea on Backstage, and people just got back to me. I didn’t pay any of the crew members. We didn't have a budget, but people were just so willing to offer their time to help make this story come to life. And we even had to do a reshoot one day; if you think about it, that's amazing. And we completed the project and I'm so grateful to all of those people. It just really reinstated a sense of hope. If you want to do something, you can do it. You just have to make sure that you work hard and put yourself out there and I think that’s my favorite part of this journey.

I just did a spec commercial for Doritos. I gathered this team, I was able to pay some people, but people liked the idea, people are like, ‘Yeah, I'm with it.”  And so many things could have gone wrong — we got a location, and I even had a flat tire on the day we were shooting in the morning, so I had to pump that tire up and we did the shoot and that’s amazing. It takes a lot of work, it takes a lot of effort, and it’s definitely so difficult. But really, my favorite part is just the people and the community. Even if you meet a person once, you get to work with them and it’s something so special. I love that.

But yeah, again, it is difficult. It's hard. Especially, I think, being a female in the industry. I used to not believe people when they say that like, no, you're just saying that. But it’s hard, especially when you get to the higher-ups, you have to be strategic about how you think and how you talk; what you do has to be calculated. You have to be very intentional, and you have to make sure that people know you are serious about the job that you're doing. That you mean business, and that means you have to have your business card, you have to look sharp, and you have to present yourself in a good way. And you have to trust yourself, and that can also be hard. You have to have faith.

PSA: Okay, here’s the cliché question: What would you tell little girls who want to go into film? What would you say to kids who are 10 or 15 years younger than you? What would a younger you have wanted to hear about going into this industry?

FZ: It's still a good question, though. I feel like when I was a kid, I would be looking for that, because it helps you get some direction for those questions. I guess I would just tell them that if you want to do it, you can definitely do it. It's not going to be easy, but it is going to be worth it. You just have to make sure that you respect yourself, and you keep yourself strong inside first. Don't let anybody tell you that you can't do something, because if you want to do it, you can do it. And never apologize. That's what I would say.

Still image from Amal. (Image credit: courtesy of TFRK Films media)

PSA: I like that — never apologize. And do you see that there are opportunities? With cuts to arts education funding, do you see the opportunities for children to learn these skills, or do you fear for the future of our arts?

FZ: I think that I don't fear, you know, I think there's always opportunity for young kids to learn and grow. And they can also just be reaching out — if it’s not in your school — reaching out to somebody who does it as a job, and be like, hey, I'm interested in doing this. Asking if people would be willing to give some of their time, and more often than not, I think people would say yes. I know, I would definitely say yes, because it's important to pass these skills down to the next generation, and you want them to be better than you. So, yeah, I think that there's always an opportunity, even when it seems like there's not, you can still make things happen. You know, just ignite the hope. Just believe.

PSA: One more serious question, then a fun one. This past summer, you participated in our Public Square Amplified Citizen Journalism class. So my question is, as a storyteller, what connections can you draw between the storytelling of journalism and the storytelling of fictional filmmaking? So where's that intersection for you? And when you relate those things in your head, when you have a story like this film that you've produced, how do you look at the 24-hour news cycle, which is just constantly bombarding us, and it's very dehumanizing, and then where do you get that spark of an idea that turns into these very human stories, even if they're fictionalized?

FZ: That's a really good question also. So I think when talking about the intersection of journalism and film, I think that they have a lot in common, actually. The reason I even did “Amal” is because I saw a news piece on this guy who was making — this is a true story — he was making a game out of the sound of bombs for his daughter in Syria.

And I think that when it comes to the point where information is consistently bombarding us, it can be dehumanizing, because it's, “This is like this. This happened to this person,” and you kind of get sick of it. It becomes overwhelming.

But I think when you take things one step at a time, and you really take the time to process one piece of journalism, you can develop stories from that piece. And I think that is maybe where journalism differs a little bit. It’s very objective and it’s very neutral. It tells the story, but it doesn't go into the emotions behind the story. And I think that's kind of where filmmaking comes in.

It [filmmaking] comes in where journalism humanizes, right? Because I do think journalism humanizes people, but I also think filmmaking adds that extra pull of emotion that is necessary when it comes to telling a visual story. It really lets you sit with it more because you're experiencing this moment in time with a collection of people and you're slowly just taking everything in. I don't know if that answered your question.

PSA: It absolutely does, thank you. As a follow-up to that, how do you pick and choose the stories you want to get told? How do you pick those pieces out to create these more human, emotional stories?

FZ: There are many answers to this question, but I think the route that I usually take is that I think it's good to push boundaries and write what you do not know. However, I think there's a lot of value in writing what you do know. I think that when you read a piece or see a specific moment in a piece reflected in a moment that maybe you’ve had in your life, or seen in your life, or you know somebody close to you who’s struggling with that…I think ultimately, that's what determines what I pick and choose.

How can I make this small moment, even if it's one line in a piece of news, how can I make this small moment expand into a series of stories to which I or somebody around me has felt relation?  Maybe that story has been told, or maybe it hasn't been told, but it's important to my community. It's important to the world right now. It's important to me right now. It's on my mind. It's something I'm curious about. That’s what determines how I pick and choose.

And I guess another thing too, is I enjoy things that maybe are more controversial. So sometimes, I think it's fun to dig into the other side of what you do not know. Sometimes, that also determines the writing.

PSA: Thank you! I like hearing about your process. A little bit of fun stuff before we wrap up. What's next? Are you working on anything big, anything you can share?

FZ: Yeah, definitely! I'm actually, if all goes well, going to Syria this April with the Syrian American Medical Society, and I'm going to be doing a documentary with them, which I'm really, really excited about. And then I'm also working on my first feature documentary, which is going to be about the healthcare industry. So I'm also really looking forward to that. Those are my main projects right now, but any project I can get my hands on, I’m up for it.  

PSA: Awesome stuff! If we don't speak to you between now and then, wishing you very safe travels. So, a light question to wrap up. What's your go-to movie? If you're going to sit down at the end of a long day and you're going to watch that one film that makes you feel the things you want to feel, what are you as a filmmaker sitting down and watching?

FZ: That’s so hard to answer. It just depends on my mood. I'm trying to think though, what's like a movie I've watched, and I always step away from like, “wow”? There are two movies I’m fond of, and the one I haven’t watched in a while, but I just love the way the story is conveyed. That’s “Moonlight,” I think Barry Jenkins directed it.

PSA: Oh yes, yes, that's a beautiful story!

FZ: Everything about it is just so beautiful, you know, like, and so I would say that's one movie that’s really “wow.” And then there is a movie by Spike Lee that I like, the movie where there's a riot in Brooklyn. “Do the Right Thing.”

PSA: Yes, that's an exceptional movie. Interesting that you mentioned two films that are, to my untrained eye, cinematographically very, very different. Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with me today. We look forward to seeing your future endeavors.

FZ: Thank you!

Ms. Zeni recently released her first short feature, “Amal,” a character-driven drama centering on a father and daughter and the unique way in which they cope with incoming bombs in Aleppo, Syria. She is the founder of TFKR Films and was also a member of the Public Square Amplified 2024 Community Journalism Class.