Two-time Academy Award-winning filmmaker, Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy, proudly celebrated the successful conclusion of the fourth iteration of Pakistan’s largest filmmaking grant and mentorship program Patakha Pictures, “Her Earth Advocates,” featuring ten filmmakers from across Pakistan. This seven-month program, “Her Earth Advocates,” which started in April 2024, focused on the central themes of climate change and women’s empowerment in Pakistan and was funded by the United States Institute of peace. Over the past several months, ten aspiring filmmakers came together – Maira Pasha & Shifa Rajput, Nadia Zartaj & Nagina Jabeen, Natasha Javed & Nirmal Bano, Sabika Noor Ali & Namrah Sikander, Saro Imran & Zareen Rajpoot – and participated in an intensive online mentorship series with Patakha Pictures’ international mentor, Sundance Award-Winning documentary filmmaker Jesse Ericka Epstein, concluding with an in-person editing and closing event in Karachi.
This collaboration resulted in five short documentary films which offer unique perspectives on the environmental challenges faced by communities in Pakistan. The closing event celebrating the completion of the program, took place in Karachi. The Fellows showcased their work and were celebrated for their determination to tackle climate change issues.
In attendance were two-time Academy Award-winning filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, Sarwat Gillani [who also hosted a panel discussion with Jesse Ericka Epstein and Patakha Pictures fellows], Mehwish Hayat, Syra Yousuf, Saqib Malik, Ali Hamza, Samina Ahmed, Kompal Iqbal, Sheema Kermani, Alycia Dias, Amean J., Sania Maskatiya, Safinaz Muneer, Maheen Khan, and Fahad Mirza, to name a few, along with mentor Jesse Ericka Epstein, who shared valuable insights with the participants.
