SYNOPSIS

We follow Safa, a 17 year-old muslim girl on a day where time is of the essence in making her dreams come true. The only problem is, in order to make it where she needs to be, she has to overcome a few obstacles along the way. Growing up in a multi-generational, traditional Pakistani household means enduring an over-bearing Pakistani Grandmother whose cultural ideologies doesn’t align with Safa’s. Along with the added pressure on Safa to ensure her Mother, who is sick with cancer gets the medication she needs to make it through this particular day. As Safa embarks on what can only be described as her “moment of truth”, we see her confront levels of cultural stigma and islamophobia from the community around her. Will Safa be able to believe in herself enough to overcome and withstand these challenges in pursuit of her dreams?

DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

My hope is to be able to push boundaries and rewrite the narrative of muslim centric stories. Being able to create a world that is not just relatable but educates the audience on what it means to be a muslim, in particular a muslim girl, is extremely important to me. I believe in 4-dimensional story-telling and being as authentic as I possibly can when bringing a story to life on screen. I write stories that I wish I had seen when I was little. As a director, I understand the importance of taking these stories and manifesting it into something magical on-screen because it could possibly change the trajectory of how audience members views themselves and the world around them. Visually, each shot, angle, dialogue and setting is intentional to create a world that not only pushes the story forward but also connects the audience to the story. My goal is to rewrite the narrative for those living in marginalized community in an authentic way. There’s no denying the lack of relatable content available onscreen. If I had been exposed to characters on screen that were more relatable, I often wonder if their character arc would almost, if not perfectly align with my own? Would they have faced the same challenges I’ve had to endure, being the first-born Canadian Muslim in my family? To be a part of a journey that allows even just one young girl who may feel and/or look different reach a level of understanding that no matter what happens, with dedication and belief in themself, anything is truly possible – is wondrous.