Filmmaking in a week

I'm Azhur Saleem, and one of the filmmakers embarking on this project. Just a brief intro, I've been interested in filmmaking for a long time now, having made a number of short films. I'm currentlly studying at The London Film School.

Well, after we all decided on the subject, I got home and the actual logistics of producing a short film in a week slowly dawned on me. We've been told that this blog is a day by day account of the creative process, so here goes...

I've decided that I'm going to work with instinct on this. I don't think I've really got time to formulate an idea and keep reworking it till I feel it's 'ready' to shoot. Therefore, what I end up with might work and generate debate, criticism etc etc or it just might fall on it's face amid murmurs of "what did that mean?" But it's this chance of experimenting and the risk of failing which attracted me to this project in the first place. Also, the immediacy of a film-in-a-week is quite refreshing in a process that normally takes several months from start to finish.

What interested me most about the debate on Sunday, was the idea of heroes, and what is a hero? This made me think about suicide bombers, and how in certain parts of the world they would be considered as heroes. I want to make something that could show this idea, and challenge peoples' perception of a hero/suicide bomber. I want to also point out for the record that I don't condone what's going on, but I can see the reason why people would go to such extremes.

Well, I have a few ideas circulating around my head, and I'll jot them down on here when they're feeling a bit more solid.