Nick name: Sheeru, Potatoman, P Man
DOB: 14-03-92
Favorite quote: “We may be human, but we’re still animals.” – Steve Vai
Achievements: Well I’d say that working with and learning from a talented bunch of artists till now has been a huge achievement for me because I learn something new from every project.
Tell us a bit about yourself?
I’d say I’m just an ordinary guy whose curiosity has led him to explore multiple fields and then trying to blend them together. To be specific, I would classify myself as a musician and filmmaker but still on my way to extensively explore both of these fields.
Inspirations?
Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Coldplay, Yanni, John Mayer, Jimi Hendrix, a couple of friends, and everything around me.
Study/professional background?
Still burdened by academics, completing my degree of Bachelors of Social Sciences in Media Studies.
At what age or time in life did filmmaking cross from a hobby to something more serious?
It was around 2 years ago when I decided that this is what I really want to do, as for me filmmaking brought together all of my passions; photography, music, storytelling/writing, and magic.
How would you define the actual role that a director is supposed to fill?
A director is like the CEO of a company. He’s keeping everyone together, keeping their morale in check, having a vision and then guiding his team to achieve what he has envisioned. He knows about all the jobs that his team members are doing that allows him to keep everything in check in terms of quality, but he doesn’t meddle in their work, trusts them and their creative freedom to perform the jobs they are assigned to.
What limitations does a movie director have, for example can he also work as an editor or cinematographer as well as a director on a film?
It depends on the project, the budget and the director’s choice. A director needs to know at least the basics of editing and cinematography because without the knowledge he won’t be able to guide his crew properly and tell them what he wants. Speaking from a personal experience, all the music videos
I’ve directed till now, I have been doing their editing and cinematography too. Later on if the budget of a project allows me I would rather hire another editor or another cinematographer to do these jobs as this is what they have specialized in and that will naturally give better results. It is always better to let an expert of the particular field to handle that work.
You’ve worked with a lot of underground artists in Islamabad, what makes you direct/produce their music videos?
Firstly it is my passion that automatically makes me hungry for creative work, and secondly it is the artists themselves; their dedication, hard work, seriousness and creativity is what appeals to me.
How was your experience working with Shamoon on his two videos?
Working with Shamoon is always great. I really find it easy to take “creative risks” or trying something new when it comes to working with Shamoon, whether it’s music videos or just music.
What are some qualities in yourself and others that make one suitable for film directing?
Being open to criticism, dedication, consistency, having basic knowledge of the major sub fields of filmmaking, leadership, self-motivation, thinking out of the box, taking risks, and not being afraid to get out of their comfort zone are some of the qualities I think a director should have. I’m still working on mastering some of them myself.
What's the best advice you could give someone new to filmmaking?
I’m not sure if I am yet in the position to give advice to anyone, but I would say that if they think they don’t have the right camera or the right microphone or the right lens and any other sort of equipment, then it just doesn’t matter. Focus on the storytelling part of filmmaking as you have control over that. If your story lacks in quality then even shooting with a million dollar equipment would we useless.
What made you want to become a music producer?
I’ve been a musician long before I was a director, and it was always the fascination and wonder in creating your own music that led me to become a producer. I would compose and come up with melodies for different instruments, but I was too impatient to wait and have someone play it for me so I would just try to produce it myself, and as I did that I got to know how technically and creatively vast this field is.
Thoughts on:
Shamoon
Shamoon’s an amazing guy, amazingly talented and really serious about what he does. He’s as crazy as me so we make a good team!
Naseer
Naseer is just inspiring, crazy, multi-talented, and if it wasn’t for him then I wouldn’t have had the exposure I have right now as a music producer. Also, I love his guitar and if he doesn’t watch out I’d steal it from him! Haha!
Adil Omar
What I love about Adil is that he really knows what he is doing and in terms of rap/hip hop he has really worked hard to get where he is now. If “dedication” was a person, it would be Adil.
What is the biggest struggle as a music producer?
Saturation. Every other guy or a beat maker with a bit of equipment calls himself a music “producer” these days, and that is why credibility for serious producers with an actual original sound of their own is reduced. Along with that, it is the non-seriousness of the artists who believe the music producer is like their slave who will do anything they want whenever they want, which is just a totally bullsh*t way of thinking.
What are the key tasks for a music producer?
As the name suggests, he “produces” or creates the music and the sound of the artist which the artist will be known for. He may or may not compose or arrange the song, but the overall sound of the song or album is determined by the producer. From “sound” I mean the type of instruments a producer chooses to add, the type of mixing, and the overall feel appropriate to the requirement of a song. He needs to make sure that the artist doesn’t hold back anything that is required and also needs to know how to guide the artist throughout the process of the music production.
What are top 3 knowledge/top 3 skills for a music producer?
Honestly, the more the better!
1. He needs to be technically, musically and acoustically sound.
2. Have trained ears.
3. Should know how to work WITH the artist rather than working under the artist or being too over-assertive.
What is the most recent skill you have learned that is related to a music producer?
I’m learning something new every day, but one skill I’m really trying to work on these days is orchestration.
What are your strengths and weaknesses?
The ability to motivate myself, being a team leader when needed, and the fact that I get curious about things quite easily and frequently that makes me want to learn more about them, so these are my strengths.
For weaknesses, I’d say I can be way too much of a perfectionist sometimes which results in the job not being done at all.
What do you prefer doing most music production or video production?
I would choose video production because I get to throw in a lot more creativity into it than music production, where I am limited to the artist’s style of music. If I were to choose between music production of my own songs or video production of my own work, then I would choose music production because I can communicate a lot more freely and effectively through my music than a video.
If you got an offer from Bollywood to go and work there and at the same time you got an offer from Lollywood, where would you go and work?
Pakistan has a lot of stories to tell and needs to project its culture and identity to the world, and there is no better medium than film, so I would stick to the film industry here. Not that I have something against Bollywood, but its just that they have already established their identity and I would have to mold my work according to their requirements which doesn’t suit me. In other words, I’d prefer working for the revival of my own Pakistani cinema here.
Any message for your fans?
Thank you for your support till now and keep supporting our work. We do it for the love of our work but without an audience the message we are trying to communicate would be useless.
Thoughts on lespectra?
You’re doing an awesome job in promoting indie and underground artists. Keep it up!
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