'To stop the tears'... Mobile Filmmakers 2006 by Yasmin Ahmad

Amy Ikram Disember 14, 2009

Articled from Yasmin Ahmad's Films Book by Amir Muhammad.

'The film of hers that reminds me the most of a haiku is a short she did for Mobile Filmmakers, a project by Discovery Channel and Nokia in 2006. As the name might suggest, it's about making films on mobile phones!. She was one of several Sotheast Asian filmmakers invited to take part. Her short was called To Stop The Tears you can view it online at Yasmin Short 2006 ( please click here )'. said Amir Muhammad

Yasmin's favourite literary form is haiku. To explain why, she quoted two of them by Kobayashi Issa. The first is:-

a broken web-
a refugee spider is still
looking for a home

And then there's

don't worry, spider
I keep house
casually

Each haiku is necessarily brief, but in these two complete poems, Yasmin saw a well of humanity. They weren't just about spiders, but about caring for those more vulnerable than ourselves, and therefore she noted: "In just a few words, a writer is able to convey a feeling which could very well save Mankind, seeing the way the world is heading these days."