Pakistan’s first hand-drawn animated film, ten years in the making, hits cinema screens

Special Pakistan’s first hand-drawn animated film, ten years in the making, hits cinema screens
In this photograph, taken on July 23, 2024, Pakistani animator Usman Riaz speaks during an interview with Arab News in Karachi. (AN Photo)
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Updated 27 July 2024
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Pakistan’s first hand-drawn animated film, ten years in the making, hits cinema screens

Pakistan’s first hand-drawn animated film, ten years in the making, hits cinema screens
  • 250 creatives from Pakistan, Malaysia, Canada, South Africa, the US and UK have worked to complete “The Glassworker”
  • Artist and composer Usman Riaz hand-drew each frame of film, which comprises 1,477 cuts and 2,500 individual drawings

KARACHI: Pakistan’s first hand-drawn animated film, “The Glassworker,” is poised to debut nationwide today, Friday, a feature that took its creator Usman Riaz a decade to complete since he first picked up a pencil and started to sketch. 
Riaz has hand-drawn and storyboarded each frame of the movie, comprising 1,477 cuts and 2,500 individual drawings, bringing to life the coming-of-age tale of two people from disparate backgrounds: young Vincent who is an apprentice at his father’s glass workshop, and the talented violinist Alliz, the daughter of a military colonel. Around them, a war threatens to upend their lives and the relationships between the children and parents are tested. 
“It has been a 10-year obsession to get this done,” Riaz told Arab News in an interview this week, saying the film was the work of creatives from Pakistan, Malaysia, Canada, South Africa, the US and UK.
“The film’s production took four years but the entire journey took 10 years. I was 23 when I started and I am 33 now.
“The first year was just me drawing alone. I would stay up all night sketching my concepts for the characters and on the storyboards. I wanted to do it well and present something to the rest of the world of animation that we can proudly say was made in Pakistan.”
Riaz grew up obsessing over animated films and said he had been drawing ever since he could hold a pencil, spending long hours watching films like Kiki’s Delivery Service, Porco Rosso and Princess Mononoke by famed Japanese animation company Studio Ghibli. 
By the time he was 21 in 2012, he was considered something of a whiz at the percussive guitar and was selected that year as a TED Fellow to attend TED Global as a speaker. The TED Fellows program hand-picks young innovators from around the world to raise international awareness of their work and maximize their impact.
The following year, Riaz was selected as a Senior TED Fellow and has since spoken at TED and TEDx conferences in Japan, India, Malaysia, Costa Rica, Turkiye, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States.
In 2015, as the result of giving a TEDxTokyo talk about his love for Japanese animation, Riaz was extended an invitation to Studio Ghibli where he got to share his work with his heroes and was advised to make something that was truly his own. 

After finishing a degree in composition on a full scholarship at the Berklee College of Music in 2017, Riaz returned to Pakistan and co-founded Mano Animation Studios, the country’s first-ever hand-drawn animation facility, with his now wife Mariam Paracha and his cousin Khizer Riaz as its CEO.
“I realized there must be many people like me who loved animation but worked on their own. What if I were to bring some of these artists under one roof?” Riaz wrote in an article for TED in 2016, explaining how Mano Studios came about.
“I searched online for likeminded artists, architects, animators and video game designers, and spread the word by holding workshops in art schools about what I wanted to achieve. I managed to gather a small team of incredibly talented professionals from the UK, South Africa, Malaysia and of course Pakistan.
“I chose the name Mano for the studio because it was my first cat’s name, but I found out later that in Spanish it means “hand” — perfect for a studio that will make animation by hand.”
“COMPELLING STORY”
Riaz said financing to make the film was “extremely difficult” given that Mano was a first-time studio and he was a first-time animation director. 
“As much as I have obsessed over the film since I was a child, there was no way to quantify that when I was pitching,” Riaz said, adding that his network and experience at TED helped him obtain funding and get the right people on board.
A total of 250 people worked on “The Glassworker,” including a national and an international cast and crew. Paracha is the art director on the film and Khizer is the producer, alongside Spanish animation veteran Manuel Cristobal of Wrinkles and Bunuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles. Apoorva Bakshi of Delhi Crime fame is executive producer while international sales are being handled by Charades. The film has been made in both the English and Urdu languages. 
“We got to work with David Friedman on the English language version of ‘The Glassworker’ and that was very special because David has worked on a lot of my favorite animated movies. He and his wife, Lynn Friedman, did the casting for the film with us,” Riaz said, speaking about the conductor of the music scores for Disney’s animated features, including Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Pocahontas and The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

 The voice cast for Riaz’s film includes Art Malik (“Man Like Mobeen”), Sacha Dhawan (“Wolf”), Anjli Mohindra (“The Lazarus Project”) and Tony Jayawardena (“Ackley Bridge”).
“For the Urdu version, I learned everything that I could from David, and I voice-directed it here in Karachi,” Riaz said. 
Before the film releases in Pakistan today, “The Glassworker” had its world premiere on June 10 at the Annecy International Animation Festival 2024 in the Contrechamp competition, the first Pakistani film ever to take part in this competition. The film also received rave reviews at the Shanghai International Film Festival 2024.
“Pakistan’s filmmaking tapestry needed something different and I am hoping that this film could be that,” Riaz added.
“Even though ‘The Glassworker’ is an animated film, I hope people resonate with its characters and story. Animation is just the medium we chose to tell this story. We have a compelling story but ultimately the people will decide.”

 


Bella Hadid describes ‘excruciating pain’ of living with Lyme disease

Bella Hadid describes ‘excruciating pain’ of living with Lyme disease
Updated 13 May 2025
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Bella Hadid describes ‘excruciating pain’ of living with Lyme disease

Bella Hadid describes ‘excruciating pain’ of living with Lyme disease
  • Dutch-Palestinian supermodel was diagnosed with the illness in 2012
  • ‘Sometimes, if I can get in the shower and make myself breakfast, I see that as an accomplishment’

LONDON: Dutch-Palestinian supermodel Bella Hadid has described living with chronic pain due to Lyme disease in an interview with Vogue.

Hadid, 28, was first diagnosed with the disease in 2012. Her mother Yolanda and brother Anwar were also diagnosed.

The supermodel told the magazine that she suffers from headaches, brain fog, light and noise sensitivity, inflammation and joint pain.

Lyme disease can also cause depression, anxiety and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, which Hadid has also reportedly suffered from. The condition is a bacterial infection that can spread to humans through infected ticks.

Hadid said she often feels down on herself “for being so sensitive,” adding: “I think nobody really understands chronic illness. It’s hard to take a shower most days, which I promise, guys, if you’re reading this, I shower every day.

“But sometimes, if I have one day off, if I can get in the shower and make myself breakfast, I see that as an accomplishment.”

In 2020, Hadid used Instagram to describe the illness as an “invisible disease.” She shared a diagram outlining the symptoms, saying: “Everyday I feel at least 10 of these attributes without fail ... since I was probably 14, but more aggressively when I turned 18.”

Symptoms often subside months after an infection, but a minority of people who are diagnosed can experience them for years.

Hadid told Vogue: “Our interview today was at 3 p.m. I was in excruciating pain until 11 a.m. and had a very tough morning.”

The illness is usually treated with a course of antibiotics prescribed by a GP. Those experiencing severe symptoms may be given stronger antibiotics.


Art exhibition reveals lost worlds buried beneath Lebanon’s surface

Art exhibition reveals lost worlds buried beneath Lebanon’s surface
Updated 13 May 2025
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Art exhibition reveals lost worlds buried beneath Lebanon’s surface

Art exhibition reveals lost worlds buried beneath Lebanon’s surface
  • Rubble of cities, Palestinian refugee camps, and construction sites was rearranged into images and transparent capsules
  • Artists, guided by archaeologists, present the city’s entangled history through sculptural forms echoing both the soil and red sand used to cover the land

BEIRUT: Art lovers may embark on an astonishing exploration with Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige into the depths of the waters and soil of Lebanon in search of the hidden secrets of its unseen subterranean worlds.

At the Sursock Museum on Beirut’s historic Sursock Street, Hadjithomas and Joreige have unveiled the results of a decade of research and experimentation in an exhibition titled “Remembering the Light.”

This exhibition serves as a transcendent experience that explores various expressive forms, delving into reflections on time, memory, and the profound transformations of cities, bodies, and history.

The outcome of this research has taken the form of artistic installations, photographs, and sculptures that narrate the intricacies of archaeology, infused with imaginative elements and references to fragility and permanence.

These works evoke perspectives on materiality, memory, and undiscovered narratives, delving into what is buried, forgotten or obscured, at depths reaching 45 meters in a remarkable journey through time.

The exhibition derives its title from a video produced in 2016, in which the two artists explored the spectrum of light underwater and the glow emanating from its depths, addressing the present by collaborating with geologists, archaeologists, poets, divers, and scientists.

The artists said that through the exhibition’s paintings is shown how “unexpected phenomena occur underwater. Sensory perception changes as one descends deeper into the water. The light spectrum diminishes and colors fade, with red disappearing first, followed by orange, yellow, green, and blue, until everything is engulfed in darkness. However, when the dark seabed is illuminated, the obstacles recall the memory of light and reflect it.”

Hadjithomas and Joreige state that the experience undertaken by the divers they enlisted mirrors the dangers faced by migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea. They accompanied this with a scene of a scarf cascading downward, symbolizing memories of a war submerged over time.

The exhibition features a pile of earth layers bearing the material traces of archaeological and geological times in the cities of Beirut, Nahr Al-Bared in northern Lebanon, and Tripoli, completed over the past decade.

The rubble of cities, Palestinian refugee camps, and construction sites was rearranged into images and transparent capsules, revealing shattered scenes of people’s lives over time. The land has therefore turned into a notebook on which Hadjithomas and Joreige recorded the erased stories.

One unfolds in Nahr Al-Bared (Cold River Bed) camp, which was established in 1948 and destroyed after the 100-day conflict in 2007 between Fateh Al-Islam and the Lebanese Army. As reconstruction efforts began and rubble was cleared, layers of archaeological ruins unexpectedly surfaced: the remains of the mythical Roman city of Orthosia, believed to have been destroyed by a tsunami in 551 AD.

At the exhibition, the artists, guided by archaeologists, present the city’s entangled history through sculptural forms echoing both the soil and red sand used to cover the land.

A slideshow of images or testimonies narrates a story that vertiginously weaves together human displacement, military conflict, and archaeological discovery.

Matter extracted from core samples — soil, rocks, clay, and limestone — is carefully stored for analysis by engineers, prior to any construction.

Guided by those archeologists and geologists, the artists collected and re-sculpted these remains of buried worlds to make visible the imprints of successive human occupations, ecological upheavals, and lost civilizations.

History does not unfold as a coherent succession of chronological layers, but rather as a dynamic entanglement of epochs, marked by ruptures, where traces and civilizations intermingle.

Joreige dedicated part of the exhibition to his uncle, who was abducted in 1985 during the Lebanese civil war, piecing together some of his memories.

He gathered whatever undeveloped films he could from his abandoned home, each lasting 180 seconds, and before they faded, he printed them on blank sheets, producing faint impressions that could only be deciphered by looking closely.

Joreige describes them as “an attempt to resist disappearance.”

He said: “It’s a form of mourning that has yet to find closure, memories that have faded but won’t disappear.”


Princess Reema bint Bandar wears Honayda design to welcome President Trump to Saudi Arabia

Princess Reema bint Bandar wears Honayda design to welcome President Trump to Saudi Arabia
Updated 13 May 2025
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Princess Reema bint Bandar wears Honayda design to welcome President Trump to Saudi Arabia

Princess Reema bint Bandar wears Honayda design to welcome President Trump to Saudi Arabia

DUBAI: Princess Reema bint Bandar, Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the US, wore a bespoke creation by Saudi designer Honayda Serafi during President Donald Trump’s visit to Riyadh.

The ensemble consisted of a royal blue floor-length abaya with detailed gold embroidery. The symmetrical patterns extended across the bodice and sleeves, while smaller gold motifs were scattered throughout the lower part of the garment. The dignitary’s look was completed with a matching blue headscarf.

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by HONAYDA (@honaydaofficial)

 

Honayda Serafi, founder of Honayda, shared a statement on Princess Reema’s appearance on Instagram, saying: “I am so pleased and deeply proud to see HRH Princess Reema bint Bandar, our remarkable Saudi Ambassador to the United States, standing as a symbol of strength, progress and leadership, as one of the first women to break barriers and champion women’s empowerment. 

“It is a special moment to see her shine as she welcomes President Trump on his historic visit to Riyadh, wearing a bespoke piece by Honayda for this significant occasion. I look forward to sharing more about the inspiration behind this design,” she added. 

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Reema B Al-Saud (@rbsalsaud)

Serafi is known for dressing prominent figures across the Middle East and the rest of the world. Celebrities who have worn her designs include Priyanka Chopra, Lupita Nyong’o and Princess Rajwa Al-Hussein of Jordan.  

 

She is a favorite of Saudi-born Princess Rajwa and dressed the royal for her henna night festivities in in 2023 and for Jordanian King Abdullah II’s silver jubilee celebrations in Amman in 2024.

The ensemble consisted of a royal blue floor-length abaya with detailed gold embroidery. (Instagram)

Meanwhile, Princess Reema’s participation in Trump’s visit highlighted the long-standing partnership between Saudi Arabia and the US. Writing in The Washington Times this week, she described the visit as “a moment pivotal for global peace, security and prosperity.

“Today, as the world navigates new challenges and conflicts, that partnership is more critical than ever,” she said.

Princess Reema, who presented her credentials to Trump in 2019 when assuming her role as ambassador, said the two nations’ alliance was “not just history; it is a reimagined future.”


The inside scoop on Trump’s hearty lunch in Riyadh

The inside scoop on Trump’s hearty lunch in Riyadh
Updated 13 May 2025
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The inside scoop on Trump’s hearty lunch in Riyadh

The inside scoop on Trump’s hearty lunch in Riyadh

RIYADH: US President Donald Trump, along with top US delegates and business executives, were extended a warm welcome in Riyadh at Al-Yamamah Palace, where dignitaries were treated to a hearty lunch on Tuesday.

The US president, who touched down in Saudi Arabia to start the first major international trip of his second term, enjoyed lunch in the presence of senior Saudi royals, members of the cabinet, leading business executives and editors-in-chief.

The lunch menu included a health conscious three-course meal, with international flair. (Supplied)

US business magnate Elon Musk was also in attendance.

The lunch menu included a health-conscious three-course meal, with international flair.

For the delicate starters, miso beef was plated up along with fermented vegetables.

For the delicate starters, miso beef was plated up along with fermented vegetables and bacon crumble. (Supplied)

For the main course, visiting dignitaries were served grilled black Angus steak alongside “silky potatoes” and a fresh herb salad.

The meal ended on a sweet note with an extra virgin olive oil parfait and a sweet and tart strawberry salad.

Prior to the lunch, President Trump departed Air Force One and was promptly treated to Saudi hospitality in the form of Saudi coffee served by attendants wearing ceremonial gun-belts.


Hollywood stars condemn Gaza ‘genocide’ as Cannes Festival opens

Hollywood stars condemn Gaza ‘genocide’ as Cannes Festival opens
Updated 13 May 2025
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Hollywood stars condemn Gaza ‘genocide’ as Cannes Festival opens

Hollywood stars condemn Gaza ‘genocide’ as Cannes Festival opens

CANNES: More than 380 figures from the cinema world including "Schindler's List" actor Ralph Fiennes condemned "genocide" in Gaza in an open letter published on Tuesday ahead of the Cannes Festival opening.
"We cannot remain silent while genocide is taking place in Gaza," read the letter initiated by several pro-Palestinian activist groups and published in French newspaper Liberation and US magazine Variety.
The signatories -- which include Hollywood stars Richard Gere and Susan Sarandon, as well as acclaimed Spanish director Pedro Almodovar and former Cannes winner Ruben Ostlund -- decried the death of Gazan photojournalist Fatima Hassouna.
Hassouna, 25, is the subject of a documentary which will premiere in Cannes on Thursday by Iranian director Sepideh Farsi, titled "Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk".
Hassouna was killed along with 10 relatives in an Israeli air strike on her family home in northern Gaza last month, the day after the documentary was announced as part of the ACID Cannes selection.
Farsi welcomed the impact of her film but called on Cannes Festival organisers to denounce Israel's ongoing bombardment of the devastated Palestinian territory.
"There needs to be a real statement," she told AFP. "Saying 'the festival isn't political' makes no sense."
This year's Cannes jury president Juliette Binoche was initially said by organisers to have signed the petition, but her spokeswoman told AFP that she had not endorsed it and her name was not published by Liberation.
Other signatories include Jonathan Glazer, the British director of Jewish origin who won an Oscar for his 2023 Auschwitz drama "The Zone of Interest", as well as US star Mark Ruffalo and Spanish actor Javier Bardem.


The Cannes Festival kicks off on Tuesday on the French Riviera, with an opening ceremony headlined by Robert De Niro and three films showing the devastation of Russia's war on Ukraine.
Two documentaries featuring Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and a third film shot on the brutal frontlines of Europe's biggest war in 80 years are to be screened on a "Ukraine Day" of programming.
It is "a reminder of the commitment of artists, authors and journalists to tell the story of this conflict in the heart of Europe", the festival said.
Nothing similar has been planned for the war in Gaza, but the film on Hassouna is set to "honour" her memory, organisers said previously.
Gazan filmmakers Arab and Tarzan Nasser are also set to showcase their fiction feature set in 2007 in the Palestinian territory in one of the secondary sections of the festival.
The opening film on Tuesday evening is "Leave One Day" by French director Amelie Bonnin, a newcomer, before Hollywood heavyweight De Niro receives an honorary Palme d'Or.


De Niro is one of the most outspoken critics of US President Donald Trump in the American cinema world, with the "Taxi Driver" star often struggling to find words harsh enough for the US president.
Trump has made himself one of the main talking points in Cannes after announcing on May 5 that he wanted 100-percent tariffs on movies "produced in foreign lands".
The idea sent shockwaves through the film world, although few insiders or experts understand how such a policy could be implemented.
Cannes director Thierry Fremaux talked up the festival's "rich" American film programme on Monday, with movies from Wes Anderson, Richard Linklater, Ari Aster and Kelly Reichardt in the main competition.
"American cinema remains great cinema. The United States remains a great country of cinema," he said.
Off-screen news in France is also likely to overshadow the red-carpet action in Cannes on Tuesday, with French film icon Gerard Depardieu facing a verdict in a sexual harassment case in Paris.
Depardieu, who has acted in more than 200 films and television series, is the highest-profile figure caught up in France's response to the #MeToo movement against sexual violence.


While independent cinema forms the core of the Cannes festival, organisers also hand over part of the programme to major Hollywood studios to promote their blockbusters.
Tom Cruise is set to return to the Riviera for the premiere of the latest instalment of his "Mission: Impossible" franchise on Thursday, three years after he lit up the festival while promoting "Top Gun: Maverick".
The festival will also see a series of high-profile debut films from actors-turned-directors, including "Eleanor the Great" from Scarlett Johansson and "The Chronology of Water" by Kristen Stewart.
Organisers on Monday denied reports that they had banned provocative near-nude dresses from the red carpet.
However, "full nudity on the red carpet" has been formally outlawed, "in keeping with French law".