Sefrou is a beautiful place, tucked away from the rest of the world. The people, the buildings, the atmosphere, the smells surround you and make for a truly unique experience. I first visited this magical place with a job to do, photographing and filming a group of students engaging with the local community. I quickly realised how strong the visuals were, whether I was capturing students working or gathering footage from rooftops above. Working with the artisans, you understand how creative these people are and you unconsciously feel the need to create yourself.
This documentary will have a cinematic feel, uncovering parts of the old capital and showcasing Mustapha's workshop, focusing on his loom and how he creates his textile pieces. I want it to be natural, honest and able to reflect Mustapha's personality as he speaks openly with us on camera about his life as an artisan. I want to show the colours of the buildings both interior and exterior and work with the varied lighting that exists throughout Sefrou. As you can see in the picture above, individual colours run all over the city but are somewhat faded, naked to the sunlight and clear blue skies. I don't want to edit the picture a great deal, I want it to be untouched and almost raw. This place echoes years of history that run through the walls, round the alley and up into the medina. The audience will get to know the old city as Mustapha welcomes you here and talks about the creative work that can be found door to door.
The inspiration for my documentary has come in varied forms through discussions with other artisan's and creatives as well as short film pieces I've looked at. The work of an Australian photographer Cat Wilson has shown me ways to capture Sefrou's beauty and the unique look it has. I was lucky to meet with Cat who currently resides in Casablanca and she offered advice on how to best shoot in Morocco's conditions. Here are some pieces that have helped to mould ideas for the documentary and shot ideas as well:
Photographed by: Cat Wilson
The sequential ideas for the documentary were inspired by the opening scene of the film 'Eat Drink Man Woman' (D. Ang Lee, 1994). Here we look at the older man preparing and cooking the fish in a number of cuts that show you specific movements, specific interactions with the objects around him. Considering the edit of my documentary, I want the general pace to be slow but I will combine a number of shots both mid and closeup that show Mustapha working on his loom and crafting the material. In the film, the cut is like a recipe, each task one after the other. In some measure, I want to show people how Mustapha actually used his 400 year old loom that is a unique artefact in itself. Consider the opening sequence from the film below to understand the sequential idea:
'Eat Drink Man Woman' (1994)
'Mustapha the Weaver' will have a cinematic quality as I will be framing it wide in a 2.35:1 ratio, working like a cinemascope. To achieve this quality, I will be capturing a wide range of shots throughout Sefrou that can give me options in the edit. I will walk with Mustapha and take him to spots in the city where you can look over buildings, over families, over working life. It will look aesthetically pleasing but as always, the importance of this documentary is to help Mustapha get his work out there and bring greater recognition to the artisanal community.
Below are some pictures I took on my last visit to Sefrou that give you more of an idea of the visuals I will be looking to capture:
Bibliography:
Eat Drink Man Woman (1994) D. Ang Lee. Opening Scene [Online] Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZoH4bUL5vc [Accessed: January 9th 2017]
Wilson, C. (2016) Diamonds to Chickens. Handeye. [Set of Online Images] Available from: http://handeyemagazine.com/content/diamonds-chickens. [Accessed: January 10th 2017]