SOUTH ASIAN CONTEMPORARY VIDEO ART
Born in London to Indian and Pakistani parents, Shezad Dawood has made a name for himself as a multidisciplinary and culturally diverse artist. In an interview with the Asian Art Newspaper, he discusses his upcoming feature film.

Shezad Dawood, 'Feature', 2008, production still.
Well known for exploring a variety of artistic forms, Shezad Dawood is no stranger to film. He began exploring the medium while studying at the Royal College of Art and throughout his career he has made numerous short films and video works. However, as he explains to the Asian Art Newspaper, the production of a feature length film is very much a new project for him.
As for my next film, it will be a whole feature film. Therefore, it is going to be a little while before we see that come to fruition. For that particular project, I am planning to work with more actors. Also, I am mixing film actors and theatre actors as well as non-professionals. It is going to be shot in the desert outside Marrakesh. It revolves around a very conceptual group, around the whole nature of cinema itself.
Click here to read the full interview with Shezad Dawood, as published on the Asian Art Newspaper‘s website.
In this interview, Dawood expresses that his interest in creating a feature film can be partly attributed to his passion for collaborative projects.
I really enjoy collaborations…. I think that is what led me to work more and more with long … films. I like working with set designers as an extension of an installation practice, but I also work with actors and other artists as a performative dialogue, and then with the film crew. I like working as a director because then you are not operating in isolation. It becomes a very open, but dynamic process to opening up ideas on the go.

Shezad Dawood, 'Bus Station', 2011, film still from 'Piercing Brightness'. Image courtesy Certain Places.
JM/KN/HH
Related Topics: video art, South Asian artists, crossover art
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