On September 28, the Pakistani Canadian Women’s Society (PCWS) sponsored two Pakistani films, including “Ghost School”, at the International South Asian Film Festival (iSAFF) held at Landmark Cinemas, Guildford Mall.
PCWS President Dr. Barbara Rana expressed gratitude to the iSAFF organizing committee and the Pakistani community for showing their keen interest in Pakistani cinema. MLA, Surrey City Centre Amna Shah was invited at this Film Festival. iSAAF producer Ms. Mannu Sandhu was very exited at this festival
Before the screening of the Pakistani art film, a documentary by a B.C. producer was presented, highlighting the ongoing immigration challenges faced by international students — with particular focus on the struggles and protests of Indian students. The documentary also featured perspectives from university and college officials, lawyers, and immigration consultants.
British-Pakistani filmmaker film Seemab Gul’s ‘Ghost School’ premiered recently at the 50th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). In 2020, while touring flood-affected Pakistan, filmmaker Seemab Gul encountered “ghost schools” — institutions that exist on paper but remain non-functional. When she enquired about them, locals were either unaware of their existence or preferred to ignore the issue. “In Pakistan, there are over 15,000 ghost schools and 22 million children are out of school. Female literacy rate hovers around 50 per cent. All of these facts prompted me to develop a script that examines the cracks in the education
system,” says the independent British-
Pakistani filmmaker whose debut feature as writer-director, ‘Ghost School’, premiered recently at the 50th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
Screened as part of the Discovery section, ‘Ghost School’ follows 10-year-old Rabia (Nazualiya Arsalan) as she sets out to
uncover why her school suddenly shut down. Whispers that her teacher was possessed by a djinn spread like wildfire within the community weighed down by fear, misinformation and corruption. Even as the adults around Rabia remained silent, her determined quest for answers forms the crux of the gently paced and visually evocative narrative.
