Today we’d like to introduce you to Pavitra Verma.
Hi Pavitra, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Hello! I’m 19 years old and a student writer-director and editor from India, born and raised in the UAE. I am currently pursuing a career in filmmaking in Los Angeles. I am also part of the young production house Saadhvish Films—a collective of diverse, award-winning filmmakers of all cohorts that work together to make original films that can both entertain and provoke thought towards social reform.
My interest in film developed more by making them than by watching them. I started by self-teaching myself video editing seven years ago, roughly at the age of thirteen on a laptop that felt like it outlived many generations of my family. After that, I was learning it formally in high school, where I practiced both commercial and creative techniques in cinematography and screenwriting. Stitching together something from your thoughts and sharing it with others to see their reactions was riveting. My decision to pursue it as a full-time career came a little late, but when I opened up the possibility, I could breathe a little better. I just couldn’t see myself do anything other than make, watch and discuss films of all kinds.
As I come to terms with the ropes of this career, I’ve learnt to let that itch settle a bit. I realize my avocations are also a big part of who I am because whenever you are doing something creative, it always helps when you have other things to occupy yourself with in downtime. I’m a big enthusiast of the game of cricket, for example. Both playing and watching. You will frequently find me enjoying music and playing fingerstyle guitar, but I tend to enjoy it more whenever I can connect the notes right. As for more meditative pastimes, cooking, swimming, video games and hiking are my top preferences.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
As a youngster, I am living with the knowledge that my toughest years are ahead of me, especially since each project I work on tends to be exponentially bigger than the last. The journey to pursue filmmaking; beginning with making tough decisions about my career, and then travelling the complicated road of immigration to the other side of the world while trying to learn the wiry ropes of my craft— these events indeed presented all-pervasive challenges that all international students have to deal with. However, the obstacles that I enjoy contending with most are my creative ambitions, which have often been presented with unique obstacles that require unique negotiations.
For example, when I first came to Los Angeles, I was told in no uncertain terms that most people don’t get a chance to direct films regularly in the real world. So, everything I had should go into the few opportunities the school gives us to shoot ambitious films in tough environments. My Year 2 short film, ‘Those Seven Steps’ is a story about an Indian bride who escapes her arranged marriage in America. It was a dream film for me to make — having conceptualized it for over 2 years. At the start of the pandemic, I decided I was going to jostle with it, however long it would take, till it was made.
Over the year that followed, I went through over 20 drafts of the script and made what ended up being a 200-page masterbook that contained references, breakdowns for all departments of the crew. I knew that I won’t have chances at rehearsals and too many location scouts because of the coronavirus, so the film was wholly dependent on online preparation through the many hundreds of Zoom meetings that would end up happening. Just from its inception; the fact that it was a wedding film spanning multiple locations, containing stunts and with a large cast (some of which were SAG-AFTRA talent), the production and financial challenges just kept piling up on top, along with the many pandemic safety protocols with Appendix J.
The hardest thing was to ask people to buy into the scope of the film in such a confusing time. It was necessary to prepare, but when a production for a short film gets delayed multiple times, and the pre-production phase ends up lasting a year, it’s strenuous to keep yourself and your crew motivated. I was very appreciative that the crew didn’t let the pandemic affect their work. In the end, their preparation became the deciding factor and helped make the movie we came to make. In fact, it was *me* who was a little nervous on the first day on set! I had run the scenario of the first day of production a hundred times since I started writing back in January 2020. Most of the hours of the pandemic went by thinking about this world and its characters. I honestly felt like I had aged much more than I had. But, as time passed, and I just began to enjoy myself and focused on what made me fall in love with this story in the first place.
As a production team, we tried focusing on creating a lively environment to encourage creativity and collaboration as we recognized the difficulties of pandemic filming. I think the cast and crew responded well to that. To safely end those three days catastrophe-free with only my own creative shortcomings to sit with (and a lot of beautiful footage!) was magical. Looking forward to share the results of everyone’s toil soon.
I think the journey to make ‘Those Seven Steps’ displays, in microcosm, the challenges you face in this vocation. Yes, it’s never an easy journey to do anything, but you always end up grateful whether at your highest or lowest. In the end, the feeling of witnessing a grueling production cycle conclude is unmatched—something few get a chance to experience. Just having the chance to study and make films is already very humbling for me. Hopefully, the experience I’ve gained from all of this will make me more adept at handling the hardships of the future.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My main areas of focus are screenwriting, directing and editing. While crewing for others, I also frequently take on roles as a script supervisor, set dresser and assistant director. Additionally, I have a special love for editing trailers, creating posters, promotional material and deliberated marketing strategies and have done so for several short films. All these roles have taught me the importance of attention to detail, patience and organization. As such, I always aim to take the time to do things efficiently but correctly, and place an emphasis on polishing and refining till the very last second.
Creatively, my aim is to tell high-concept but hyper-visual, minimalistic, character-driven stories. I attempt to tell as much with as little as possible. An extension to that goal is to combine that with authentically created South Asian characters that face relatable conflicts, specifically exploring how they interact with the West and have to deal with their core values being challenged in the face of uncertainty. These are ideas that are very personal to me, and it’s fascinating to see the similarities and differences when mirroring my culture to others. I try keeping that fascination at the heart and centre of my vision.
In pursuit of capturing such stories with authenticity, I have also learnt that it is equally paramount to be vividly entertaining. I enjoy toying with the viewer’s first impressions by steering stories into unexpected territory in a way that is wholly relevant to the character’s journey, their world and the themes the story is trying to explore.
Growing up, I spent a lot of my time reading Indian mythological stories, folklore and ancient history. I was introduced to all of this at a young age, as my grandparents from both sides had to migrate to India during the partition of India in 1947, and hearing about the demanding physical, emotional and financial conditions that they and my parents had to endure is inspiring for me. Although I am grateful to be exposed to many different cultures in my life, I’ve always considered my own heritage as my main source of inspiration.
The philosophy I am drawn to since I started studying film is that trusting process, paradigm and method is important, but it is more important to be hospitable to new and unique ideas when making films. So, more than anything, I hope I don’t make anything formulaic as every opportunity behind the camera is a chance to do something no one else has. Essential that I always respect that.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I think, where I am right now, I can’t pride myself for taking any risks. Everyone in this profession is risking their futures from the outset since success is obtained by only a select few owing to the immense competition. Being risk-averse is very counterproductive since you have a greater chance of survival in taking risks and standing out. Yes, making an independent student film during a global pandemic is precarious, maybe one of the most precarious things you can do, but I’m not the only one brave enough to do it. It’s also risky to leave your home and go to the other side of the world, pursuing education on a student loan. But I’m not the only one doing it. There are many like me.
Actually, where I think pride and confidence must come from is in being yourself and taking joy in fulfilling your responsibilities to yourself and others. I am aware that only I can do what I do. How I can express myself better, help others, be more honest creatively and keep doing that for as long as I can is up to me. That’s the only thing I am focusing on.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.saadhvishfilms.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/
in/pavitra-verma-1b581b211 - Other: imdb.me/pavitraverma
Image Credits:
Those Seven Steps BTS Credits: Michael Waas
