As we set foot on stage, who knew we would soon end up in front of a camera and the sound of “ACTION!” would roar through the atmosphere.
That is the beginning of team RATAAK, a short-film project directed and produced by Westford Drama Club students; Yoonus Sathar, Ameera Adil, Jatin Israni, Hannah Sam Thomas, Alwin Aloysius, and Khaleel Mohammed.
Westford’s drama club provided us the opportunity to explore our performing arts talent through various short plays during university events. Our momentum was strong as we were awarded Runners Up for Jashn’23 and it was time for our next big gig!
The unnamed project which would soon be called ‘Rataak’ was part of an illumination during our creative process. At first, we wanted to film reels showcasing different aspects of theatrics which led to an idea of creating a short-film for Instagram. Under the supervision of Ms. Jessica Pius, we approached our CEO, Mr.Hanil Das in the hopes of getting an approval. Little did we realise; it was a production debut! After the proposal discussion, we were directed to the Westford media department for the project concept, filming permissions, scheduling, and budget.
We never anticipated to go from recording on a phone to filming with official cameras!
From scriptwriting to screenwriting, from dialogue delivery to practicing gestures, we were in tune to make it the next success of Westford. Our video calls and texts consist of constantly discussing the story concept to bring it to life in the most authentic way, and the overall production process. Yoonus, the director himself, carried the process forward due to his renowned experience as a production team member. With his connections, he was able to produce original soundtracks for the movie which added a riveting nature to the overall plot .
However, we also faced our share of challenges amidst the process, just as every team does. The DOPs had to ensure that every angle perfectly captured each expression, which took several tries, dealing with natural lighting for different shots and taking advantage of it, filming in the heat, as well as travelling to and from the main location. Moving forward, managing editing and dubbing was not easy as well. Thus, from preproduction to postproduction took a stretch of 6 months.
Despite all of this, we also shared a lot of fun moments, which included filming bloopers, photoshoots, dubbing experience, etc.
Hence, Rataak was born which is a thriller/mystery movie based on a group friends that takes a surprising turn, secrets unfold, what is the story behind the shift? You may now watch us on the official GoodWills ShortFilms YouTube channel.
