We Finished Filming for Episode 2!

Alhamdulillah, the ZF Drama Club is totally excited to announce that we finished filming Episode 2!  We have spent two months on this episode and are looking forward to viewing the final product.  Stay tuned to find out more about the editing process, ideas for future episodes, and the launch of Return of the Bully!

Here are some behind the scenes pictures from our last official drama club meeting when we finished up our last few scenes:

What are you most excited to see in Episode 2 of the Chains of Friendship series?

Episode 2 Title Announcement

The Chains of Friendship team has an exciting announcement to make.  We are now revealing the title to our upcoming second episode in our series.  Episode 2 will be called............Return of the Bully. We're all very excited to see how the movie turns out and we hope that you are, too!  We're hoping that Return of the Bully will be even better than A Friend, Not a Bully.  Check out our announcement poster below:

Please share this poster with your family and friends.  And stay tuned to find out more about the series!

Progress on Episode 2

The Chains of Friendship team has been working on our second episode and we recently filmed a few more scenes.  This time we got a scene outdoors.  We finally had the chance to do an outside scene during daylight hours and....it was raining!  Thanks to a handy umbrella, however, our camera didn't get wet.  We are looking forward to seeing how our outside scenes turn out, and we hope you are, too. 

Here are some more behind the scenes pictures from shooting a few new scenes. 

What do you think is going to happen in the second episode?  Write your guesses in the comments below. 

Already?

As you may know we are in the making of our second episode of the series. It feels like yesterday we were filming episode one. Time flies when you are having fun. I don't mind because like I said this is something fun and something I don't get to experience every day. The character I play Amina in this episode is more funnier because my cousin is coming back and I get to be sarcastic like I am in real life. I can't wait to be finished with the episode and for people to watch it. You'll enjoy it, maybe even more than first one because the first one was like to start the whole plot and series. Stay tuned and be on the look-out for the next episode. You'll never know when we finish it...end scene!

The Story Behind This Picture: The Case of the Missing Tripod

In a previous post, I posted a bunch of pictures Adeeba and I had taken of different behind the scenes shots from production of our second episode.  One of the pictures I took and posted was this one:

When looking through the pictures in the post later with Huda, I remarked, "Isn't it funny how Meryem has to tip-toe to whisper to you?"  What I didn't consider was what Meryem was whispering about.  Laughing, Huda said, "That's when she was telling me that she hid the tripod."  That's when I realized that I had captured a prank in action!  A prank that had left me flustered until I realized what had happened.

You see, the drama club only meets once a week, and then only for one and a half hours, so there isn't much time to get everything done.  To effectively use every moment of the time we have, I get myself prepared beforehand.  Getting to the center early, I set up the props in their places and got out all the film equipment.  I set up the blanket against the wall for Amina's scenes, carried the heavy coat rack to one of the classrooms for Aisha's scene (which by the way is still there - no one put it back!), made sure the video camera had charge, and got out the tripod.  

Making a movie without a tripod is no fun.  The difference a tripod makes is simply amazing, and the handy ZF tripod located in a hidden, yet easy-to-access place is one of the things that makes our movie better.  With a few minutes remaining before filming would start, I took the tripod box out and left it in the big prayer room/playroom where we would be doing the majority of our scenes.  Then, I got out my camera and began shooting pictures.

Finally, I decided it was time to begin filming.  There was no more time to waste.  We had to get this second episode going.  I put the camera away and got out the video camera, scanned the script to see which scene we would film first, and then reached for the tripod...which was nowhere in sight.  Flustered, I checked back in the other room where my bag was.  Nope, not there.  I looked behind chairs and tables, inside classrooms, even inside rooms I hadn't been in that day.  The tripod was nowhere in sight!  

"Has anyone seen the tripod anywhere?" I asked, looking around more wildly now, and being mostly ignored.  I couldn't understand it.  I just knew I had taken the tripod out.  Where could it have gone?  How could I have lost such an essential item for our movie?  Returning back to the place I had left the tripod, I again asked the girls, "Do you guys know where the tripod is?"  That's when they revealed the secret.  

Pointing to Merve, who was the closest target, Meryem announced, "She hid it over there!"  My gaze flew to the corner where there was a pile of hijabs.  Quickly recovering my prized possession, I ignored the culprit and forgot all about the prank in my haste to begin filming.  It wasn't until the next day, when looking through my pictures, I discovered the evidence...evidence that Meryem was the one who hid the tripod and that all the girls knew about it but chose not to tell me...hmmm....

What an interesting story that can be told from simply one picture!  And how wonderful that it turned out that I wasn't actually the one who lost the tripod!

Filming Is So Fun!!

As the past few posts already told you, we finished filming half the movie! I was so surprised. We just did scene after scene without many mistakes. Not only did we have much more experience and practice but since we had a huge center and all the rooms to ourselves, we had many different places to have scenes. So when only one person or two people ar acting everyone goes to the main room and play while the filmer films. So there is hardly any noise in the background. (unlike the past movie) Basically, the only one who doesn't have a break is the director. I was so into the movie that the time past so fast and we had to finish the filming for next time. I wouldn't mind staying there and finish filming and editing the movie. It is so fun! I really want to watch the end results, inshallah we will be done in about 2 or 3 more weeks. (like hana said.) I can't wait till next Monday to continue filming!!

Episode 2

       In just the first meeting for filming, we have already recorded half of the movie! The plans for the scenes are layed out, and the video camera is put to use. The second episode isn't just planned now--it's half filmed!
       Amina, Zeyneb, Khadijah, and Laila have planned out their winter break. Everything is going smoothly, until Amina gets an unexpected call. Will this new problem work itself out? Or will their winter break be ruined....
       Find out in Episode 2, a new, exciting, action-packed movie that will be a delight to watch. If all goes well, the movie might be out in just three more meetings! Stay tuned to figure out the solution to imposing threat, that will be revealed as soon as the movie is out!

Behind the Scenes Pictures from Filming Episode 2

That's right.  We started filming Episode 2!  Hooray!  Surprisingly, we were able to film nearly half of the entire movie in just our first day of filming.  Compared to the two to three scenes we used to film each week during production of our first episode, this is a huge accomplishment.

Having recently moved to a new Zakat Foundation Community Center, we have more options for sets for our scenes.  Viewers will get the opportunity to see new settings, such as Amina's room.  In addition, our second movie will feature two new actors joining the cast!  We won't be announcing who they are, but you can be sure that they will be making the series a lot more interesting.  And, of course, don't worry.  Aisha will be back to continue annoying the other girls!

Check out some pictures we took yesterday when filming some of the scenes:

Amina's Room

Outer View

Handy Script/Scene Summary, camera, and charger

The Scene in which the girls find out some bad news...

What everyone looks like when Aisha is around...

Photography Courtesy of Nur Kose and Adeeba Allimulla

Filming Starts Today! What do You Expect from the Sequel?

We've already begun planning for our second episode in the Chains of Friendship series.  You've had the opportunity to see lots of behind the scenes tid-bits from the first episode and even a few sneak peeks for the next episode.  The Chains of Friendship team will be posting more cool stuff in the next few weeks to get you excited about Episode 2. 

Now is your chance to make a guess about what the next episode will hold for the characters.  What do you think will happen between the older girls and the younger girls?  How do you think the Aisha story will continue?  Will Amina's older sister come back? 

Here's a hint of what's to come: Amina and her friends are going to be learning some pretty bad news.
What do you think the bad news will be?

Stay tuned to find out more.

- Nur Kose

There's a Sequel!

This Monday, the drama club had another meeting, on December 8^th. We discussed the scenes for the sequel to our previous movie: A friend, not a bully. Although nothing has been filmed yet, the plans have been laid out, and it's up to us to enter the world of acting and partake in a second outstanding film. In the following weeks, we'll provide updates regularly, and give you behind the scene news about our progress. Like Shakespeare quoted, "to be, or not to be? That is the question.” Inshaalah, you'll hear us telling you that the answer to that question is that our movie is most certainty to be!