By Emma Wayland
On March 26 in the Fuller Arts Center, Dr Fadia Nordtveit set up a screening of the movie “Americanish”, which was also followed by a Q&A with the writer, producer, and one of the lead actresses of the film; Aizzah Fatima. If you didn’t get the chance to come to the event, here’s what you missed:
This Rom-Com film takes place in Queens, New York and follows the lives of three women – Two career focused sisters, Sam and Maryam; And their cousin Ameera who has just arrived in America in hopes to find a doctor husband. The story follows each woman as they learn how to navigate the societal pressures of being a Pakistani-American woman in America as well as the pressures from their family about marriage, careers, and identity.
Fatima, who plays Sam in the film, was kind enough to give Springfield College her time to come and speak with the staff and students. The film came out in 2021 and Fatima mentioned how she came up with the idea for this film about 10 years ago, yet production only started filming right before COVID. She shared how during the filming process they had to stop for a brief time due to the production cost, and they ended up going over budget, having to raise more money for the film. Fatima talked about her experience writing, producing, and acting in the film; She described it as “tiring” and said she does not plan on doing all three at the same time again anytime soon.
What made this film great was the balance of jokes and laughter while also showing meaningful conversations on culture, identity, and much more. This film truly did a great job on showing the diversity of women and the struggles of living up to a certain expectation.
If you didn’t get a chance to come and you are interested in watching “Americanish”, the film is available to buy or rent on YouTube, Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video.
Photo courtesy of Springfield College