City of Life

On the set of City of Life, the UAE’s first large-scale, full-length feature, Vijaya Cherian talks to key production crew, looks at new kit and sees how challenges are being addressed.

March 2009 marks a milestone in the history of the United Arab Emirates. This is the month that saw the making of the first large-scale, multi-lingual feature film, written, produced and directed by an Emirati filmmaker and shot entirely in the country on 35mm. For filmmaker Ali Mostafa, who won much acclaim for his award-winning short film Under the Sun, the making of his first full-length feature, City of Life, is a dream come true and a moment of pride for the UAE.

The film revolves around three Dubai residents – a privileged young Emirati male; a disillusioned Indian taxi driver; and a former Romanian ballet dancer working as a flight attendant and seeking love and companionship. Through this urban drama, the film examines how random interactions can irrevocably impact a person’s life while at the same time, introducing Dubai as a city that is, in itself, a living and pulsating character.

Mostafa chose the title of the film to reflect what Dubai represents. “One of Dubai’s oldest nicknames is Daar Al Heyy which, when translated, means Home of Life. This is why I called the film City of Life, as it tells the story of many nationalities coming together in this melting pot of cultures,” he explains.

The film employs two different styles to reflect the narrative, the filmmaker explains. “The film has a major turning point, where the characters collide with each other. We wanted to use the camera to reflect that emotion. So we shot the first half of the film with a hand-held to give the film an unstructured look while everything after the turning point has been shot in a structured manner.”

Director of Photography (DoP) Michael Brierley agrees. “It’s three different stories so we’ve given it three different looks. We’ve gone for a cleaner, colder look for the European side of the film; a gritty and earthy tone for the Indian side and a fluorescent, neon feel to the Arabic side of the story. Essentially, before the crash, we use a handheld and after the crash, things become a bit more stable.”

For Brierley, who is also a partner with Dubai-based production house Downtown Film Productions and was in the running for the Academy Awards two years ago, it was important to get together the right team.

“I got my focus puller, two camera assistants, key electrician and gaffer for this film. I like to work with the same people because we understand each other’s temperaments and on a shoot, that is crucial,” Brierley says.

One of the key aspects of any shoot, according to Brierley, is the lighting. This shoot especially saw the use of the Musco light for the first time in this region.

“The Musco light is a very powerful light and adds that extra special touch to the Dubai skyline,” explains Brierley.

The DoP, however, cautions that light must be used carefully in the emirate. “Dubai is already illuminated with so much false lighting that you don’t want to light things up too much here unless it is absolutely required. A lot of the time, I prefer to shoot naturally. However, some of the architecture and the buildings in Dubai are really worth showing and lighting aids in bringing them closer to the viewer. I usually tend to light the background and work my way forwards and I look for specific focal points within the frame. This is what I did when we shot against the backdrop of the Jumeirah Beach Residence the other day because it is a beautiful landmark,” he says.

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