Filmmaking can be a highly organized process involving years of planning before taking the first shot. That is the Hollywood “dream factory” method. It works. But there is an alternative—accidental filmmaking— as we learn in the interview with director Karim Saheb. His short, philosophical comedy—”Cold Shower”—won the narrative prize at this year’s Moment Invitational Film Festival. The interview, filled with witty yet practical comments, makes it clear that while accidents can lead to success, technical mastery still matters.

Interview with Karim Saheb

MMM: Where are you located?

Karim: Helsinki, Finland. Yes, it’s a real place. No, there are no polar bears here.

MMM: What led you into filmmaking? 

Karim: I was studying fine arts in university when it really hit me: I wanted nothing to do with painting or photography. Then I got access to a HD DSLR and I was blown away! I participated in a short film competition with no experience and won that. The prize was a trip to New York with four of my buddies. When I got back home I continued using that camera as my main tool and it took me to even more places. Suddenly, all of my friends were involved in my projects and together we won prizes in the biggest short film competition in the Nordics. This all happened within a year. I got really motivated with the new medium I had stumbled across.

MMM: Since you were doing this on your own, how did you get equipment?

Karim: I built the gear myself: I made a rig out of pvc pipe, and a slider from aluminium rails and a skateboard. Those were good times! I had it all right every single time since I knew no ground rules of filmmaking. But surely there was a lot of tutorial watching involved. We started a bigger project that was rich in trial and error – and never got finished. I like to think of that as my film school.

MMM:  Are there any filmmakers who influenced your work?

Karim: In the beginning I really had no favorite filmmakers – only favorite films. But as I got deeper in the craft I started looking up to people and imitating them in various projects. That really helped me with starting new projects and developing my own style.

MMM:  How did you come up with the concept for “Cold Shower”? 

Karim: My friend Joonas once had a cold shower. On that day, he bragged about his achievement and its seemingly immediate health benefits. The list was suspiciously long considering it was his very first cold shower experience. Anyway, I forgot all about it untill I hit a really busy period in my life and felt like I needed an extra kick in my days. I made a promise to myself that I’d have a cold shower every morning for a year. As people asked me why I was doing it and how it felt like going through that routine every day, I couldn’t come up with a satisfying answer – but I saw it in my head as pictures. Then one day, by accident, I read about the Moment International Film Festival (MIFF) and knew immediately the story I wanted to tell!

MMM:  Could you say something about how you planned the shoot? 

Karim: I asked my friend Juho to shoot it with me. I was sure we would have the time to write it down on paper but no… Luckily we speak the same language, and off we went with only a conversation about what we were going to shoot. We filmed it in one day because we were both really busy with other projects, so it was an adventure full of twists and turns really. 

MMM: Why did you choose to shoot using a phone rather than a traditional camera? 

Karim: I had been interested in mobile filmmaking for a while. And then, since MIFF required shooting with a mobile,  that itself was a good enough a reason put mobile filmmaking to the test.

MMM: Did you discover any advantages of shooting with a mobile device?

Karim: I love how small a setup one can have – and not disturb people on public locations. I feel like mobile filmmaking allows a free pass to almost anything because most people don’t really consider that a real production.

MMM:  Are there any disadvantages?

Karim: You need to have two phones if you want to call someone while shooting!

MMM: Could you talk about the gear you used?

Karim: We had an iPhone X, a Moment anamorphic lens and a crappy extra battery that we ducktaped to a Zhiyun Crane 2.  The iPhone is a versatile setup considering it’s ”only a phone.” With that Moment lens – you have more than enough to shoot a masterpiece (not that we made one). The anamorphic lens is shockingly good. I got the same chills that I get from a super expensive Arri + Cooke setup. There is a difference in the overall quality, no doubt, but the chills are the same to me.

MMM: Exactly what makes that Moment anamorphic lens so special?

Karim: More than anything I enjoy the wide area it covers. It’s easy to film in a small room or so. For instance, the shower scene was shot in the smallest of bathrooms but space was no problem with the lens. I think it actually makes smaller spaces look rad! The light streaks I don’t really care or mind about. And compared to the Moment wide lens, which I use as a all-around-lens, the anamorphic has a more cinematic feel to it for the obvious reasons: the aspect ratio and the barrel distortion.

MMM:  Could you talk about your approach to directing?

Karim: I’m pretty neurotic in that sense that I want everything to go as I see it in my head. I have made films for eight years now, and am still learning to trust other crew members to do their thing in the production. I’m happy to have found a few people that I can trust with their talent.  I work with them as much as possible. Still, my favourite moments in a production are the surprises—when things don’t go according to the plan and turn out to be even better! I try to be open for those moments.

MMM: What about how you work with the actors?

Karim: I project my own experiences and crazy caricatures to spot the performance I’m after. I move the camera only when it adds to the performance or story.

MMM:  Could you talk about the importance of costuming?

Karim: I love animals but don’t enjoy working with them. Especially bears. So we had to find a perfect bear costume. Luckily my friend Tuomas had one lying at his office. We would’ve gone to ridiculous lengths to get one too, because it was a consensus from the beginning. A cold shower truly gives one the ability to intimidate any beast.

MMM:  During the shoot, did you encounter any unexpected challenges? 

Karim: That big zhiyun crane 2 stabilizer caused a headache. Because the camera was too light for it, we had to duck tape extra weight to our camera. I recommend using a stabilizer that is made for mobile filmmaking. The Movi Freefly, is just spectacular with the counterweight setup. I absolutely love it and recommend it!

MMM: Anything else?

Karim: We had a small inconvenience with the air mattress. We trusted there would be an electric socket around the forest but there wasn’t. We couldn’t fill the mattress up. Luckily, in a hut not too far away, there was some sort of a graduation party. We crashed that party and plugged the mattress in and the problem was solved. People didn’t say anything to us – not hello nor goodbye. We just stood there waiting for our mattress to fill up in a strangers party. Loved that moment! The party seemed lame, though.

MMM:  Could you talk about your approach to editing?

Karim: With this piece we had shot bunch of material – pretty much anything we could come up with on the set based on our conversation earlier that morning. When I got down to editing I started almost chronologically. I wanted to achieve that feeling you have before the cold shower. I wanted to see how it turned out with only sound design, and then build the following part as contrast to that. Once I was happy with the first scene I put on some energetic music to help me find the feel to all of that running! I knew right then I had to call my friend Joonas Laaksoharju, a big-time music producer, concerning the soundtrack. We had to have a custom song with the right mood and message. The intro and outro were thought of as the narrative parts of the film – I think they allowed for the rest to be ”only a feeling”.

MMM: The sequence of match cutting is fascinating, where an action in one location leads to a different but similar action in the next. How did you manage that?

Karim: First we listed all of the places we would film in. This was important because we wanted to make sure there would be enough of space in each location, for whatever the distance to the camera would finally be. We wanted to avoid ending up with a ten feet distance in one location, and only say five in the next one due to limited space. Once we had a good sense of the locations, we agreed to have the same distance each time – measured by simply walking the same amount of steps away from the camera each time. There were shots in which the running happened near the center of the frame. We tried to keep it like that, too. If we liked a shot in which the running ended on the side, we would take that to count when shooting the next shot. We also had an order for the shots although they were shot out of order.Towards the end, there’s a push-in-movement in each shot. That was done the same way in each location: Juho, the cinematographer counted the steps he would take when filming. But I would say there’s a lot one could do in post production. It isn’t too dangerous to have slight differences if the camera’s resolution allows for a little zoom in afterwards. We had to zoom in and reposition a few shots. And finally there’s the movement. It’s not perfect – and by that I mean each limb do not match perfectly from one shot to another. I think the importance lies in having the same side to the camera when making the cut in post; that’s what disturbs the most if matched wrong.

MMM:  How did you find out about the Moment Invitational competition? 

Karim: I had recently purchased one of their lenses and I got a newsletter in email about MIFF. The only time I’ve been happy with unwanted newsletters. Now I want all the newsletters in the world – such a great experience came out of that!

MMM: Since you won the narrative prize, what are your thoughts about storytelling?

Karim: I don’t really know how to structure a story film other than to have a beginning, a middle and an ending. That’s the only thing I put a lot of effort to. The rest, at least in a short film, just take care of itself – especially when you have likeminded people to work with and a blast while shooting! A lot can be ”saved” in editing, though. Isn’t that a saying that a film is written three times during a production: writing, shooting, and editing?

MMM:  Do you have any advice for people just starting out making mobile movies?

Karim: It’s a great way to start making movies. It’s also something to consider trying even if one’s working in big productions. To me it was truly a therapeutic way of working, with less moving parts and less stress. I also recommend to get inventive with the gear because its small size allows for some really interesting ways of shooting. 

MMM:  Can you give us a hint about your next project?

Karim: It’s ”PITKÄ PERJANTAI ELOKUVA” (in English “A Long Friday”) –a feature film that will be in cinemas in Finland soon. After that I will probably sleep a night or two, and then start working on a series! 

MMM:  What’s the best way for people to follow your work?

Karim: Nobody uses Twitter in Finland. Birds don’t like it here because it is so cold and dark most of the year. But Instagram is the place: find me. Come say hello!

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The editors of MobileMovieMaking.com have chosen “Cold Shower” as a Mobile Movie of the Week.