Kathryn Bigelow and her production team get props from actors and crew called upon to work the production, writes Jaskiran Kapoor for the Indian Express:
From production crew to actors and extras, Zero Dark Thirty has given the local talent a memorable global platform, and actors Navdeep Singh and Navjit Brar second that. While Singh’s role was of a “courier guy-cum-reluctant terrorist”, Brar played a Pakistani police ranger called Abdul Ansari. “When the call came for auditions, we had no clue it was Kathryn Bigelow’s film,” says Singh, a PhD scholar along with Brar at Patiala University.
“How to approach a script, compose and shoot, do scene division — we learnt a lot,” says Singh. What will remain with him also is how well they were treated.
“Kathryn would listen to everyone, say ‘great job’ after every shot, make sure there was food and beverage on the sets and that the shoot was going according to schedule. There was proper medical aid on board too,” recounts Singh, who also got to translate the script in bits into Urdu-Punjabi and teach actor Fares Fares some lines.
Every person on the sets, informs Singh, was insured. Sniffer dogs would also make their rounds on this tight ship every morning. Busy translating Arthur Miller’s work in Punjabi these days and working on a serial on ETC Punjabi, Singh cannot forget how Bigelow rescued a stray dog and checked on him everyday.
When are we going to see a trailer?
This story does not surprise me. When she was in Baltimore filming episodes for Homicide:Life on the Street, she was universally praised by the extras for her treatment of them because she actually acknowledged them and gave positive feedback during filming.
I hope this means they’re keeping the title “Zero Dark Thirty” – some sites are still referring to it as “Untitled Kathryn Bigelow Project.” Can’t wait to see what she’s done with this Bin Laden material. Each of her films is very much its own beast, unique and beautifully crafted, so I’m expecting something quite different again.
Grrr…the mere mention of her name just boils my blood. Can’t help it sometimes…the beneficiary of one of the most unfair decisions in the Oscar director category, maybe ever. Sigourney Weaver was right. Could’ve said it a bit more diplomatically, in hindsight, but true IMO nonetheless.
Bigelow is probably the best director for this film – her cool objectivity, without any sentimental clutter, will work perfectly on this.
Season 5 of “Breaking Bad” has a perfect score of 100 on Metacritic from 17 reviews. That’s got to be some kind of record, no?
http://www.metacritic.com/tv/breaking-bad/season-5/critic-reviews
She’s the best. I hope she wins Oscar No. 2!
Glad to hear that, both for the local talent and that dog.