How we created our first documentary film

(Courtesy of Maryam and Nivaal Rehman)

We were 8 years old when we first learned that not every girl is able to go to school. Born in Pakistan, we moved to Canada and began school at the age of 5, assuming every girl had the same opportunity. But a trip back to our village in Pakistan showed us how wrong we were. While visiting the local girls’ school, we discovered that poverty and child labor prevent many girls from learning. 

Realizing that girls in our village and around the world aren’t able to complete their education made us feel shocked and worried. So for the last 10 years, we have been working to help girls in our village go to school. During our visits to Pakistan, we speak to parents, siblings and girls about the long-term benefits that come from girls’ education, including better job opportunities and quality of life. While we’re back in Canada, we continue to talk to girls in our village over the phone to offer them guidance and encourage them to realize their full potential through education.

But we wanted to do more. Over 59% of girls in Pakistan leave school by grade six. We decided to film a documentary to raise awareness about the reasons girls are out of school in Pakistan. 

(Courtesy of Maryam and Nivaal Rehman)

In 2017, we made a plan with our high school guidance counsellor to finish high school a semester early so we could go to Pakistan in February 2019 and begin filming. While we had years of experience editing videos and telling stories on our YouTube channel, tackling a project as big as this documentary was still overwhelming.

We learned a lot about the filmmaking process through #DreamBigPrincess, a Disney initiative to train the next generation of female filmmakers. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hear from experts who worked for Pixar, BBC, ESPN and the Walt Disney Company and hone our editing and directing skills.

When the time came for us to head to Pakistan to film our documentary, we felt more than ready. 

If you’re interested in creating your own documentary film — or just curious what the process involves — here’s how we made our film, “Destined to Soar,” happen. 

(Courtesy of Maryam and Nivaal Rehman)

Pre-production phase

When you’re creating a documentary, there is a lot of work you have to do even before you begin filming. This is called the pre-production phase. We started by coming up with a one-page synopsis, which is an overview of the film. This can change as you film but it is an important place to start. Next, we listed out all the potential subjects of the film and our interviewees. 

Before we left, we catalogued and organized our camera equipment. We made sure to include small items like backup sets of batteries and chargers. The biggest mistake filmmakers can make is not having enough backup batteries or not having them charged! We also kept all of our equipment organized in one or two bags, so that we could keep track of it and not lose anything.

Finally, we came with a shot list including all the locations we wanted to film in and the exact shots that we wanted to film. We looked through photo and video albums from previous trips to Pakistan for inspiration on what we wanted to include. We also created a Pinterest vision board to keep track of the various parts of Pakistani culture and heritage that we wanted to show in the film. 

(Courtesy of Maryam and Nivaal Rehman)

Production phase 

When we finally arrived in Pakistan, it was time to enter the production phase. We kept our schedule and calendar up to date with all of our filming days, including interviews we had planned and the days we would spend with girls in our village. 

The way we filmed different segments of the film varied. If we were capturing heritage sites or tourist destinations, we would mount our iPhone onto our Osmo (a stabilizing device) and use that to film. Then we would film from different angles with varying degrees of speed. 

When we were in our village, the filming was more indirect and spontaneous. When we were filming interviews, we had a completely different process. The camera was mounted on a tripod right in front of us and our interviewee, and we would use our external mic and light to enhance the video and audio quality. 

(Courtesy of Maryam and Nivaal Rehman)

Post-production phase

When we left Pakistan and returned to Canada, it was time for the post-production phase. The first step was to revisit our synopsis and think about how we could combine all the different perspectives and stories into one film. It is challenging to do this with documentaries because it is often a process of discovery. You don’t exactly know what to expect from your findings. So we spent hours and hours watching our footage to try to find patterns and write down a storyline. Then, we came up with a script that wove everything together. We also conducted research so that we could include any relevant facts or statistics. Finally, it was time to take all of our footage and edit it. Editing our film took us nine months! It was a long but rewarding process in the end. 

Next, we shared various drafts with our friends, family and professionals who sent edits and ideas on how we could improve the film. Then we published it on YouTube for the whole world to watch!

Through our film, we want viewers to learn more about the barriers girls face to accessing an education. We hope that it challenges your initial conceptions about Pakistan by showing the incredible stories of progress from all over the country, including the stories of girls in our village. There are many people in our home country who care about educating girls and work tirelessly to ensure all girls are able to learn. Creating the film left us more hopeful about the future of girls’ education in Pakistan and reassured us that we are not alone in this fight.

We want to invite you to watch our film on YouTube and share it with your friends, families and colleagues to discuss afterwards! You can follow us across social media (@theworldwithmnr) to stay updated with our work and find out about our live Q&A sessions, where you can ask us questions about the film and girls’ education. 

Making this film has been one of the most incredible experiences of our lives. We can’t wait to continue sharing it with people around the world, to spread its message of hope, positivity and the importance of ensuring all girls have a chance to go to school.