18th british shorts, berlin
Keshav Shree
Where are you really from?
FESTIVAL SCREENING
Sun 26.1. 17:00 / Sputnik Kino 1
CAST
MJ Lee - Cristina
Tim Heath - Professor
Keshav Shree - Hari Prasad Tiwari
Gbola Adewunmi - Bamidele
FEB, 13, 2025
An ambitious first-generation Indian managing director at a major London bank loses his British accent in a stroke.
Hi Keshav, how does it feel to be at the 18th British Shorts, Berlin with your short Where are you really from?
I’m so excited to be part of British Shorts. It’s one of the top film festivals in Germany and to have ‘Where are you really from?’ play alongside projects such as ‘Good Boy’ with Ben Wishaw, ’Dammi’ with Riz Ahmed and Oscar and BAFTA longlisted ‘Sister Wives’ is the dream!
You had an amazing festival run with Happy Retirement Mr Pickering. What did it mean to you to get the type of response you got for this short?
‘Happy Retirement Mr Pickering’ was my first film I did a full festival run with. I was initially apprehensive as there aren’t many stories out there about older LGBTQ+ populations. So when we had love for the film from all over the world, including the top LGBTQ+ festivals such as Kashish Mumbai, ImageOut and Oscar-qualifying HollyShorts, it was a real vote of confidence.
The festival success showed me that I was doing something right and maybe if I keep doing it, it will lead to bigger and better things. More than that, we had a flood of comments and appreciation messages on social media channels which was most valuable for me. I could get people talking about issues they hadn’t given importance to much before, in this case, about ‘coming-out’ and mental health in older LGBTQ+ populations.
How important are festivals like British Shorts, Berlin, in creating a platform for short films and filmmakers?
I think the first thing about British Shorts is that it’s accessible. With zero fees for submission, it means anyone and everyone can apply. This allows for short films from a large range of production budgets and talent.
Emerging filmmakers can be seen alongside more established ones and gives them the visibility that they need to take that next step. I recently worked with a similar platform called Cinestruct and was selected for their debut programme - through this I was able to connect with Palme d’Or winner Ruben Ostlund, who was a big inspiration for the film.
‘Where are you really from?’ was screened at similar short film festivals in the US such as Oscar-qualifying Tasveer, HollyShorts and We Make Movies. Here I was able to connect to brilliant filmmakers such as Pooja Kaul & Pan Nalin and also meet with industry professionals from Amazon and Inder Gill from Creative Artists Agency.
Equally short film platforms also create a space for inspiration from fellow emerging filmmakers. A few such filmmakers I have met recently include Roohi Kashfi, Kiran Rajhans, Tyler Peterson and Alejandra Lopez.
Short films are a vital medium in the film industry, yet there are few opportunities for the public, outside of festivals, to see them. What more can be done to make short films more visible and accessible to the wider cinema audiences?
I think we are living in the age of minuscule attention spans. Audiences want to consume content that is shorter and shorter, and while I disagree about films being ‘content’, I think there is clearly space for audiences all over the world to enjoy shorter format films.
I was lucky enough to have my last film, ‘Happy Retirement Mr Pickering’ on Amazon Prime through a distributor, but I do feel the process was relatively enigmatic.
There is a need for more transparent channels between the creator/filmmaker and the viewer with options of pay per view and transparent communication trails when working with distributors. I’d like to envision a world where creatives can be justly rewarded for their work and reimbursed for at least some of their costs, so they can carry on making beautiful work.
Can you tell me how Where are you really from? came about? What was the inspiration behind your screenplay?
I moved over to England at the age of 12 from India. Being a first generation immigrant, the title of the film has always been the question of my existence in the British Isles. I had to mould myself several times to fit in. This has meant abandoning bits of my Indian identity and taking on British values and appearances. More recently, I find myself lost at how out of touch I have become with my roots - especially not thinking in my mother tongue so much anymore.
In ‘Where are you really from?’ I wanted to explore what it would mean to lose a part of my identity that I have created consciously, or unconsciously, over the past 20 years to fit in. In a place like Britain, accents can hold a lot of meaning. Its something we constantly and consistently judge people with and I wanted to explore what it would feel for an immigrant to suddenly lose this and how would others react around them.
The film looks at a sort of Commonwealth hierarchy of accents with predominantly white ex-British colonies being better than non-white ex-colonies. I have often thought how my journey would have been different had I emigrated from a nation that was considered more “developed” or had an accent that was considered more “native English.” The film reflects this journey through realistic comedy and asks the protagonist to face their question of “where are they really from?.” Realistic comedy is something common to both Indian and British cinema, showing the struggle of the small man. I wanted to keep this cross-cultural style of storytelling and convert it to a relatable comedy on screen.
Did you have any apprehension about using your own personal experience to bring your film to life?
I think the best stories told are the ones most personal. In some weird way, the more intricate and detailed the story (regardless to how foreign the setting) the more people can relate to it.
Of course you have to be vulnerable when telling a personal story - and although there is a risk of people making judgements, there is also a chance of relating to lots of people around the world and telling their story through yours - allowing them to be seen and heard.
Do you like to stick to your screenplay as written once you start shooting or do you give yourself and your cast some flexibility with the material?
I really like rehearsals, something which clearly is a privilege in short and independent filmmaking. I like to spend time with the actors in the weeks before filming and work on getting clear intentions and direction. Once this is done, I am fairly flexible with the lines. I am a big supporter of improvisation and any script changes that help the character be more themselves in the scene.
I like working with an actor’s coach (Andy Whyment) for this, especially if I’m acting too - like in this project. Being on set is very time-pressured and the more we’ve ironed out kinks in rehearsal, the smoother and authentic the shoot days go.
What is the message you want to convey with Where are you really from?, and do you think you achieved it?
Accents can be huge part of someone’s identity, and we don’t realise how much judgement we place on the way someone speaks. There might be someone who you see every single day and not realise their internal struggle with accentism (accentism.org) and identity.
At the Edmonton Film Festival in Canada, a first generation Ghanaian immigrant woman hugged me and told me she had cried in the screening as it was exactly what she had gone through as an immigrant over the last 4 years. After hearing comments like this, I feel I have achieved my goal. I want to let immigrants know that they are not alone and its okay to feel lost about their identity. Funnily enough, I also had a lot of second and third gen Indian immigrants in the US who told me they hadn’t seen an Indian heritage actor do so many accents on screen and they felt seen!
What are the most challenging scene for you to film?
The film’s visual language was inspired by Ruben Ostlund who likes wide shots, which mean long takes.
I feel the most challenging scene was where I had to speak in four different accents in the same take. This was especially hard as my car had broken down the evening before and I had only had 4 hours of sleep!
How vital was the creative collaboration between you and your team?
I was working behind and in-front of the camera. For the film to be pulled off, my team needed to trust what I was doing. We spent weeks before filming going over shots with the cinematographer, Estefania Carpio, production design with Yujia Huang, production notes with Jean Ciuntu and actors notes and prep with actor’s coach Andy Whyment and ironed out any issues/kinks that might prop up on set.
It was vital for me to trust each team member’s capabilities and more than that, I needed the confidence of the team-members to trust me to take them on this one-of-a-kind journey. In the end, we were all on a healthy set and worked like an entity of its own.
Have you always had a passion for filmmaking?
From a very young age, I’ve been obsessed with film. It always transported me to a world that I would never have access to in my ‘real life.’ I found myself relating more to the character on screen than people around me and at times, film has definitely been my therapy. I think its the best form of storytelling and the most accessible - once you have it on film, you can send it across the world.
Over the years, I have found that what I love most is telling good passionate stories (whether as a director or actor) - especially through comedy. I have learnt, and am learning, the art of filmmaking by practice and I hope to be privileged enough to continue this for the rest of my life.
How much has your approach and style to your films changed since your debut?
I think I have realised the power of telling stories close to your heart. Before, I would obsess over what an audience would like best and not put my personal experiences centre. I found that by making this change, I have the freedom to say less on screen and emit more to the audience, giving them more emotional fodder to play with.
I have found that I am a sucker for authentic performances - where I can feel like a fly on the wall and the characters and stories unfold by themselves. Where you forget the ‘structure’ of storytelling and events feel as if they’re happening by chance. I aspire to make films that can give my audience the same feeling - to not push any particular emotion on them and for them to their own decisions on reactions and feelings.
Moving forward, what are the themes and subjects you want to explore?
I want to explore topics that affect me as a first-generation Indian immigrant. I want to talk about colonialism, animal cruelty and veganism, mental health and feminism.
My next short, ‘Dinner for Loners’ is a realistic comedy about male loneliness especially in the South Asian community and I’m glad to be working with the amazingly talented, Kulvinder Ghir in it.
"I really like making something that can be a total collaborative effort. I like to explore all the options and directions a story can go in with my team, before making a decision."
What would you say has been the most valuable thing you’ve discovered about yourself as a filmmaker since your debut?
I have discovered that I love hearing everyone’s feedback, much more than I thought I would. It’s a vulnerable place to be in, but once you get past the first couple of rounds of feedback, it becomes easy and forces you bring your a-game to the table. I really like making something that can be a total collaborative effort. I like to explore all the options and directions a story can go in with my team, before making a decision. I feel this collaborative energy has made me realise that I am a good team player.
Is there any advice you wish you had been given when you started out as a filmmaker?
Make mistakes and don’t obsess over getting anything right. It’s easier than you think when you allow yourself the freedom to be imperfect.
And finally, what do you hope you audiences will take away from Where are you really from?
We are living in an ever-globalizing world. Equally we are living in an ever-polarising world. I want audiences to have some insight into what it feels like, to feel like you’re not from “here” (wherever that may be). To have empathy for people who may not sound like them, and understand that they might be going through identity-crises.
I want immigrant audiences to understand that it’s okay to question your identity and not feel rigid about it. That identity is a fluid construct that is ever changing, and you never know when you’re have to re-identify yourself!