Take 5 with "Fatakra"

As we gear up for the Oxford Film Festival 2012 to be held at the Malco Studio Theater on Feb. 9-12, 2012 and also at the Lyric Theater on Saturday, Feb. 11 as part of the Oxford Music Festival line-up where we will show music films, videos and a panel on music + film, we thought we might introduce you to some of the people behind the movies we can't wait to show you. For the full schedule and description of the films, visit www.oxfordfilmfest.com.

Meet Take 5 filmmaker, Soham Mehta, director of “Fatakra.”

Q. 1: In 140 characters or less, describe your movie and why someone should see it.

A: Naveen left India to chase his dreams in America.  Today, three years and a recession later, his wife and son join him.  See the film because it's a story about family, and we can always use more of those!

Q. 2: Biggest lesson learned in getting the film made? Best part in getting the film made?

A:  Wow, you learn so much every time you make a film.  I think that every director has a film craft that they fall back on for comfort.  I've been on sets where a photography-minded director will only focus on the camera or an art-minded director will obsess over the set.  But by doing that, they're avoiding the difficult job of directing.  For me, I often come to set with an AD/producers mind.  On past projects, I never freed myself of that mentality, so whenever the directors job got tough, I would fall back on the schedule.  It doesn't matter how things fit together on the schedule, if you're not making the best film possible!  For Fatakra, I learned to fight this tendency of mine.  I recruited a great producing and AD team to work with and let that side of my personality go.  I got to focus more on directing than I ever had before.  This definitely made the film better.

Q. 3: Tell us about you. What is your movie making background?

A:  I have been involved with theater since I was a child.  Like many people, I began as an actor, but as I entered college, I gravitated more towards writing and directing.  I founded a theater troupe after college.  After several years of running the troupe, I returned to graduate school to study film.  Fatakra is my MFA thesis film.  The wonderful thing about coming from theater, is the amount of time it's given me to work with actors and actually test my craft in front of audiences.  Those experiences continue to serve me well now that I'm a filmmaker.

Q. 4: What's your dream distribution plan for the film?

A:   Fatakra is a short film, so the distribution opportunities are relatively limited.  It's already had an amazing domestic festival run.  Hopefully, that will translate into an international festival run in the coming year.  The ultimate hope is that the film will get some television play.

Q. 5: What does the future hold in store for your film and for you?

A: Fatakra is continuing it's journey through festivals.  Meanwhile, I'm back in writing mode.  I wish I could travel everywhere with the film, but if I did, I would never get another project made.  I'm working with two friends to write a feature inspired by a short film I made a few years ago.  I am also working on rewrites with another writer who approached me with his film.  Hopefully, I'll have a feature script ready to go before Fatakra ends it festival run!