Pakistan’s film industry continues to make its mark on the global map in 2023. Noor, directed by Umer Adil and launched on the OTT platform See Prime, has won “Best Health Film” award in the January online edition of Cannes World Film Festival. ‘Noor,’ which tackles with the stigma around weak eyesight, is scripted by Farah Usman, and stars Sarwat Gilani, Omair Rana, Tanisha Shameem, Mizna Waqas and Tasneem Ansari in pivotal roles.
All monthly winners automatically enter the annual competition for a chance to receive a prestigious custom-made metal statuette, the “Luciole d’Or” (Golden Firefly) and an opportunity to have their film screened in Cannes, the cinema capital of the world.
The 17-minute short film features a child artist in the lead role and is a “heartfelt narrative bringing to light a world in which many still struggle at the hands of cultural myths and taboos, especially children, who in their vulnerability and innocence silently suffer the most.” Seemeen Naveed, the executive producer See Prime stated, “More than 4 million children in Pakistan are missing school and are affected due to Uncorrected Refractive Error (URE). And that is the main purpose of Noor. I truly believe in showing and producing content that comes with a deep message for my audiences. This is a topic which no one talks about and once we launched the webisode, I knew this is an initiative will make us all proud. I’m proud that our content has been recognised on an international level, hoping to keep on producing and working with these gems.”