The stage is draped in darkness. A young man enters. A spotlight falls on him and the scene transforms. We know that it is the Usman Riaz, musician, composer, visual artist and most of all, a remarkable storyteller who is up on stage. His talent is one that has made news, both at home and abroad and one that speaks volumes on his courage, artistic genius as well as growth.
Usman Riaz's presentation was as inspiring as the artist himself. Not surprisingly, Riaz received standing ovation,twice in one night.
InstepREPORT
In a riveting presentation this past Sunday, Usman Riaz counts his journey from his childhood fascination with animation and drawing to the Ted stage in Japan, Disney, Studio Ghibli and a chance meeting with Spielberg.Maheen Sabeeh
Karachi: The stage is draped in darkness. A young man enters. A spotlight falls on him and the scene transforms. We know that it is the Usman Riaz, musician, composer, visual artist and most of all, a remarkable storyteller who is up on stage. His talent is one that has made news, both at home and abroad and one that speaks volumes on his courage, artistic genius as well as growth.
Outside the auditorium, before proceedings begin, a line has formed as people, including Riaz’s friends and family, members of the press, artists and industry experts, curious individuals including teachers and aspiring students stand in queue and wait for their turn to enter this sacred space where the prodigy of our times is about to speak.
The Arts Council in Karachi, playing host to this admirable 20-something artist, is packed to capacity, which in itself is a reflection on Riaz’s growing popularity at home and the audience, both eager and supportive, is in for an unfathomable ride.
We know prior to Riaz’s arrival that the focus of this talk is the film, The Glassworker, a coming-of-age story about “a young boy named Vincent, who is learning the art of Glassblowing from his father and his friendship with a young violin virtuoso named Alliz.”
The Glassworker, written and directed by Usman Riaz, follows the story of a young boy named Vincent and a young violin virtuoso Alliz. The upcoming animated film will also address the pertinent question of the effects of war on children.
The film, written and directed by Usman Riaz, follows the story of these two characters and their relationship over the course of time while addressing the pertinent question of the effects of war on children. But perhaps the most jaw-dropping angle of this film is the fact that its Pakistan’s first fully hand drawn animated film.
Having raised 116,00 dollars through Kickstarter earlier this year - another impressive feat for someone so young - the film is being backed by Mano Animation Studios, founded by Riaz and one which consists of several other like-minded individuals from Pakistan and beyond. Their collective aim is to develop the hand-drawn animation industry in Pakistan and provide opportunity to all those who dare to dream.
Riaz, soft-spoken, vulnerable and rousing, arrives onstage, marked by composure as he recounts the story of The Glassworker, its humble beginning and accomplishments, his motivation as well as the process, the many hours of hard work and the vision and will behind Mano Animation Studios.
Riaz begins his introduction with his child hood days and recounts how he as child admired people who could make pictures move, how he spent hours watching films by Disney and famed animation studio, Studio Ghibli.
“They told simple stories in fantastical settings or fantastical stories in simple settings,” notes Riaz and adds, “They helped me see the beauty in the mundane and the tragedy in the beautiful.”
From there onwards, the conversation moves to TED, a platform where Usman Riaz made his debut in 2012 (when he performed with Preston Reed) and one that has helped nurture his talent further.
The year is 2015 and Riaz recalls the TED experience: “A place where some of the most amazing minds gathered to share ideas and to showcase their work in the Ted theatre. This happened to be my fourth Ted.”
Riaz explains how, walking around Ted in Vancouver, he held onto his overflowing portfolio, filled with drawings, sketches and storyboards as he showed people his ideas “about a hand-drawn animated film that had the potential to be the first of its kind in Pakistan”.
Hanging out at TED, Riaz would desperately “message” studio representatives at the conference and expressed how he wanted to meet them and discuss what was on his mind.
“None of them responded,” says Riaz and explains how he didn’t let this silence defeat him. Taking a leap of faith, Riaz notes, that he took a chance by contacting one of the Ted X organisers from Japan. After a desperate pleading and making a case for himself, Riaz managed to convince a particular organiser and a few months later landed in Japan where he participated in TED x Tokyo and presented his talk on animation.
What happened next, no one could’ve predicted, not even Usman.
Having spoken onstage, as Riaz walked around the hall, he was approached by people who enjoyed his talk and were delighted by knowing the fact that Japanese anime was being appreciated in Pakistan.
Not only did Riaz receive invitations to visit studios in Japan but he received a card from a man who told him “will be seeing you tomorrow”. When Riaz looked at the card, he learned that the man was a representative of Studio Ghibli.
Repeating success at Ted 2016 in February, Riaz met Steven Spielberg and spent 20 minutes or so talking to him about their shared love for hand-drawn animation, Hayao Miyazaki, techniques and much more. Following this meeting with Spielberg, Riaz recalls how Disney representatives also reached out to him at Ted and arranged a trip to Hollywood.
All of this brings us to Riaz’s film and the present, which he notes will be in Urdu, with a Pakistani cast and will release in Pakistan when it reaches completion. Riaz, in addition to direction and writing the film, is also producing the score.
As the talk came to its gradual conclusion, Riaz’s words inspired hope in times of great travesty and tragedy. “I want to show that we are just as capable as any country in making beautiful hand-drawn animation.”
Rest assured, if there’s anyone who can show the world a different side of Pakistan, let it be Riaz for he is an artist who comes along once in a generation.
