Story

MA Film graduates recognised by Student Academy Awards for short film, ‘Ajotin’

Still of a man standing beside a car at dawn.

Written byChloe Murphy
Published date 04 April 2023

The screen industries are intensely collaborative, bringing together practitioners from a range of specialist areas to create engaging and immersive experiences for a range of diverse audiences. This emphasis is shared by the courses in our Screen School, all of which have been designed to mirror real-world creative environments – providing students with the vital skills they need to kickstart their careers.

Our MA Film course is underpinned by creative collaboration, moving beyond the concept of a single auteur to instead celebrate inclusion, co-operation and teamwork. With a focus on crafting innovative narratives and exploring digital technologies, MA Film supports emerging creatives to build their skills, grow their networks and enhance their understanding of the cinematic process in ways that reflect the latest contemporary developments.

Last year, a collective of MA Film graduates were named Semi-Finalists at the 49th Student Academy Awards in recognition of their graduation film, Ajotin, which was shot in 2021. Written and directed by Muhammed Seyyid Yildiz, the short film follows a Kurdish refugee, Tajdin (Ismail Zagros) who borrows the car of his dreams for a joyride around London before a series of misfortunes force him to make a fateful decision.

Established in 1972, the Student Academy Awards invites film students from across the world to compete across categories ranging from animation and documentary to live action narrative and alternative/experimental. Successful entrants have included the likes of Pete Docter, Robert Zemeckis, Patricia Riggen, Patricia Cardoso and Spike Lee, and over the past five decades, winners have progressed to receive a total of 63 Oscar nominations and 12 Oscar wins.

Following this accolade, Ajotin has also since been selected for festivals such as the 58th Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival, London Short Film Festival and Aesthetica Film Festival, and been awarded with titles such as Best Sound Design at the International Usak Film Festival, and Best Student Film and Actor at Peterhof Film Festival.

We chatted to the Producer of Ajotin, Matias Mario Contini, about his experience of filmmaking within Covid conditions, how to turn an initial artistic vision into reality, and the opportunities offered through selection to major film festivals.

Ajotin (Trailer) | Dir. Muhammed Seyyid Yildiz, MA Film

Tell us about your creative practice.

My way of making films involves talking and getting to know as many creatives as possible before figuring out a way to make a film by combining them – all while helping to deliver from initial idea to completion.

I tend to specialise in drama and thriller projects more than anything, as I'm most interested in those stories. Still, I've recently worked on a black comedy that went well, and I'm looking to explore different genres for my next project.

Why did you decide to study on MA Film at LCC?

I’d recently finished a BA in Film and Television Production at Bond University in Australia. My undergraduate degree helped me to understand all aspects of film, but I didn't feel confident in my knowledge of film production, so I wanted to study an MA in Film that would enable me to specialise in that area.

I chose UAL as my director friend Talor John Marshall had just completed a Master's in Screen Directing from Central Saint Martins, and highly recommended the University so I applied without hesitation. I believe I was actually one of the last students to get accepted since I applied late in the application cycle!

Film still of a person staring out of a car window. — **Still from 'Ajotin' (2021), dir. Muhammed Seyyid Yildiz, MA Film.**

Where did the initial ideas for Ajotin come from, and how did they develop?

At the beginning of the course, Muhammed [Seyyid Yildiz] and I met up for lunch and started talking about what we wanted to get out of our studies. It was clear that we both wanted one thing: to create a short film that we could use as our portfolio once we left University.

We started bouncing ideas off each other until he shared the brief that he’d once written for his undergrad degree. From that moment on, we both knew that this was the short that we were going to work on.

We were the only ones that decided to work together as a team when it came to pitching to the class, which also gave us the advantage of combining our strengths.

Tell us about your creative process - how did you turn the initial ideas into a short film?

After spending a lot of time bouncing the script back and forwards, once our film was greenlit, we began by looking at all aspects of the film like locations, casting and production design before starting to bring more team members onto the project.

And then COVID hit, and there was a whole lot of chaos as we tried to make the movie possible. We were the first graduation short to film at UAL since the beginning of the pandemic, so there was a lot of pressure and expectation from everyone to succeed.

We had to find ways around the chaos, and had to come up with alternative solutions to facilitate filming while keeping our cast and crew safe. It was well-worth all of the struggle in the end.

Students wearing high-vis vests film a car on a hilltop. — **Behind-the-scenes of 'Ajotin' (2021), dir. Muhammed Seyyid Yildiz, MA Film.**

What were your highlights of the filmmaking experience?

For me, the ultimate highlight was the last day of the shoot: we were by the cliff, waiting for the sunrise to come out so we could film our final scene. It had been a challenging 3 months of pre-production, followed by an even tougher week as our car broke down 3 times. We were just surprised that we could even finish the film!

Another highlight was finding out that Ajotin had been selected for the Student Academy Awards. It was the first festival that we were nominated for, and after months of getting rejected by every festival, it opened a door for us. We ended up being selected for 14 festivals, including 2 BAFTA-Qualifying Festivals and the Oscar-Qualifying Festival, In The Palace. We now have 4 wins!

What did you most enjoy about your time at LCC?

I think my favourite time at LCC was the pre-production phase for Ajotin as our Director, Muhammed, Director of Photography, Hou Yue, and I were working all hours for weeks on end on trying to make the film possible since COVID blocked everything and made the idea of filming almost unattainable.

I remember creating a 50-page booklet for our Course Leader, Ray Kilby, and my Producer tutor, Francoise Goulliardon, on how we'd shoot the short while keeping our cast and crew safe while filming!

This spurred us on, and also meant that we were coming up with new and creative ways to tell Tajdin's story while tweaking the narrative.

Photograph of a film crew pictured on location behind a car. — **Behind-the-scenes of 'Ajotin' (2021), dir. Muhammed Seyyid Yildiz, MA Film.**

What have you been up to since graduation?

Shortly after graduating from LCC, I worked for an HETV show on Netflix as a Post-Production Runner and then as a Producer's Assistant, where I worked with 2 of the creative Executive Producers.

I've also worked on a feature film shot in different parts of Europe, and am halfway through principal photography on another short.

What advice would you give to other students who are interested in studying film?

My first and foremost advice is: DON'T make a short with cars or animals as your graduation short. (It's way more complicated than it sounds…)

I’d also suggest knowing exactly what you're after in your degree, as you'll be able to make the experience more beneficial and tailored to you. I was solely interested in learning about film production and making a short film that I could use for my portfolio, which was the same goal as Muhammed and Hou. That's why we all got along well, and still meet these days despite our busy schedules.