‘Awaiting a sponsor’

By Susitha R. Fernando

Having won the Best Short film at the Short Film Competition conducted by the National Film Corporation (NFC) and getting an offer from a leading film releasing company, ‘Awaiting a Train’, emotional movie on child conscription, made by talented filmmaker Upali Gamlath is awaiting a generous sponsor to get it transferred on 35 mm film.

Having seen an article on the filmmaker and the film, Ceylon Theatres Limited, the film releaser for CEL circuit has expressed its willingness to screen the film along with Vasantha Obeysekera's 'Aganthukaya' (The Outcast) which is to be screened on CEL circuit soon.

Upali Gamlath, probably a groundbreaking filmmaker of the future has done a few short films and who has a large number of documentaries to his credit started his journey as a producer of award winning stage plays.

Starting with the stage, Upali's maiden production won the third place at the National Youth Drama Festival and his big production with some of the leading stars in the stage, 'Mahamariya' an adaptation of Albert Camu's novel won eight awards including the Best Drama in 1991.

His play 'Swayang Maranaya' (The Suicide) done whilst an undergraduate won the Best Drama at the Literary Festival organised for university students. "Arakshaka Hethu Matha" (Due to Security Reasons) won him the Best Drama at the State Services Drama Festival.

‘My interest in cinema started while I was studying for the NDT at the University of Moratuwa. Then Vice Chancellor, Prof. G. T. S. de Silva directed me to focus on studying to make documentaries’ Gamlath said with gratitude. Studying architecture, Gamlath had the opportunity to do a large number of documentaries on Sigiriya, architecture in Polonnaruwa and modern architecture like the Kandalama Hotel.

Getting interested with the cinema, Gamlath followed an OCIC film course conducted by the Catholic Media Unit. Here he studied filmmaking under the guidance of Shelton Payagala. Having realized the depth of medium of cinema as an art, Gamalath resolved to learn it thoroughly before getting on to the director's seat.

This study went on for as long as ten years from 1995 to 2005 and the result was a documentary "Trekking Down". Gamlath's documentary on jaggery manufacturers in Meemure, a visual montage, reached international heights becoming one of the best ten films at the New Delhi International Film Festival.

The documentary also represented at the 2006 Karachi Film Festival, Kathmandu Film Festival and the Asian section of the Seattle Film Festival.

Joining National Youth Services Council, Maharagama as a producer attached to the video unit, Upali Gamlath has done a large number of documentaries and short films.

Now at the age of 38 years and having studied extensively Gamlath is ready to do a lengthy film. Having written a script based on the Russian writer Chinghiz Aitmatov's world renowned novel 'The First Teacher' his attempts to foray into the big screen failed due to several reasons including the lack of a producer.

Director Gamlath

Deciding to continue with the short film which is economically viable Gamlath was inspired to make "Awaiting a Train', his second short film while he was shooting a wildlife documentary on wild ponies in Delft island. During this time, Gamlath saw a railway convoy of armoured cars, drawn on the wall of a house destroyed by shelling.

This charcoal image haunted Gamlath, provoking him to imagine how a child growing up in a militarized environment, devoid of civil life, would relate to his surroundings. In the film too, the boy draws a similar picture.

Speaking on the theme of 'Awaiting a Train', Gamlath said who ever does the issue of child conscription is against accepted human norms.

Gamlath says that he was shocked to see the conditions the children were undergoing in the war torn North and East. ‘The LTTE has a responsibility at least to release children from this inhuman war. Even the LTTE knows this and that is why it has never admitted the fact that they recruit children’ Gamalath protested.

‘And the Tamil people in these areas have suffered enough due to this war. They have been specially pressurised economically’ he stated.

"My filmmaking is to protest against this and I think as an artiste it is my duty to do so," Upali Gamlath said. Awaiting a Train (Dumriya Enathuru) (11 mts) - The film, set in LTTE infested northern Sri Lanka, revolves around a young boy's (David Jonathan) quest to find a train, a mode of transport he has never experienced, but hears about from adults. He wanders far from home, in search of this illusive train and is abducted by the LTTE in the process. The film ends with a close-up of his grieving mother (Nilupuli Jayawardhana), followed by the jolting UNICEF statistic that 3516 children were abducted by the LTTE during the Ceasefire, as at October 2004.

Script, Potography, Edit and Director - Upali Gamlath. Cast- David Jonathan, Nilupuli Jayawardhana, Malith Peiris. Art Director, Make up, Production by - Poorna Jayasri and the assistant director is Malith Peiris.