Words by Smiley Team
As a small, newly-formed organisation, the Saleem Foundation was an unlikely winner at the Charity Film Awards, 2020. However, the fundraising charity came out on top for the People’s Choice awards category for organisations with a turnover of up to £10,000. We spoke to their founder, Shaz Saleem about how the charity has progressed since then.
“Just to be considered for an award was an honour,” he reflected. “The Charity Film Awards does so much great work giving smaller groups such as ourselves an opportunity to reach a wider audience and get our film out there.”
Campaign director for the Charity Film Awards Madeleine Johnson applauded the foundation for their success: “The sheer number of votes they got was outstanding, which was particularly testament to their ability to mobilise supporters on social media.”
The film they submitted, The Silent Pain, told the story of how mental health issues often go unnoticed. It ends on the message that ‘It’s okay not to be okay’, and encourages viewers to talk about their problems.
Launched in 2017, the charity tackles issues such as poor mental health, domestic abuse and breast cancer by sourcing grants for grassroots groups combating these problems.
Shaz established the group following the loss of his grandfather, when he experienced a distressing period of declining mental health.
He said: “I didn’t seek help because at the time I actually felt embarrassed. I thought nobody would understand because I felt that I was meant to be a strong person and so I couldn’t speak up about it.”
The Silent Pain directly confronts such feelings by empowering people to share their experiences with others rather than struggling in isolation.
Shaz explained: “I’ve realised that the film has helped so many people come out after seeing the film, to talk about the issues and try to work through their problems.”
After the success of their first film, the foundation went on to produce a second one dealing with domestic abuse called, The Hidden Scars. As with their previous cinematographic creation, it has helped people to open up and discuss the issues they face and received coverage from the BBC.
“It assisted a lot of people that again, were scared to come out and talk about their experiences. These included people with children, who felt that if they raised concerns they might lose their kids.”
Reflecting on the power of both films he added: “The most important message that I learned from producing these films is, it’s okay not to be okay, but we need to believe that we can get through this together. Because we’re all in it together.”
For more information or to support the Saleem Foundation contact them via [email protected] or 07786196666.
