Kamran Qureshi
Kamran has been supervising research dissertation and teaching undergraduate and postgraduate Digital Media Theory & Practice; Ethics in a Digital Age; 3D Modelling; The Internet; Theorising social media; and Film and Television (different styles and genres: narrative, documentary) practice through the academic understanding of film and television, also technical and professional skills including screenwriting, direction, and production at the University of East Anglia since 2019.
His PhD was in Professional Practice Film, TV and Media at the University of East Anglia. This Practice-based Doctoral Research was presented at the University of Westminster as part of the AVPhD series; Also presented at the Nagoya University, Japan, and at the JAM (Journeys Across Media) Conference, Department of Film, Theatre and Television, University of Reading.
His book chapter "A Critical Analysis of the Transgender (Intersex) Persons Act, 2018, in Pakistan Versus United Nations Recommendations" has been published in January 2022, in the Palgrave Macmillan's book Interdisciplinary and Global Perspectives on Intersex, edited by Megan Walker.
Kamran has attended several conferences and presented his research on Australian film vs television: Intersex representation in Australian media at the Dublin City University, Intersex Representation in the American Television Dramas at Birkbeck College, the University of London; Portrayal of Intersex in Indian Cinema at The Southwest Conference, Trinity University, Texas, US; The Impact of Transgender Act, 2018, on the Intersex Citizens of Pakistan at the University of Lincoln.
Kamran was an invited guest speaker for The INIA Network (2021) (Intersex New Interdisciplinary Approaches) supported by a grant from the European Commission and The UK reproducibility network (2022), a peer-led consortium for world-leading research to talk about Open Research Practice and Transparency in Art and Humanities along with his recently directed feature film Only Love Matters. Kamran created a first-ever substantial intersex narrative and screen works database in 2016 and started collecting information about intersex verified media including films, television, radio and theatre. This database includes 140 films with major or minor intersex characters, shorts and documentaries, starting from 1932 till 2021. Over 70 of these entries are feature films in 12 languages such as English, Chinese, Italian, Hindi, Urdu, Spanish, Japanese, French, Swedish and Cantonese. His team is working on a new database website which will be publicly available soon for free at https://intersexdatabase.com/
Kamran was a former organising member of Green Film Festival 2022 @UEA, an annual environmentally-themed film festival, which holds film screenings, workshops, speeches, and other events, supported by the Global Research Translation Award (GRTA) funded by United Kingdom Research and Innovation (UKRI). As Communication editor of the CHASE Brief Encounters (issue 4), a peer-reviewed postgraduate journal, my responsibilities included ensuring clarity, accessibility, communication and marketing of the journal and CFP on social media and appropriate academic platforms.
Kamran is known for his TV shows and drama series on women and intersex issues. His research work on intersex includes American, Indian, and Australian Film and TV, The Transgender (Intersex) Persons Act, 2018 in Pakistan vs United Nations Recommendation (Qureshi, 2022), along with the practice of directorial experience of telemovie Murad (2003), and 32-part TV series Moorat (2005) and his new feature film Only Love Matters (2022), the first movie in cinema history on the intersex subject set in Britain. It has done phenomenally well in the international film festival circuit and has won over 30 awards including Best Director, Best Producer, Production Design, Best cinematography, Best Editing, Best Romantic film, Best Feature film. It will be released in cinemas soon. Please see: onlylovemattersmovie.com
Kamran has extensive experience in directing and producing TV shows, historical and contemporary interdisciplinary film and television drama concerning women, mothers, children, young girls, intersex people and LGBT+ subjects. He covered a wide variety of issues such as- child labour, child marriages, child abuse, prostitution, honour killing, religious intolerance, sexual abuse, rape, gambling addiction, drug smuggling and human trafficking.
He started his career as a Digital Video Effects Designer for TV channels and advertising agencies in 1992 and later he joined the television production house Telewise in 1995 as an Editor and Director. His journey into direction began with branded programmes: Fanta Candid Camera, Allen Soothers Boom Bastic, Teleworld's Voyage of Discovery branded TV transmission sponsored by John Player Gold Leaf and Ariel Mothers, sponsored by Procter & Gamble.
Kamran directed numerous drama serials, documentaries and films. He made his first telefilm on intersex titled Murad (Desire), which brought him first award for Best Director and Best telefilm at the Indus Telefilm Festival, 2003. Then he directed a 13-part TV films series, Maa Aur Mamta (Motherhood), which won seven awards at the Indus Drama Awards 2005. Later, his first directed drama serial, Moorat (idol) on intersex and transgender subject, for 7th Sky Entertainment, received four nominations at the Lux Style Awards 2005. In June 2022, for his recent feature film University of East Anglia stated:
"It’s no wonder that the panel were all staggered by the work undertaken – it gave them goosebumps! – and, for that, Dr Qureshi was awarded special recognition. Only Love Matters is now in the process of distribution and is expected to be commercially released in cinemas."
Kamran is the recipient of various accolades, including Best Director, at the Hollywood Gold Awards, Berlin Indie Film Festival, Paris Film Awards 2021; and the Best First Time Director Feature Film at the Rome International Movie Awards 2021, Best Producer & Best Feature Film (shared), Best Cinematographer (shared), Best Screenwriter (shared), University of East Anglia's Engagement Award 2022 and finalist of Innovation and Impact award University of East Anglia, 2022.
He also won Best TV Drama Film Award for Murad on intersex subject at the Indus Telefilm Award 2003; his directed 13-part TV drama series, Maa Aur Mamta (Motherhood), won six awards in the First Indus Drama Award 2005 including Best TV Drama Director and Best TV Drama Series; Won: Best Talk Show for Procter & Gamble's Ariel Mother at the PTV Awards 2002, as well as four time nominee for Best TV Director Drama Series at the Unilever's Lux Style Awards, 2005 (32-part Moorat), 2006 (26-part Riyasat), 2007 (20-part Makan) and 2009 (29-part Sarkar Sahab). One of his productions (26-part Ishq Ki Inteha), which he directed as well, was also nominated for Best TV Drama Producer series (shared) at the Lux Style Awards 2010.
Kamran is a former Public Governor of NHS Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, organising team member for the University of East Anglia’s Green Film Festival 2022, an annual environmentally-themed film festival, and a Communication Editor of CHASE's peer-reviewed journal, Brief Encounters. Kamran is a founder of Evergreen Media Europe and co-founder of KQ Movies UK. Kamran's website: https://kamranqureshi.com/category/news-article/
