Mawaan Rizwan from MalumTV screened three of his videos at the BFI in London on Friday afternoon.
The comedian’s videos were shown as part of S.O.U.L. Screening Our Unseen Lives alongside other short films by filmmakers from ethnic minority backgrounds. The event aimed to broaden the network of creators, helping them build new connections, in the hope it can create a level playing field for film and TV creatives from ethnic communities.
Mawaan featured his videos Stop Hating On My Hair!, A Birthday To Die For and a mash-up of clips from London Underground Characters and London Bus Characters. These were interspersed with clips of him twerking in public places, in a short dubbed The Mawaan Rizwan Internet Show.
Mawaan said: “There was quite a broad mix of films tonight. I liked how it wasn’t all just comedy, nor was it all serious films. It’s great to see something I’ve made for YouTube up on the big screen.
“I hope it’ll be a regular event, and that Iyare [Igiehon, the organiser of S.O.U.L.] keeps me in the loop, because, lets be honest, unemployment is round the corner for me!”
We asked Mawaan how he went about choosing which videos to screen. He joked that he chose “the ones that exported the quickest”. He added: “I did try to keep them varied. One is a public prank video, one is a sketch and the other is more vlog-based.”
Mawaan also revealed he’s heading to Edinburgh Fringe this year with a new show he’s currently previewing across London. “It’s called YES. I do half an hour of stand-up,” he explained. “I’m currently doing previews of it before I take it to Edinburgh. Y’know, I’ve got to make sure it’s funny.”
Now that @MawaanR's had his screening at the BFI, he thinks he's some big shot http://t.co/Qigy9tmVmi pic.twitter.com/A4oRKTHSx5
— TenEighty UK (@TenEightyUK) May 9, 2014
