441:, writing for Flick Filosopher, who said "Arshad makes his ridiculously low-budget film look far more expensive: I would never have guessed that Finding Fatimah was made for under half a million pounds. That’s just nuts". Overall, she said "There’s lots to like in this mostly sweet British Muslim rom-com. Pity, then, that it tries too hard, instead of trusting its characters, and sabotages itself", awarding the film 2.5 stars out of 5.
355:, and director, Oz Arshad were freelancing for British Muslim TV and pitched the idea of producing a movie with the intent of it being toured as a means of charity fundraising for Penny Appeal. A story idea was presented and it was agreed that the studio would have final cut to restrict story, scenes or shots along the way if they felt it would not satisfy both a conservative and liberal Muslim audience.
485:
The
Platform gave the film a positive review, stating "The tasteful comedy, with genuine characters and an amalgamation of Asian culture with abject Britishness, makes Finding Fatimah a pleasure – but more importantly, a welcome breath of fresh air. It is a film that should have been made a decade
364:
In spite of the restrictions placed on the film, Arshad and Harris wanted to make the film as accessible as possible to a mainstream audience. Speaking to CloseShave TV, Arshad said "The universal theme of this movie is finding love and these two characters just happen to be Muslim". Due to this
463:
gave the film 4 out of 5, praising what it achieves on such a small budget and claiming that "it hangs together seamlessly in terms of production value; it's well edited and thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish" and calling Oz Arshad's debut as director "a triumph".
478:
The film was almost universally acclaimed by Asian press, with Asiana.TV giving the film a positive review, stating "As independent
British films go, Finding Fatimah is unlike others in recent years and it's this originality that will cement its place in modern cinema".
391:
event, alone, raising over £100,000 for charity. Penny Appeal founder Adeem Younis confirmed in his 2021 book 'Small Change Big
Difference: The Penny Appeal Story' that the Finding Fatimah tour raised over £600,000.
991:
457:
gave the film a positive review, with their takeaway being that it "Refreshingly explores a romantic red line that isn't farcially extreme, but instead an unspoken barrier to love for so many".
471:
praised the film for "putting authentic
British Asian characters centre-screen" and poised that it might "help end Muslim stereotypes in film". However, once the film was released, film critic
482:
Asian Image gave the film a positive review, praising the lack of stereotypes and cliches and calling it "a well-executed and refreshingly honest take on life as a single
British Muslim".
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Penny Appeal toured the film, screening it a total of 23 times in 19 different cities. The tour was a huge success, with over 10,000 tickets being sold across the tour and the
42:
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slated the film for a "bafflingly lame and leaden script and plodding direction that wouldn't pass muster for TV in a thousand years", awarding it 1 star out of 5.
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Principal photography took place in small installments between July 2016 and
October 2016 with additional pick-up days in December 2016 and January 2017.
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Pre-production began in
February 2016. Harris and Arshad worked together to create the characters that were then written into the screenplay.
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411:. Stevens granted the production the rights to use the song for free due to liking the rough cut of the film he was shown.
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In the mainstream media, one consistent point was the film's high production values given its budget of just £325,000.
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gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, praising its use of a "staggeringly low budget". The sentiment was repeated by
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gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, praising the chemistry between the leads and comparing the writing to vintage
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ago, and is a welcome release to the tension the media have contributed to propagating about
Muslims".
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and London. It was released in UK cinemas on 21 April 2017 with a 12A certificate granted by the
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992:"REVIEW: Best of British talent helps make Finding Fatimah a 'refreshing' take on Muslim life"
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DESIblitz gave the film a positive review, praising its originality and "fresh perspective".
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written and directed by Oz Arshad. The film is about a man who struggles to find love in the
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The film received mixed reviews from mainstream publications. On review aggregator website
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715:"CloseShave TV Interview with Finding Fatimah Writer and director, Oz Arshad"
570:"CloseShave TV Interview with Finding Fatimah Writer and director, Oz Arshad"
672:"'EastEnders' Star Nina Wadia Turned Down Return As Zainab Masood Last Year"
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mainstream approach, the film surpassed its initial releases plans and
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The film's score was written and recorded by composer James
Hesford.
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1034:"Finding Fatimah tackles Asian Divorce and Dating with Satire"
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with most of the mix taking place at The Audio Suite in
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due to the stigma of his divorce several years prior.
1013:"Finding Fatimah: Muslim Rom-Com Without Explosives"
943:"Guardian Review – faintly desperate dating comedy"
839:"Finding Fatimah movie review: dating while Muslim"
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369:picked it up for theatrical distribution in 2017.
694:"Sabras Radio: Raj at Drivetime, 20th April 2017"
252:The film was produced on a budget of £325,000.
8:
882:"ShortList: Finding Fatimah". 21 April 2017.
597:"Finding Fatimah – Official Trailer (2017)"
46:Finding Fatimah official UK release poster
40:
31:
549:"Finding Fatimah at British Comedy Guide"
498:
414:"Life is a Love-Story" is performed by
372:Post-production sound was handled by
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241:with additional sequences filmed in
528:"Finding Fatimah official website"
25:
418:, who makes a cameo in the film.
27:2017 British romantic comedy film
971:"Film Review: Finding Fatimah"
894:"Film Review: Finding Fatimah"
818:"Film Review: Finding Fatimah"
784:"Small Change, Big Difference"
1:
1101:British romantic comedy films
645:"IMDb Box Office Information"
507:"Ramadan Appeal ticket sales"
1116:2010s English-language films
1106:2017 directorial debut films
405:The First Cut Is the Deepest
333:Alessandra D'Averio as Adela
742:"Finding Fatimah Film Tour"
264:Asmara Gabrielle as Fatimah
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1096:British independent films
403:The soundtrack features "
39:
318:Theresa Godly as Aaliyah
763:"Rahim Jung on Twitter"
339:Tim Dalgleish as Yameen
282:Ambreen Razia as Hafsah
228:British Asian community
166:21 April 2017
1111:Icon Productions films
624:"Finding Fatimah BBFC"
467:Ahead of its release,
152:Icon Film Distribution
291:Arif Javid as Tawheed
261:Danny Ashok as Shahid
174: (United Kingdom)
461:The National Student
435:The Evening Standard
380:, but some of it at
1121:2010s British films
336:Sajid Varda as Arif
273:Wahab Sheikh as Nav
798:"Finding Fatimah"
342:Zoe Iqbal as Fiza
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183:Running time
159:Release date
111:Phil Moreton
95:Wahab Sheikh
29:
409:Cat Stevens
328:Imran Yusuf
309:as Mr Gruff
307:Dave Spikey
84:Danny Ashok
68:Produced by
52:Directed by
18:Danny Ashok
1091:2017 films
1085:Categories
608:7 February
554:7 February
533:3 February
512:3 February
493:References
445:Total Film
396:Soundtrack
378:Birmingham
353:Sol Harris
351:Producer,
347:Production
324:as Valerie
270:as Khadija
268:Nina Wadia
239:Manchester
187:99 minutes
170:2017-04-21
133:Production
91:Nina Wadia
72:Sol Harris
60:Written by
455:ShortList
422:Reception
303:as Lionel
116:Edited by
63:Oz Arshad
55:Oz Arshad
1040:18 April
1018:18 April
997:18 April
976:18 April
955:21 April
927:18 April
899:18 April
867:18 April
845:22 April
823:18 April
768:25 April
747:25 April
726:25 April
699:25 April
678:18 April
629:24 March
581:25 April
315:as Rocky
313:Guz Khan
297:as Jahid
279:as Nayna
211:£325,000
200:Language
124:Music by
78:Starring
720:YouTube
656:7 April
602:YouTube
575:YouTube
288:as Saba
203:English
192:Country
168: (
135:company
330:as Sid
208:Budget
407:" by
1065:IMDb
1042:2017
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999:2017
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957:2017
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728:2017
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680:2017
658:2017
650:IMDb
631:2017
610:2017
583:2017
556:2017
535:2017
514:2017
367:Icon
256:Cast
247:BBFC
141:BMTV
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