An Interview with Filmmaker Hashim Hassan on the Making of Short Film, “A Handful of Dates”

With the recent international success of You Will Die at Twenty and Talking About Trees, Sudanese films are receiving international recognition. Now comes A Handful of Dates, a short drama film adapted from the iconic 1957 short story by one of Sudan’s greatest authors, the late Tayeb Salih.

Released in 2019, the shot film is the latest work of Sudanese-American director and producer, Hashim Hassan, as he sought to accomplish a tremendous feat, which has undoubtedly paid off, earning the film numerous awards and nominations throughout 2020. Tayeb Salih often explores the complex relationships, which guide and shape our understandings of the world and our identity. 

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A Handful of Dates is no exception, as we witness how a young boy in mythical Northern Sudanese small village is confronted with the harsh realities of life, as he begins to realise that those closest to him are not who they seem. Hassan and his team have adapted this tale onto screen, in a wonderful adaptation which stylistically and beautifully interprets the tale. The film transports the viewer into another world as the tones and performances of the actors seamlessly converge to tell a story. 

The entire production of the film took place in Sudan, as Hassan and his team were determined to adapt the film as authentically as possible. A feat that was undoubtedly often difficult as Sudan is not a frequented location for artistic endeavors such as filmmaking. However, such endeavors are increasing, and prove to be important to the artistic revival and cultural growth of the nation. A Handful of Dates has certainly become part of a new age of modern Sudanese art, joining the many Sudanese films that have since been created, and hopefully paving the path for more to come.  

500 Words Magazine learns more about A Handful of Dates, its making and its director Hashim Hassan.

This short film is an adaptation of Tayeb Salih’s story, A Handful of Dates. What did you find special about adapting an original Sudanese story, and what did you find intriguing or captivating about the narrative crafted and the themes explored in the story of A Handful of Dates? 

At the onset of the idea, I had just finished Film School in LA and while I appreciated the rigorous training and on-set experience I received, I felt I hadn’t found my voice with the projects I directed. As it’s challenging coming up with an original idea to make into a movie, I felt literature offered an abundance of already existing material to adapt. In addition, because I was looking to reconnect with my Sudanese roots, I revisited Tayeb Salih’s Season of Migration to the North and his other stories again since reading them as a Mid-East Studies Major at UC Santa Barbara. I felt like any number of his stories could be adapted into a film, but A Handful of Dates offered a more condensed version that would be better suited to the short film format. Also, the story offered some of the major themes you find in his work generally. Namely, identity crisis and inter-generational and cultural conflicts. Growing up Sudanese Mexican-American in California, these themes spoke to me on a personal level while the story’s exploration of capitalism and wealth accumulation in the context of a traditionally religious society, was also intriguing to me.

As a director, it is often difficult to adapt story into film, and still preserve the overall meaning and purpose. What was the process you followed in order to adapt the story to fit the medium of film? Were there any tough sacrifices you had to make? 

Myself and the film’s Producer, Mamdooh Salih, knew that we had limited time and money to make the film and as such we had to be kind of ruthless in removing scenes that weren’t absolutely essential to the story. In the case of A Handful of Dates, the first half of the story is the narrator reminiscing about his childhood and his close relationship with this grandfather prior to the main drama of the story, which takes place in the Fields and Date Palm Groves.

The opening of the story has the potential to be expanded into a much longer film with a deeper exploration of the boy’s family and the villagers, but since we had a few days to shoot this introduction, we intended for the story to take place in one day with only the main characters and their relationships introduced in the morning and the Date Harvest occurring later in the day. There were several scenes, some with significant characters, we ended up cutting from the original screenplay because we knew we didn’t have the time and money to shoot them. The main sequence we intended to keep intact as it was in the story was the Date Harvest, however, when it came to shooting the sequence our time was cut in half, and we had to make very tough decisions on what to keep and what to remove.

I would say the film was re-written multiple times: in the creation of the screenplay initially penned by our writer Issraa El Kogali, when shooting, and then finally in editing where it went through multiple cuts, eventually departing significantly from the original story and screenplay, particularly with the ending scene. These were tough sacrifices we made and sometimes I think about what the film could have been had they been included. Although in the end, we felt like we made the best work we could have considering the time and resources we had. 

Some argue that it is difficult to create 100% Sudanese creative products. However, the entire production of A Handful of Dates took place in Sudan. What did you find to be the hardest factor in adapting and directing a Sudanese production? Furthermore, if I am correct, the film has been in the making since 2014. Did you encounter any major obstacles that prevented release? 

We experienced a number of challenges in bringing this film to the screen, the most significant being raising money and getting the proper film permit(s) from National Security. While we had initially intended to have all the money, we needed to make the film from our crowdfunding campaigns, so we ended up getting a portion of that amount, but with that we were able to begin pre-production in Sudan. It would take several more years and trips to Sudan with meetings within the private and public sectors before we had enough money to shoot. Meanwhile, the complicated bureaucracy of the Sudanese National Security State presented a number of difficulties in obtaining the proper filming permits and it was ultimately a connection we had which got the film approved by the head of National Security. Also, the fact that I had an American Passport made it both difficult to access funding from the MENA region for our film while also adding extra problems for us with National Security. Through this experience, however, we are now much better equipped and skilled with the terrain to handle filming in Sudan should we do it again. 

A Handful of Dates was nominated for Best Short Film in the Pan African Festival amongst many others awards. It is always a proud moment when a Sudanese film receives such acclaim. How do you feel about the way the film has been received globally? 

Yes, it actually received the Award of Excellence at the Best Shorts Competition. It feels fantastic to have worked so hard on something that is now receiving worldwide accolades while putting Sudanese storytelling on that map. Both Mamdooh and I, had a much grander vision for the film as a project of cultural exchange that would allow us to discuss and celebrate Sudanese literature, culture and storytelling to an international audience and it’s truly an honor to see that the film has achieved that goal and much more.  

Often times, a Sudanese film, especially one of this international caliber, becomes a point of conversation amongst the community. It can often be a daunting point for someone involved in the adaptation. Did you often feel under pressure to deliver, especially when directing such an iconic story?  

Yeah, there was definitely a lot of pressure to deliver and we always committed to doing our very best but we knew early on that the film would have its critics not least of which because we took liberties in adapting the work to the screen and eventually had to make the story work with limited time and resources. Issraa, Mamdooh and I spent a lot of time with the script beforehand and we felt like we were our own biggest critics in getting the screenplay to a place we felt would do justice to the story. I also think us being somewhat of outsiders to the intellectual, Arabic literary, and film circles in Sudan gave us less pressure and more room to maneuver in adapting. We were both apart of these circles and outside of them simultaneously. Also, we knew that the more ambiguous ending, which is a departure from the original story, would also have its detractors. But in the end, we are at peace with the fact that we made the best film we possibly could have considering the limitations we had throughout.  

On a more artistic note, as I was watching the film, I was struck by the earthy tones that colored the film. It felt very nostalgic and warm, while also invoking a feeling of uncertainty. How did you feel that the tone/color/vibe of the film contributed to the overall feeling of the narrative?

I’m glad you thought that.  Yes, the warm earthy tones were intended to give off this nostalgic, almost dreamlike quality.  This allowed us to take more liberties in the interpretation of where and when this story is taking place.  By shrouding this unspecified Northern Sudanese Village in an aura of nostalgia and picturesque beauty, we were able to create a mythological landscape that had a character of its own. One that reflected an innocence of childhood that could play in stark contrast to the end of the film where the color and tone is darker and desaturated.  

What advice would you give to any up-and-coming Sudanese directors who are struggling to get started? 

Filmmaking is one of those crafts that can only be learned by practice so the best advice to give is to simply make something with whatever resources you have.  That said, a lot of us neglect the importance of writing in this regard and don’t spend enough time ensuring the concept is sound on paper before shooting. When starting out, unless you have an amazing writing partner to collaborate with, the burden of writing will often fall on you and it’s in your best interest to spend ample time developing your idea on paper before filming begins. And finally, filmmaking, more than any other artform, is team effort so in addition to the artistic, technical components, it also requires social skills whereby you can effectively communicate with each member of your team in the creation of a unified vision.  

What is unique about A Handful of Dates, and what precisely makes it special, is that the themes explored are timeless, and thus relate and transcend every time period and fabric of society. The tales that we have often heard from family members and elders, are reminiscent of the themes incorporated into the film. Thus, the creation of a film, which encompasses these ideas, also becomes a vessel for the transportation of these tales into the future. 

A Handful of Dates has made a traditional classic short story accessible to a wider public, thus, effectively reviving it and making it anew. The film also provides an opportunity for us to refamiliarise ourselves with timeless stories and narratives, and dissect them within a modern context. Thus, Hashim and his team have embarked upon an exciting journey, that has clearly proven to be a success. As for Hassan, he is currently in production for an Art and Culture docuseries on California’s Central Valley while also developing a Comedy Pilot. As far as future ventures in Sudan go, Hassan is hoping to improve his Arabic and develop a more seamless production process, before embarking upon another project in the country. The film is currently doing rounds at film festival, but will be online to view in the Spring.

To keep up-to-date with A Handful of Dates, Hashim Hassan and his new projects, follow @hashimotoson on Instagram.

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Leena Badri is a 21-year-old writer of many genres, a lover of all creative mediums, and a student of International Relations in Toronto, Canada. She explores topics of political culture, society, and media. Find her on Instagram at @leenabadri.

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“You Will Die at Twenty” and Sudan’s Collectivist Culture