Moomin Fuad
{{Infobox person
| name = Moomin Fuad
| image =
| imagesize =
| alt =
| caption =
| birth_date =
| birth_place =
| alma_mater =
| occupation = director, cinematographer, screenwriter
| yearsactive = 2006–present
| spouse =
| children =
| works =
| awards =
}}
Moomin Fuad is a Maldivian film director, cinematographer and screenwriter known for the critically acclaimed films Heylaa (2006), Happy Birthday (2009) and Loodhifa (2011).
Career
Moomin Fuad collaborated with Ali Shifau to direct the critically appreciated crime film Heylaa (2006) featuring a cast of Ismail Rasheed, Ahmed Mauroof, Zeenath Abbas, Lufshan Shakeeb and Abdulla Muaz.{{cite news|url=https://dho.mv/baiscope/44005 |title=Fuad regrets his involvement in Happy Birthday |language=Divehi |work=Dho? |last=Maaha |first=Aishath |date=21 October 2018 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20190117060811/https://dho.mv/baiscope/44005 |url-status=live |archivedate=17 January 2019 |access-date=17 January 2019 |df=dmy-all}} The film narrates the story of a fourteen years old ambitious boy who finds himself unknowingly being involved in the smuggling of a revolver. Apart from writing and directing the film, Fuad worked as the cinematographer, marking it as the first Maldivian film to be shot in high-definition digital video.{{cite news |url=http://inaamu.presidencymaldives.gov.mv/Index.aspx?lid=177&wid=1343 |title=Gaumee Inaam 2018 - Ali Shifau |work=Presidency Maldives |language=Divehi |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20190117062603/http://inaamu.presidencymaldives.gov.mv/Index.aspx?lid=177&wid=1343 |url-status=dead |archivedate=17 January 2019 |access-date=3 December 2018 |df=dmy-all }} Though the film received positive reviews from critics, it was a commercial failure.{{cite news|url=https://dho.mv/baiscope/23701 |title=11 years anniversary for DRE; what did they achieve? |language=dv|work=Dho |last=Adhushan |first=Ahmed |date=14 September 2017 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20181005134413/https://dho.mv/baiscope/23701 |url-status=dead |archivedate=5 October 2018 |access-date=18 September 2018 |df=dmy-all}}{{cite news|url=http://www.haveeru.com.mv/dhivehi/entertainment/107034 |title=Moomin not satisfied even after 12 Awards |language=Divehi |work=Haveeru |last=Adhushan |first=Ahmed |date=4 July 2011 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20181216101531/https://archive.mv/dv/articles/DZ2eg |url-status=dead |archivedate=16 December 2018 |access-date=16 December 2018 |df=dmy-all}} Co-director of the film Shifau opined that its commercial status was a result of casting "not very prominent" faces in the film and the "film-goers were not ready to accept the genre" at the time of release.{{cite news|url=https://www.sun.mv/109020 |title=Chippe with new hopes after receiving National Award |language=Divehi |work=Sun |last=Luba |first=Aminath |date=8 August 2018 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20190117060200/https://www.sun.mv/109020 |url-status=dead |archivedate=17 January 2019 |access-date=16 December 2018 |df=dmy-all}} Ahmed Nadheem from Haveeru praised the narration and plot of the film; "Moomin outshone everyone from the crew. From writing to direction and camera work, Fuad has kept every little detail on his mind and arranged the whole sequences the best it can be presented".{{cite news|url=https://archive.mv/dv/articles/X9owd |title=Heylaa: An awakening film from a drowsed industry |language=Divehi |work=Haveeru |last=Nadheem |first=Ahmed |date=29 March 2012 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20190117062120/https://archive.mv/dv/articles/X9owd |url-status=dead |archivedate=17 January 2019 |access-date=16 December 2018 |df=dmy-all}} At 5th Gaumee Film Awards ceremony, Fuad won the Best Story, Best Cinematography and Best Art Direction award.{{cite news|url=http://haveeru.com.mv/dhivehi/news/60767 |title=Winners of 5th Gaumee Film Awards |language=Divehi|work=Haveeru |last=Ahmed |first=Fazeena |date=13 April 2008 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20181221053708/http://webcache.dhivehi.mv/haveeru.com.mv/dhivehi/news/60767 |url-status=dead |archivedate=21 December 2018 |access-date=21 December 2018 |df=dmy-all}}
Three year later, the duo reunited for a suspense thriller Happy Birthday (2009) which narrates the story of a simple man who receives a call on his birthday informing that his wife and son have been kidnapped, only to be returned for a ransom.{{cite news|url=http://www.vaguthu.mv/evaguthu/292986/ |title=The love for cinema from Moger |language=Divehi|work=Vaguthu |last=Hassan |first=Nazim |date=29 June 2015 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160615140410/http://www.vaguthu.mv/evaguthu/292986/ |url-status=dead |archivedate=15 June 2016 |access-date=22 September 2018 |df=dmy-all}} The film was a commercial failure, despite the positive response from the critics. Winning five Gaumee Film Awards and twelve Maldives Film Awards, the film was also screened at the Venice Film Festival.{{cite news|url=https://mihaaru.com/entertainment/5325 |title=Fuad regrets his involvement in Happy Birthay |language=Divehi |work=Mihaaru |last=Adhushan |first=Ahmed |date=2 September 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20181216105808/https://mihaaru.com/entertainment/5325 |url-status=dead |archivedate=16 December 2018 |access-date=16 December 2018 |df=dmy-all}} Though the film received extremely positive reviews from critics with specific praise of Fuad, he admits to "regret" his involvement in the film; "I had to forgo my standards and several ethics for the development of this project. Beyond all the obstacles, I had to harm myself to complete filming Happy Birthday and I never intend on developing a similar project in the near future". At 1st Maldives Film Awards ceremony, Fuad was bestowed with Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Art Direction, Best Original Song, Best Costume Designer and Best Sound Mixing award.{{cite news|url=http://maldivesfilmawards.com/?page=detail&id=34 |title=Feature Film Nominations Announced |language=Divehi|work=Maldives Film Awards |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160417013119/http://maldivesfilmawards.com/?page=detail&id=34 |url-status=dead |archivedate=17 April 2016 |access-date=30 March 2018}} At 6th Gaumee Film Awards, Fuad received the Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Art Direction award.{{cite news|url=https://sun.mv/64111 |title=Majority of the awards for "Niuma", "Happy Birthday" announced as best film |language=dv |work=Sun|last=Saeed|first=Fathimath |date=23 October 2015 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20151024085951/https://sun.mv/64111 |url-status=live |archivedate=24 October 2015 |access-date=30 March 2018}}
It was followed by his crime tragedy drama Loodhifa (2011).{{cite news|url=https://sun.mv/5254 |title=Loodhifa; Up-righting the fraternal film industry |language=Divehi|work=Sun |last=Naif |first=Ahmed |date=15 February 2011 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140902184704/https://sun.mv/5254 |url-status=live |archivedate=2 September 2014 |access-date=16 April 2018}} Featuring an ensemble cast, the film deals with current social issues in society told from different perspectives of the characters.{{cite news|url=http://haveeru.com.mv/?page=details&id=104588&category=ihUfinum |title=Expectations for "Loodhifa" is high |language=Divehi|work=Haveeru |last=Nadheem |first=Ahmed |date=16 December 2010 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101216122531/http://haveeru.com.mv/?page=details&id=104588&category=ihUfinum |url-status=dead |archivedate=16 December 2010 |access-date=3 October 2018}} Made on a budget of MVR 600,000, the film was declared a commercial failure though it received wide critical acclaim, praising the performance of cast and the film's "realism" in its language, characters and their attitude. At the 7th Gaumee Film Awards he was bestowed with his second Gaumee Film Award for Best Director, Best Original Song, Best Screenplay and Best Art Direction. He also received a nomination as the Best Director at the 2nd Maldives Film Awards ceremony.
Fuad's first work of 2019 was the psychological horror thriller Nivairoalhi (2019), written and directed by Fuad, which marks Niuma Mohamed's last onscreen film.{{cite news|url=https://mihaaru.com/entertainment/48037 |title=Nivairoalhi released with a surprise |language=Divehi|work=Mihaaru |last=Adhushan |first=Ahmed |date=3 January 2019|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180328111609/https://mihaaru.com/entertainment/25449|url-status=live |archivedate=28 March 2018 |access-date=28 March 2018 |df=dmy-all}} Produced by Mohamed, it revolves around a patient suffering from depression.{{cite news|url=https://mihaaru.com/entertainment/42980 |title=Nivaroalhi yet again to be released in 2019 |language=Divehi |work=Mihaaru |last=Adhushan |first=Ahmed |date=27 September 2018 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20190109111317/https://mihaaru.com/entertainment/42980 |url-status=live |archivedate=9 January 2019 |access-date=8 January 2019 |df=dmy-all}} Starring Mohamed, Yoosuf Shafeeu and Ahmed Asim in lead roles, the film received majorly positive reviews from critics; Aishath Maaha of Dho? favored the performance of the lead actors and mentioned the "neat arrangement" of its screenplay though pointed out its "weak ending" to be unsatisfactory.{{cite news|url=https://dho.mv/baiscope/48258 |title=Nivaroalhi Review: Its heartbreaking to say Good Bye |language=Divehi |work=Mihaaru |last=Maaha |first=Aishath |date=11 January 2019 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20190207141326/https://dho.mv/baiscope/48258 |url-status=live |archivedate=7 February 2019 |access-date=7 February 2019 |df=dmy-all}} This was followed by the Ahmed Sinan-directed crime thriller Goh Raalhu (2019), penned by Fuad, which centers around the criminality and misdemeanor a young man has to deal with while trying to prove his truest intention of love.{{cite news|url=https://mihaaru.com/entertainment/32989 |title=Goh Raalhu yet again postponed |language=Divehi |work=Mihaaru |last=Adhushan |first=Ahmed |date=20 March 2018 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20190128101708/https://mihaaru.com/entertainment/32989 |url-status=live |archivedate=28 January 2019 |access-date=28 January 2019 |df=dmy-all}}{{cite news|url=https://mihaaru.com/entertainment/14230 |title=Goh Raalhu: Shinan's second direction |language=Divehi |work=Mihaaru |last=Adhushan |first=Ahmed |date=13 March 2017 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20190128074915/https://mihaaru.com/entertainment/14230 |url-status=live |archivedate=28 January 2019 |access-date=28 January 2019 |df=dmy-all}} Upon release, the film received widespread positive reviews from critics; Aminath Luba of Sun called it a "five-star worthy blockbuster film" and wrote: "In the fast-paced action thriller, it is the plot twist at the end which grabs most eyeballs, all thanks to Fuad's exemplary writing".{{cite news|url=https://sun.mv/115066 |title=Goh Raalhu Review: Drowned in the wave of Goh Raalhu |language=Divehi |work=Sun |last=Luba |first=Aminath |date=16 February 2019 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20190523164142/https://sun.mv/115066 |url-status=live |archivedate=23 May 2019 |access-date=23 May 2019 |df=dmy-all}} Stereotyped in a romantic avatar, several reviews and comments suggest that Jumayyil is preferable in the crime related roles. Later during the year, first Maldivian anthology film was released which credited Fuad as the director of the segment titled Baiveriya which focuses on the drug smuggling scene in Male'.{{cite news|url=https://mihaaru.com/entertainment/62002 |title=After a six years' gap, Hatharu Halha to release in Baiskoafu |work=Mihaaru |language=Divehi |last=Adhushan |first=Ahmed |date=29 September 2020 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20200910180054/https://mihaaru.com/entertainment/62002 |url-status=live |archivedate=10 September 2020 |access-date=10 September 2020 |df=dmy-all}} The project was filmed in 2013 and digitally released six years later due to several delays in post-production, where the producer of the film criticizes Farooq for "failing" to complete his segment during the stipulated time period took over the post-production.{{cite news|url=https://avas.mv/14072 |title=Ravee on Hot seat in Hatharu Halha project |work=Avas |language=Divehi |last=Nadheem |first=Ahmed |date=4 March 2016 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20200911091728/https://avas.mv/14072 |url-status=live |archivedate=11 September 2020 |access-date=10 September 2020 |df=dmy-all}}
Filmography
=Feature film=
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" |
| style="background:#ccc; text-align:center;"
!scope="col"| Year !scope="col"| Title !scope="col"| Director !scope="col"| Screenplay !scope="col"| Cinematography ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | {{Tooltip|Ref(s)|Reference(s)}} |
| 2006
!scope="row"| Heylaa | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} |
| 2009
!scope="row"| Happy Birthday | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} |
| 2011
!scope="row"| Loodhifa | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | |
| 2011
!scope="row"| Hithey Dheymee | | | {{Yes}} |
| 2017
!scope="row"| Malikaa | | | {{Yes}} |
| 2019
!scope="row"| Nivairoalhi | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | |
| 2019
!scope="row"| Goh Raalhu | | {{Yes}} | |
| 2025
!scope="row"| Abadhah | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | |
=Television=
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" |
| style="background:#ccc; text-align:center;"
!scope="col"| Year !scope="col"| Title !scope="col"| Director !scope="col"| Screenplay !scope="col"| Camera ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | {{Tooltip|Ref(s)|Reference(s)}} |
| 2006
!scope="row"| Dhafaraa | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | {{yes}} |
| 2007
!scope="row"| Reyfanaa | | | {{yes}} |
| 2008
!scope="row"| Inthihaa | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | {{yes}} |
| 2008
!scope="row"| Yaasmeen | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | {{yes}} |
| 2008
!scope="row"| FB! | | | {{yes}} |
| 2008
!scope="row"| Asarugaa | {{yes}} | | {{yes}} |
| 2009
!scope="row"| Silsilaa | | | {{yes}} |
| 2019
!scope="row"| Mhendhan | | {{Yes}} | |
| 2019
!scope="row"| Hatharu Halha | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | |
| 2019–2020
!scope="row"| Maayoos | | | {{Yes}} |
| 2020
!scope="row"| Gamini | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | |
| 2022
!scope="row"|Netheemey | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | |
=Short film=
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" |
| style="background:#ccc; text-align:center;"
!scope="col"| Year !scope="col"| Title !scope="col"| Director !scope="col"| Screenplay !scope="col"| Camera ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | {{Tooltip|Ref(s)|Reference(s)}} |
| 2007
!scope="row"| Badi Edhuru | | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} |
| 2008
!scope="row"| Ummeedh | | | {{yes}} | |
| 2011
!scope="row"| Bodu 13 Muassasaa | | | {{Yes}} |
| 2014
!scope="row"| Kashfu | | {{yes}} | | |
| 2021
!scope="row"| Feehaali | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | |
Accolades
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" |
| scope="col"| Year
!scope="col"| Award !scope="col"| Category !scope="col"| Nominated work !scope="col"| Result ! scope="col" class="unsortable"| {{Abbr|Ref(s)|Reference(s)}} |
|---|
| rowspan="3"| 2008
! scope="row" rowspan="3"| 5th Gaumee Film Awards | Best Story | Heylaa | {{won}} |
| Best Cinematography
| Heylaa | {{won}} |
| Best Art Direction
| Heylaa (Shared with Ali Shifau) | {{won}} |
| rowspan="6" | 2011
! scope="row" rowspan="6" | 1st Maldives Film Awards | {{won}} |
| Best Screenplay
| {{won}} |
| Best Art Direction
|Happy Birthday (Shared with Ali Shifau) | {{won}} |
| Best Original Song
| "Araamu" - Happy Birthday | {{won}} |
| Best Cinematography
| {{won}} |
| Best Sound Mixing
| Happy Birthday (Shared with Ali Shifau) | {{won}} |
| rowspan="2" | 2012
! scope="row" rowspan="2" | 2nd Maldives Film Awards | Loodhifa | {{nom}} |
| Best Art Direction
| Loodhifa (Shared with Ismail Rasheed and Hussain Munawwar) | {{won}} |
| rowspan="4" | 2015
! scope="row" rowspan="4" | 6th Gaumee Film Awards | {{won}} |
| Best Original Song
| "Araamu" - Happy Birthday | {{nom}} |
| Best Screenplay
| {{won}} |
| Best Art Direction
| Happy Birthday (Shared with Ali Shifau and Mohamed Ali) | {{nom}} |
| rowspan="4" | 2016
! scope="row" rowspan="4" | 7th Gaumee Film Awards | Loodhifa | {{won}} |
| Best Original Song
| Loodhifa | {{won}} |
| Best Screenplay
| Loodhifa | {{won}} |
| Best Art Direction
| Loodhifa (Shared with Ismail Rasheed and Hussain Hussain Munawwar) | {{won}} |
| 2019
! scope="row" | PSM Office Drama Competition |Best Screenplay | Nakalu |{{Won}} | |
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
{{IMDb name|nm3098416}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fuad, Moomin}}