Curating Visions: Cinemata Partners with University of Dhaka
By King Catoy | September 25, 2025
The Cinemata curatorial team is thrilled to present a curated selection of student films from the Department of Television, Film and Photography, University of Dhaka, now featured on Cinemata through our partnership under Cinemata Visions.
This collaboration, formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding signed in April 2024, marks an exciting new chapter in showcasing emerging voices from Bangladesh who are documenting critical social issues affecting their communities and the broader Asia-Pacific region.
Rezwan Islam, EngageMedia's Representative (left), during the MOU signing with department representatives on April 4, 2024.
A Growing Collection of Student Works
The featured playlist represents the first selection of student films chosen for their powerful engagement with social issues—from democratic struggles following internet shutdowns to human rights concerns and environmental justice. These are not just student exercises; they are vital documents of our times, created by young filmmakers at the forefront of Bangladesh's evolving media landscape.
Saiyeed Shahjada Al Kareem, Lecturer at the Department of Television, Film and Photography, reflects on this partnership:
"From now on, selected films by our students will be showcased on Cinemata, a video platform for social issue films in the Asia-Pacific. This journey began with our collaboration with EngageMedia, a non-profit media, technology, and culture organisation that promotes digital rights, open and secure technology, and social issue documentary."
Cinemata representatives with faculty and students of the Department of Television, Film and Photography during a Cinemata.org demonstration and discussion in February 2025.
What's Next: More Curated Selections
This initial playlist is just the beginning. In the coming months, our Cinemata curators, working closely with Saiyeed Shahjada Al Kareem and the department faculty, will program additional curated selections that highlight the best social issue works emerging from University of Dhaka students.
As these young filmmakers continue documenting the urgent issues facing their communities, Cinemata provides them with a secure, independent platform to reach global audiences—free from the constraints and censorship risks of corporate video platforms.
About Cinemata Visions
Cinemata Visions highlights video endeavours such as workshops and competitions initiated by advocacy groups dedicated to the youth. It aims to harness creative film outputs and encourage young filmmakers to produce more social issue works by providing a free, independent, and secure video hosting platform beyond the usual corporate platforms.
Through partnerships with leading institutions like the University of Dhaka, Far Eastern University, and faculty members of the University of the Philippines Film Institute, Cinemata Visions nurtures the next generation of advocacy filmmakers—equipping them with both a platform and an audience for their vital stories.
Explore more curated films and playlists on https://cinemata.org/voices