We Were Here is an eleven-minute-long, mockumentary-style comedy short about three Indian uncles in a fictitious small town who pretend to be household appliances, in protest against AI taking over human jobs.
All is well until one of their children joins an AI company, leaving them forced to face the idea that they may need to make space for technology in today's changing world.
Pranav Bhasin, who wrote and directed the film, and Yash Gonsai, founder of Sunshine Motion Pictures and the film's producer, have spent the last few months watching audiences across the world discover the comedy of this film. We Were Here premiered at Clermont-Ferrand, the largest short film festival in the world, and was met with an audience of 1,500 people roaring with laughter, applause and whistles.
At the Palm Springs International ShortFest, the film won two awards, formally qualifying We Were Here for the 99th Academy Awards.
At its North American premiere at South by Southwest (SXSW), the film won the RedBreast Unhidden Award, curated by Irish BAFTA-winning actor Andrew Scott, who later came on board as an executive producer.
Currently, Bhasin and Gonsai are on the cusp of beginning the film’s Oscar campaign. Gonsai has previously produced The Last Film Show, which was also Oscar-shortlisted and distributed across countries like Japan, Italy and Spain, among others.
In a conversation with THR India, Bhasin and Gonsai discussed the film's festival journey, how Andrew Scott came on board, what an Oscar campaign for a short film actually looks like, and why they believe more such comedy films can bring Indian cinema to the global stage... the way they have seen 3 Idiots do.
What is We Were Here, and what was the process of making it?
Bhasin: It's a mockumentary about three Indian uncles in a fictitious small town who are rebelling against AI taking over human jobs by pretending to be household appliances. It's a bit of a commentary on technology and AI and how it is contesting against humanity right now.
I think it sort of poses the question of whether it's important to pay more attention right now to AI or to humanity, and where that's at right now. It's about 11 minutes long, and really fun.
What has the audience reception been like so far?
Bhasin: The general pitch that we've had in America, which has worked very well for us, is that it's the funniest film people will see here. The response here has been unbelievable, honestly.
We premiered our film in France this February at Clermont-Ferrand Film Festival — it's the largest short film festival in the world. And what we saw in a 1,500-seat theatre — people roaring with laughter, clapping and whistling at the end of our film — was something one could never imagine or expect.
How did Andrew Scott decide to come on board as executive producer?
Gonsai: That happened during the North American premiere at South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin, Texas. They have a section called the RedBreast Unhidden Award. Whoever wins that section, the actor gets on boarded as executive producer. We had won that award!
Bhasin: He (Andrew Scott) curates a couple of official selections and decides on a winner from among them.
We were so happy that this was a film that he thought was worthy of winning the award and coming on board as an executive producer for. He's a personality we are huge fans of, and he loved the film. That also been a gift and a blessing. We are working to have him on board on the Oscar campaign with us.
What was his reaction to the film?
Bhasin: I think he loved the idea that comedy was the medium that we used to be able to talk about this theme and subject. He also loved the father-son relationship in the film, and how humanity played a part in a funny film like this.
I think he's generally a very passion-oriented and arts-oriented person. He wanted to bring something out that was both catchy and intentional, and seemed to be an advocate of that. I think the film sort of matched that idea.
The Palm Springs win formally qualifies the film for the Academy Awards. Did that feel like the end of one journey or the beginning of another?
Bhasin: Oh, we're far from any end anywhere. We're just really just beginning.
Gonsai: We have tons of festivals to go to.
Bhasin: We are beginning an Oscar campaign to start with right now. We have tons of movies to make after. We're honestly just working to build a new ecosystem for ourselves to be able to make the movies we want to make. The Oscars and this festival run is us stepping towards that.
What do you mean by a new ecosystem?
Bhasin: America has many systems in place, which both Yash and I have been looking at independently for the past couple of years. We're in awe of what they've been able to develop and build.
We want to do that within our system in India as well, and make movies that are global through that. The systems include the fact that America focuses a lot on short films as a research and development department for feature films — where they experiment with new voices, new ideas, and then make a bigger bet on the features they make with those voices.
The short-to-feature format is massive in the US as well, with films like Whiplash, La La Land and The Drama — so many of these movies being made by short filmmakers. Sometimes the short films are proof of concepts that do film festivals and are then found by big executives in platforms and studios. Then they get picked up and they make something bigger out of that. I've never heard of that format happening in India.
So one of the things within that ecosystem would include being able to experiment in the short format, and then try to build something bigger out of it when something strikes. The other is also to be able to create better working systems for ourselves.
Gonsai: Working systems mean having better unions, more safety and stuff. That's something that we are lacking a lot. We want to change the system, but through our films.
What would your pitch to Indian producers be, in order to invest more in short films?
Gonsai: Mainly, if you're going to make a short film, you just have to believe in it first and then try to figure out how you can monetise it — what festivals can it go to, what festivals can highlight the film. That's the route that we've taken as well.
There are some pockets in Europe that acquire short films as well — Europe is the biggest market for short filmmakers anywhere in the world. We also sold our film in France and a couple of other places through Canal Plus.
Mainly it's just giving a chance to new directors and new voices. That's where the importance of making a short film and letting their voice come out comes into play.
What does lobbying for a short film look like today?
Gonsai: It's the same as for a feature film. Back in India, it's the same process. When we were making the film, no one wanted to come on board. Most of them said, once you guys make it, we might come on. And now most of India wants to come on board and just put their name on it.
You both have productions going on floors soon. What can you share?
Bhasin: There's a feature film that I have been working on for the past couple of years that I'm very excited to begin with. I feel like there's a lot of scope in comedy and in coming-of-age stories today. There's a gap there, especially in India, because films are either extremely overtly serious or on the other extreme... the leave your brain at home sort of thing. We are trying to create a mid space for something that can be just more exciting.
This film has been very close to me, quite personal. We've been workshopping with Biswapati Sarkar from Posham Pa Pictures and a couple of my creative mentors. I can’t reveal too much yet!
It's a film set in India, a coming-of-age comedy film, written and directed by me.
Gonsai: And I'm going to produce this film!
We're also planning to go on floors with Pan Nalin for another film — we're still working on it, but hopefully we’ll go on floors by September.
What does the Oscar campaign for We Were Here look like from here?
Gonsai: The Oscar campaign is mainly going to be in the US and UK — just getting the film out and getting all the voters to watch the film.
We'll do some screenings in New York and LA and then in London, hopefully with Andrew Scott. From India, we do want to get some Academy members — Indians don't usually vote for Indian films — so we want to get voters from India to vote for our film. We believe we have a concept everyone can like and no one will hate.
Bhasin: I think the point has constantly been to get a different kind of movie from India onto the global stage — a comedy from India, which is unheard of, to have traveled.
The last film people remember from India that they really loved globally was 3 Idiots. That's a film people talk about a lot here. I think that’s really cool; they all recall “All is Well"!
I probably want to make something like that. The Oscar campaign, with a short film like this, gives us a vehicle to start doing that.
Gonsai: It's always been my fascination — putting Indian cinema on that kind of stage.