Fatimah Haroon: The first woman from Pakistan to study cinema, TV, and marketing at Central Saint Martins

Fatimah Haroon: The first woman from Pakistan to study cinema, TV, and marketing at Central Saint Martins

Her early, intense interest in photography

Fatimah Haroon first showed an interest in photography when she was 15 years old. She then started taking pictures that caught the attention of newspapers, digital magazines, weddings, startups, and businesses, who then hired her to take their photos. People admired her artistic, contemporary method of capturing scenes with a (cinematic or retro touch).

By the following year, Fatimah Haroon had started her own photography business called "Fatography," which is a one-stop shop for high-quality photography services, as a result of the hype. She then began her ascent to prominence as one of the nation's youngest and few female photographers at the time. At the age of 17, while pursuing her A-levels, she was also invited to serve as a judge for a number of media competitions and to give lectures on topics ranging from general photography to specifically modern cinema at some of Pakistan's top secondary schools and universities, including National University Science and Technology (NUST) and the Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute (GIK), Beacon house. She was fortunate enough to have her work recognized and published at such an early age in many of Pakistan's top news outlets.

Her dedication paid off for Central Saint Martins.

Fatimah Haroon worked with many notable Pakistani television directors on the production of their drama serials while she was still in her teens in Pakistan, where she also photographed some of the country's biggest media stars. She moved to London after finishing her A levels to study psychology, international relations, and media at Birkbeck University and UCL, all of which she found very interesting. Fatimah's firsthand knowledge of the industry inspired her undergraduate degree in film and television from Central Saint Martins at the University of the Arts London, which is ranked as the world's second-best arts university.

She began to go down the trail.

With an undergraduate degree, Fatimah Haroon was motivated and encouraged to pursue a career in the film industry. During her undergraduate studies, she was in particular in charge of Direction and Production to ensure the efficient management of the complete camera team. Fatimah Haroon found it fascinating and motivating to grow as a professional because of the difficulty of balancing my academic work and freelance filmmaking employment. She developed her team's collaborative abilities while simultaneously improving her ability to delegate and carry out tasks. She directed and managed a full camera crew.

She has developed knowledge of media, structures, and processes within their diverse creative, historical, and socio-economic frameworks through taking theory- and practice-based filmmaking classes. Fatimah Haroon started showing interest in marketing as a result of her increased awareness of digitization, media, journalism, online marketing, e-commerce, etc.

She was only proficient in photography at the age of 15, but even then, she was aware that the real goal of her vision was to never be restricted to photography.

Later in the game, she observed that the three contexts where photography was most prevalent were weddings, the mainstream media, and fashion. She started by participating in photo shoots for family and friends to gain experience, which eventually led her to cover renowned periodicals/magazines like HELLO! Pakistan, Dawn, and Express Tribune.

Fatimah Haroon assumed the stage name Fatography because her parents were unaware of her profession after school. The National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST) and the Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology (GIKI) invited her to speak when she was 16 years old as her name was beginning to gain recognition. She didn't take a shortcut or use the escalator; she climbed the success ladder with all her resolve.

Conclusion

Fatimah Haroon grew up in Karachi and now lives in Islamabad. After elementary at St Joseph's Convent Karachi, she went to Headstart to complete her O and A levels before moving to London to study psychology, international relations, and media at Birkbeck University, then to the University of the Arts London, Central Saint Martins for her Bachelors, and finally to Birmingham City University for her Masters.