Please help us make Mahjong & Mahashas.

Mahjong & Mahashas is a short documentary film about Sydney’s Singaporean Sephardic community.

Weaving together interview excerpts, archival footage, photographs, original music and contemporary content, Mahjong & Mahashas will open a window into this unique Jewish diaspora with its roots in Iraq, trunks in Singapore and new branches in Australia.

These family histories, migration stories and cultural touchstones - the clatter of Mahjong tiles; mouthwatering Mahashas made of tomatoes stuffed with meat and rice; cacophonous gatherings of extended family - will immerse audiences in a culture rich in tradition, customs and heritage.

Mahjong & Mahashas has been awarded a small grant from the JIFF Short Film Fund via the Jewish International Film Festival (JIFF). However, this funding only covers a portion of the already tight budget. We need another $10,000 to take the film through post-production to completion.

We are now looking for your support to finish this film.

Funds raised through this campaign will be used to cover production and post-production costs, including licensing fees.

All supporters will receive a thank you credit.

If you or your business are interested in being a key supporter with a more substantial donation, we are happy to discuss a more prominent acknowledgment in the film.

Please contact us, using the green Contact button below, to discuss this further.

Mahjong & Mahashas will premiere at the Jewish International Film Festival (JIFF) in October 2023.

Thanking you very much in advance for your support and generosity

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ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS

Director/ Producer - Carolyn Saul - Mermaid Rock media.

Carolyn is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and an AFTRS Graduate in Producing. She has produced and directed several self-initiated short documentary films, including this bond i and Bondi (2021), which was lauded at several international film festivals. Carolyn has also worked on over 60 documentary and factual television programs in a range of roles - such as archive producer, associate producer and researcher - in a TV and film production career spanning 30+ years. As a storyteller, Carolyn has a passion for social history, cultural heritage and questions of identity and likes to shine a light on aspects of culture and society that have been forgotten or under-exposed.

Producer - Annie Benzie - Annie is a Cinematographer and producer with extensive experience in documentary, drama and corporate film and video production. After completing a cinematography extension course at the Australian Film Television and Radio School she worked for SBS TV, shooting news and current affairs. Since then she has shot many short films and documentaries. Recent credits include Celebrating 35 Years of Friends of the Koala, social media videos (2022), Instagram Utopia and Flood Fire and Recovery for ABC Compass (2021), this bond i and Bondi (2021) and additional cinematography on Laura’s Choice, ABC (2020).

Associate Producer - Dani Haski - Dani has almost 30 years of experience in Australian theatre, film and TV. She has worked across several different departments - including wardrobe, art department, and promo production - was an early adopter of digital media and earned credits on a disparate array of projects including The Wiggles, Strictly Ballroom and several large-scale musicals. As an avid genealogist, Dani has a special interest in films about families and communities.