Nida Manzoor

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Nida Manzoor
NationalityBritish
OccupationScreenwriter and director
Years active2013–present

Nida Manzoor is a British television writer and director. She is best known for directing two episodes of Doctor Who and creating the Channel 4 comedy show We Are Lady Parts, for which she won the 2021 Rose d'Or Emerging Talent Award.

Early life[]

Manzoor grew up in a Pakistani Muslim family.[1][2] Her family lived in Singapore until she was 10, later moving to London.[3] Manzoor attended St James School.[4]

She was raised in a musical household, and was bought her first guitar by her father when she was 8.[5] Manzoor has described music as her 'first passion', and is quoted as saying "I wanted to be a brown girl Bob Dylan before I wanted to do screenwriting."[6] She also started writing at a young age. Manzoor describes being encouraged by her grandfather, who kept anything she wrote in a file.[6]

Manzoor's childhood influences included Jackie Chan films, the Coen Brothers, Edgar Wright, and old Hollywood cinema.[7]

She graduated from University College London (UCL) with a degree in Politics in 2011.[8] While at university, Manzoor was involved in UCL's Film Society.[9] Manzoor's family had expected her to do a Law conversion course and become a human rights lawyer,[3] but she convinced them to allow her to pursue a career in filmmaking.

Career[]

Manzoor started her film career working as a runner in Soho.[7] She went on to obtain jobs as a screenwriter, working for the CBBC.[10] After early shorts like Layla and Arcade, Manzoor wrote episodes for Dixi and in 2016.

Manzoor's first directing role was on the first series of Enterprice, released 2018.[11] In 2018, she was also commissioned to make a pilot episode (entitled "Lady Parts") for what would become We Are Lady Parts. Manzoor wrote and directed the episode.[12] After the episode was screened, there was substantial backlash leading Manzoor to close her social media accounts.[13] She also directed a comedy pilot, Hounslow Diaries, which was screened on BBC Three in 2018.[14]

She directed two episodes of Doctor Who, "Fugitive of the Judoon" and "Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror", shown in 2020.[15]

We Are Lady Parts proceeded to a full series in 2021, written, directed and executive produced by Manzoor. She has said the series is somewhat autobiographical.[16] She has cited This is Spinal Tap and The Young Ones as influences for the series.[17] Manzoor co-wrote the music with her siblings Shez Manzoor and Sanya Manzoor, and with her brother-in-law Benjamin 'Benni' Fregin.[7] A soundtrack album from the series was released digitally.[18] The show was renewed for a second series in November 2021.[19]

As of 2021, Manzoor is part of the Pillars Artist Fellowship Advisory Board.[20]

Awards and recognition[]

In 2015, Manzoor was named among Broadcast Magazine's Hot Shots for her short film 7.2.[7] Manzoor won best Director in Comedy Drama/Situation Comedy from the Royal Television Society Craft & Design Awards 2019 for her work on Enterprice.[21] In November 2021, it was announced that Manzoor will be awarded the 2021 Rose d’Or Emerging Talent Award for her work on Lady Parts.[19]

Filmography[]

Film[]

Year Title Credited as Notes
Writer Director Producer
2013 Layla Yes Yes Yes Short film
2013 Arcade Yes Yes Short film
2014 7.2 Yes Yes Short film

Television[]

Year Title Credited as Notes
Writer Director Producer
2016 Dixi Yes 6 episodes
2016 Jamillah and Aladdin Yes 3 episodes
2017 Halloween Comedy Shorts Yes Episode: "A Deal"
2017–2018 Enterprice Yes 5 episodes
2018 Hounslow Diaries Yes Television pilot
2018–present We Are Lady Parts Yes Yes Associate 7 episodes; also creator and co-composer
2020 Doctor Who Yes 2 episodes

References[]

  1. ^ Sweeting, Adam (21 May 2021). "We Are Lady Parts, Channel 4 review - female Muslim punk band rocks the house". The Arts Desk. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  2. ^ "Nida Manzoor on writing We Are Lady Parts: 'Why is being honest so scary?'". inews.co.uk. 2021-05-10. Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  3. ^ a b "Skin Deep meets Nida Manzoor". Skin Deep. 2015-11-19. Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  4. ^ "Director Nida Manzoor (2008) and Hounslow Diaries". St James Seventh Form. 2018-11-22. Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  5. ^ "'We Are Lady Parts' Creator Nida Manzoor on Shattering Muslim Stereotypes and Why Representation Isn't a 'Fad'". www.msn.com. Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  6. ^ a b Opie, David (2021-05-20). "We Are Lady Parts creator Nida Manzoor opens up about new Channel 4 sitcom". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  7. ^ a b c d Bowler2021-05-27T06:36:00+01:00, Hannah. "Nida Manzoor: The punk spirit behind We Are Lady Parts". Broadcast. Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  8. ^ "'Lady Parts' creator Nida Manzoor on overcoming the negativity to offer more Muslim representation on TV". saved by old times. Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  9. ^ Bowler2021-05-27T06:36:00+01:00, Hannah. "Nida Manzoor: The punk spirit behind We Are Lady Parts". Broadcast. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  10. ^ "Curtis Brown". www.curtisbrown.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
  11. ^ "Enterprice, BBC 3". Broadcast. 21 November 2018. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  12. ^ Richardson, Jay (18 December 2018). "Channel 4 releases a new batch of Blaps". Chortle. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  13. ^ Hadadi, Roxana (2021-06-03). "There's Nothing on TV Doing What We Are Lady Parts Is Doing". Slate Magazine. Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  14. ^ "CPL Productions - Hounslow Diaries". Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  15. ^ Kanter, Jake (14 November 2019). "'The A List' & 'A Discovery Of Witches' Writers Pen Episodes Of 'Doctor Who'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  16. ^ Opie, David (20 May 2021). "Nida Manzoor on We Are Lady Parts and exploring the complexity of Muslim women on screen". Digital Spy. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  17. ^ Tate, Gabriel (26 May 2021). "'It's The Young Ones Meets Spinal Tap': All the reasons why you need to watch C4's We Are Lady Parts". Metro. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  18. ^ Ravindran, Manori (21 May 2021). "Channel 4-Peacock Series 'We Are Lady Parts,' About a Muslim Female Punk Band, Drops Soundtrack (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  19. ^ a b Cordero, Rosy (2021-11-22). "'We Are Lady Parts' Renewed By Peacock & Channel 4 For Season 2". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-11-23.
  20. ^ Jackson, Angelique (2021-06-10). "Riz Ahmed, Pillars Fund, USC Annenberg & Ford Foundation Unveil the Blueprint for Muslim Inclusion (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  21. ^ Royal Television Society [@RTS_media] (25 November 2019). "Nida Manzoor wins Director in Comedy Drama/Situation Comedy for her "innovative and unapologetic approach" in #Enterprice. Well done Nida! #RTSAwards" (Tweet) – via Twitter.

External links[]

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