Asheen Anoop

ABOUT ME

I am a freelance Visual Artist based in Mumbai, India with 9 years of experience in Videography, Photography and Design.

I find immense joy in expanding my understanding of various disciplines and in sharing this knowledge with others to empower them to follow their pursuits.
Over the span of my career, I have had the privilege to work with a number of inspiring individuals and organizations dedicated to social change, which continues to help shape my career and politics.

I am fascinated by the power of art as a medium to aid change, to bolster the efforts of people committed to their causes and to inspire others to introspect and act. As the visual medium gains increasing prominence in our lives, I believe art that exudes intent, resolve and urgency has an undeniable power to accelerate meaningful change.

Portfolio

videography

Women’s Advocacy Programme, ITF
2018 | Role: Direction, Videography and Editing

The film celebrates the numerous victories following the conducting of the Women’s Advocate Programme in India, primarily through the growth and journey of Harshala, a bus conductor. Originally produced for the screening at the 2018 Singapore Congress, this project marked my first significant collaboration with the ITF. As such, I received ample guidance and assistance from the women’s department. It was also my first real insight into the functioning of a global organisation, the work of local unions and the ITF’s mission.

Adisha, Odisha Government
2019 | Role: Videography, Drone operation, and Editing

Among the various film projects I undertook for the government of Odisha, this one proved to be the most demanding. As the agency that hired me had to deal with multiple projects at the time, and with just 7 days to go for the launch, I was entrusted with crafting this film from shooting footage to the final delivery. It required me to travel to different parts of the state while simultaneously managing the editing process. At its core, a simple theme, the film showcases the raw human craftsmanship that goes into the making of tribal products in the state.

Survivor's Voices, ITF
2020 | Role: Scripting and Editing

The production of this film involved shortlisting real-life stories from case studies provided by the client, creating an engaging script, and seamlessly integrating testimonials to form a compelling call to action. To overcome the COVID restrictions, the testimonial were re-enacted by actors from different parts of the country and shot remotely using their phones. The film incorporates photographs from my project that documents the lives of women in India.

Digital Activism, ITF
2021 | Role: Scripting, Videography, Animation and Editing

The film captures the ingenious initiative taken by the women of MSTKS union to connect digitally and create support systems for survivors of violence at the height of the COVID crisis. As the project was to be produced during the COVID unlock period, the scope of documentation was limited. Animation was used as a substitute to tackle this problem as well as to enhance the depiction of their process. I travelled to conduct interviews from key members of the initiative as well as to gain a deeper understanding of the story.

animation & motion design

Oksana, Otoxo Productions
2022 | Role: Animation

I animated several illustrations by the talented children's book illustrator Oksana Drachkovska for a film based on her personal experiences in coming to terms with a new life after having to flee the brutal invasion of her homeland, Ukraine.

C190 Toolkit 
Explainer, ITF
2022 | Role: Scripting, Storyboarding, Animation and Editing

The video was intended as a complementary visual aid for the C190 transport toolkit, aiming to provide an engaging and concise interpretation of its content. Extremely challenging since the beginning, the task began with condensing the extensive toolkit material to fit a 6 minute format. Production involved heavy use of 3D animation to increase the scope and scale of visual imagery without significant complications. To ensure representation and relatability, care was taken to create visual diversity throughout the video.

design

2023 | Book Design, ITF

Intended for the internal team as a wellness guide, the book is designed to inspire, motivate, and reflect. The graphics and illustrations take inspiration from various women-led movements throughout the ages. The design style is rebellious and loud. To provide context to the images used and to further highlight the history of the movement, each commitment has a dedicated page with historical insights. While curating stories that fit the commitment message, care was taken to make it as global and diverse as possible.

2021 | Booklet Design, ITF

As a self-help resource book for survivors of violence, their supporters and advocates, the handbook was designed to be concise, clean and its contents easy to find. While the book retains the ITF women brand colours of the time, the pages utilise a calming palette and minimal illustrations. Each section has a coloured edge to get to it quickly while flipping through pages. Writing sections were designed into the book wherever relevant for convenience of taking notes and jotting down self-reflections.

photography

EMpower Campaign

While documenting the work of grassroots leaders and their efforts in uplifting women from marginalised communities, I got the opportunity to simultaneously work on this photo story. This campaign took on the challenge of womens' social isolation in some regions by organising community games in the locality and nudging families to join the event. Residents would gather during the weekend along with their children, fostering a sense of community. For women, it normalised the idea of enjoying recreational activities outside their homes and in the open, breaking down barriers of isolation.

Partavadi's Triumph

This photo series shot while documenting the story of farmers from a drought affected hamlet in Maharashtra, India, captures their efforts in overcoming the crisis through a community led dam project. While Coro fellows assisted and empowered the residents with capacity building, it was primarily led by the community leaders. The commissioned film also reveals the ripple effects of overcoming the water crisis, like reduced burden on women as well as improving conditions for girls’ education.