Muhammad Nur Arif Muzani, 22, has global developmental delay, an intellectual disability. He is also an actor.
Speaking to The Straits Times, Arif has to be coaxed to talk about acting in short film Layang Layang Terbang Melayang (The Kite Soars High). Released in 2018, he plays Rashid, a young man whose mother, his main caregiver, has died. His older brother Razak puts his life on hold to care for Rashid, but worries for the future: What if he were to die or become unable to care for his brother?
The film touches on an idea that its producers, the Movement for the Intellectually Disabled of Singapore (MINDS), hope to highlight: that families try to come to terms with the idea the primary caregiver might one day become unable to fulfil that role and what to do then.
In real life, Arif’s parents, Mr Muzani Jaffar, 56, and Madam Jaliah Mohammad, 57, said that while the topic is a difficult one to broach, it is one they have talked about. Arif has two older siblings, a brother and a sister.
The MINDS Film Festival, which features films that deal with the lives of the intellectually disabled, opened on 15 January. Caregiver-sibling support is the focus of the festival this year.
The film-maker behind the short film, Ghazi Alqudcy, 37, says he cast Arif after he “fell in love” with Arif’s strong personality and expressive eyes.
“He is kind of a leader. He leads his group of friends and protects them in a way. He doesn’t like to be hugged. He pushes you away if you hug him and I put that in the film,” says Ghazi.
The director says he is aware that in film-making, it is common practice for intellectually disabled characters to be played by professional actors. But he preferred to cast someone like Arif, he says, both because it would be the right thing to do and he would bring an authenticity to the part.
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Source: The Straits Times, 16 January 2020