Q: What was the inspiration behind this documentary? How did it come about?

Celeste Geer: In 2004 newspaper headlines were full of references to war, Jihad, terrorists, Asylum Seekers and ‘Information Gathering Techniques’. I was suspicious of the easy dichotomies being drawn between Islam and The West, or more specifically, Muslim Australia and the Rest of Australia. As I observed fear and ignorance dominate public opinion, I started looking for stories in the mainstream media that focused on the shared humanity between Muslims and Westerners, rather than the forces that can divide us. They were hard to find. I wanted to learn more about Islam and to understand its appeal, especially for young women. Then I stumbled across a small article in my local newspaper about Frida and her dream of creating an Islamic Fashion Mecca on Sydney Rd, Coburg.

In the article, Frida claimed to be the great great-great-granddaughter of Marie Antoinette and listed running a used car yard in Detroit, USA amongst her achievements. I was so intrigued I went to Frida’s shop where she greeted me wearing lipstick and an elegant veil as she caressed a Siamese cat. I was surprised by Frida’s thick Aussie accent as she explained she was making and selling clothes to explode the myth of an homogenous Muslim woman who covers up to become invisible. Feisty, unafraid and armed with the Devil’s wit, Frida was clearly a formidable negotiator. Immediately I sensed that she would be an excellent character to act as an intermediary between mainstream Australia and the great ‘Other’ called Islam. With her pale green eyes and captivating stories, I felt sure Frida would be able to shatter the image of the uniformly oppressed Muslim woman in an entertaining way. Frida also obviously sensed her potential as a film heroine because she had already started writing a script for the blockbuster version of her life story, which she obligingly gave me (with Hollywood casting recommendations) in case I was short on ideas.

My original proposal was to follow Frida for three months….If I had known at the beginning that I would end up following her  for over two years (thanks to the generous support of Rebel Films’ Jeni McMahon and the very handy David Batty on camera) I am not sure that I would have had the stamina to go ahead! But ultimately I think the relatively long shooting period enabled me to tell a richer and more layered story.


Q: What do you like or find challenging about making documentaries?

Celeste Geer: I love the quick entry point into another world that you get when you make a documentary film. Becoming immersed in what is important for the central characters in the film gives you an appreciation of how many different ways there are of seeing and experiencing life and in so doing gives a sense of relativity to your own concerns. When you are shooting you have to be really present and alert. You have to be aware of what is going on in your physical environment, what relationships are developing between the characters and the impact that you and the camera are having on the action. I enjoy the challenge of trying to strike the right balance between being in the moment and trying to forsee how the material you are shooting will fit into the bigger picture of the story you are telling.

It is the unpredictability of real life that gives documentary films much of their charm but it also creates frustrations when you organise to film an event and plans change, or when you have been following a particular thread of the story that ends abruptly and then has no place in the story. Especially in the beginning of the shoot Frida was very changeable. I started off getting concerned when she would tell me that she was moving to Dubai one week and Calcutta the next but I learnt to just wait and see before booking any flights to follow her. It is a great imposition making a film about someone, and there were days when Frida just didn’t want us around. I find the delicate process of knowing when to push a little and when to give people space interesting and I definitely benefited from David Batty’s many years of experience in this regard.

Ultimately the frustrations of trying to make someone’s life fit into a filmable schedule and the stress of waiting for unknown events to unfold seem irrelevant when you consider the great privilege it is to be given such intimate access to another person’s life.


Q: How does the documentary relate to your past work, if at all? Was this film a natural next step or a radical departure from your previous work?

Celeste Geer: My first TV documentary was a personal story about my own family inspired by a discovery I made of a mysterious box of 16mm film footage taken by my grandfather who died when I was still a child. The key characters in ‘Mick’s Gift’ were my mother, my grandmother and my aunt. In ways it was easier making a film about my family because there were no cultural differences and  I did not have to work at establishing a relationship of trust with the participants in the film, but it was also more complex. I struggled to find the right balance between protecting the emotions of these women that I love and also revealing enough of them as characters for an audience to be engaged with their stories.  I think the sense of responsibility I felt not to exploit  the characters in ‘Mick’s Gift’ has carried through to ‘Veiled Ambition’ where I was once again very keen not to mock the characters or set them up for easy laughs. I was also aware that I didn’t want to depict Frida in a way that would attract criticism from her own community.

A consistent theme throughout my work is my interest in exploring the way people differ from  our expectations of them. Contradictions, inconsistencies and evidence of human frailty are what interest me in characters. Frida is a complex woman, defying simple categorization and resisting stereotype. Generously she has allowed me to film during her great and her not so great moments because she too is excited by the prospect of telling a story about an Islamic woman that does not cast the heroine as a Martyr, Terrorist or Victim. Rather ‘Veiled Ambition’ is a story that celebrates the complexities of life for an aspiring entrepreneur who is balancing work and family while practicing her faith. I thank Frida for trusting me to tell it.


Q: Any other production anecdotes or stories?

Celeste Geer: One of my aims in making this film was to depict a young Australian Muslim woman being faced with many of the same dilemmas that a non-muslim Australian woman encounters. As the filming progressed the similarities between mine and Frida’s lives grew and I think this added a level of mutual respect to our relationship. Throughout the making of ‘Veiled Ambition’ both Frida and I became pregnant, watched as our partners tried to finish building us houses before our babies were born, smiled when deadlines inevitably grew elastic, gave birth to a beautiful boy and girl between us and attempted to continue our working lives with new born babies in toe. Frida’s endurance, resilience and sheer determination have inspired me to continue making this film even when the timing was less than ideal.


Q: Apart from "it's a masterpiece" what would your ideal viewer response to the doco be!?

Celeste Geer: I want people to enjoy Frida’s cheeky humour, appreciate just how hard she works for her dream and to invest something of themsleves in her journey. I would like viewers to feel as much affection, pride and respect for Frida and her family as I do and understand that Frida is as complicated, flawed and wonderful as the rest of us. I hope audiences feel that Frida’s religion is just one aspect of her rich and vital character.


Q: What is your next project? What are you working on now?

Celeste Geer: Lots of home videos for the next couple of months staring my beautiful children before I launch into my next film. Currently looking for a fascinating, local, filmable story that will challenge me in ways I can’t yet know.