Yousuf Saeed - Session 01

AR-020-24-1

(00:00:00 – 00:02:00) The interviewer introduces the NCBS–TIFR archival project, outlines its focus on audiovisual practices in India, and formally records consent for archival, educational, and commercial use.

(00:02:01 – 00:05:00) Yousuf Saeed recalls first encounters with television in the late 1970s through neighbors’ homes and shared hostel spaces at Jamia, emphasizing the communal nature of early TV viewing and limited Doordarshan schedules.

(00:05:01 – 00:07:30) He notes that television entered his own household much later, around the end of his studies or early professional life, reinforcing how television initially remained a public and collective experience.

(00:07:31 – 00:10:30) Saeed discusses enrolling in the MA in Mass Communication at Jamia Millia Islamia. Coming from a science background, he initially aimed toward science journalism and science communication rather than film or television production.

(00:10:31 – 00:14:00) He outlines the course structure at Jamia, including theory, photography, radio, sound recording, investigative journalism, and foundational communication studies.

(00:14:01 – 00:17:30) Saeed gives a detailed account of analog photography training: shooting on celluloid, developing film in darkrooms, printing black-and-white photographs, and learning material processes of image production.

(00:17:31 – 00:21:30) He explains early audio-visual slide show practices using transparency film, carousel projectors, synchronized spool-tape soundtracks, and dual projectors to avoid black frames, describing the process as complex but creatively engaging.

(00:21:31 – 00:24:30) Saeed reflects on how slide shows taught sequencing, narrative logic, and storytelling through still images and sound, laying the groundwork for later video work.

(00:24:31 – 00:28:30) Discussion moves to radio programming, graphics, poster-making, and campaign design exercises, highlighting storytelling across different media formats.

(00:28:31 – 00:32:30) He describes early video training using U-matic low-band systems, limited VHS shooting, and in-camera editing exercises that required careful planning due to the absence of post-production flexibility.

(00:32:31 – 00:36:00) Saeed contrasts student freedom with professional pressures, describing the demands of editing under commercial deadlines, particularly while working on science programs such as Turning Point.

(00:36:01 – 00:40:00) He provides a detailed explanation of linear video editing workflows, including rewinding and fast-forwarding tapes, physical transfers between VTRs, generation loss, and the inability to reorder sequences once edited.

(00:40:01 – 00:47:00) The interview deepens into reflections on how technological limitations shaped creativity. Saeed explains how linear editing imposed discipline and planning while simultaneously restricting experimentation compared to later non-linear systems.

(00:47:01 – 00:55:00) Saeed recounts instances of creative problem-solving under constraint, including salvaging still images from damaged videotapes during field shoots and transforming technical failures into narrative solutions.

(00:55:01 – 01:03:00) He discusses the dual role editors often played as both technical operators and creative decision-makers, contrasting this integrated practice with more fragmented roles in contemporary production environments.

(01:03:01 – 01:12:00) Saeed describes long-term working relationships with commercial studios such as K-Video in Hauz Khas, which functioned as extended workplaces. He emphasizes trust-based access to expensive equipment and the studio as a ‘second home’.

(01:12:01 – 01:20:00) The conversation turns to quality-control cultures in analog production, including rigorous sound monitoring, lighting discipline, camera setup standards, and minimal reliance on post-production correction.

(01:20:01 – 01:27:00) Saeed explains technological transitions from U-matic low-band to high-band systems and later formats, discussing improvements in luminance, chrominance, sound channels, and overall image quality, alongside the need to understand machine behavior.

(01:27:01 – 01:31:23) The interview concludes with reflections on learning technology on the job, dependence on engineers for equipment maintenance, the physicality of analog machines, and broader observations on how digital workflows have transformed time, labor, and creativity in audiovisual production.

12 March 2025

Oral histories of technical personnel in Broadcast and Community Video

Yousuf Saeed