Renowned Filmmaker Hired to Capture Manchester’s Migrant Music Heritage
Band on the Wall, in partnership with Community Arts North West (CAN) and with funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, is proud to announce the appointment of Tamana Ayazi as the lead Freelance Filmmaker for its upcoming cultural heritage project. This exciting initiative will create a film exploring the rich musical heritage of Manchester’s migrant, refugee, and asylum seeker communities.
Ayazi, an Afghan-born, London-based filmmaker, brings a wealth of experience in human-centered storytelling to the project. Her work is known for exploring themes of identity, resilience, political upheaval, and hope, aligning perfectly with the project’s goals of highlighting the shared and unique experiences of Manchester’s diverse communities.
“Music has always been a way to find home, especially when home is far away. As someone who understands that feeling, I’m excited to capture the stories of Manchester’s migrant communities, how they’ve carried their sounds, built new rhythms, and shaped the city’s musical identity” says Ayazi.
Ayazi’s impressive portfolio includes the Academy Award-winning Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl), Where the Light Shines, and One Bullet. Her debut feature, In Her Hands, premiered at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival, winning the Audience Award at the 2022 Camden International Film Festival and later released on Netflix, receiving three Emmy nominations and winning in 2023. She also received the ‘Cinema for Peace Dove Award’ for Women’s Empowerment. In 2021, she collaborated with Amnesty International on Death in Slow Motion: Women and Girls Under Taliban Rule.
The film will incorporate live performance footage, interviews, and archival film to paint a vibrant picture of Manchester’s evolving cultural landscape. It will premiere at Band on the Wall in early 2026, and be showcased on Band on the Wall’s digital platforms, including YouTube, social media, and the Band on the Wall website. The film will also be displayed on Band on the Wall’s exterior display screens, contributing to an online and public resource that celebrates Manchester’s evolving cultural heritage, particularly the impact of migration.
“We are thrilled to have Tamana on board for this important project,” says Gavin Sharp, CEO of Inner City Music Trust, which operates Band on the Wall. “Her unique ability to capture compelling human stories will be invaluable in bringing the musical heritage of Manchester’s migrant communities to a wider audience.”
About Community Arts North West (CAN)
Community Arts North West (CAN) is a Manchester-based organisation that uses arts to amplify marginalised voices. Since 1978, it has worked with diverse communities, including refugees and low-income groups, to promote cultural expression and social cohesion through participatory arts projects. CAN is committed to social justice, equality, and diversity, enriching Greater Manchester’s cultural landscape.
About The National Lottery Heritage Fund
Our vision is for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future. That’s why as the largest funder for the UK’s heritage we are dedicated to supporting projects that connect people and communities to heritage, as set out in our strategic plan, Heritage 2033. Heritage can be anything from the past that people value and want to pass on to future generations. We believe in the power of heritage to ignite the imagination, offer joy and inspiration, and to build pride in place and connection to the past.
Over the next 10 years, we aim to invest £3.6 billion raised for good causes by National Lottery players to make a decisive difference for people, places and communities.heritagefund.org.uk
The Heritage Fund are a long-time funder of Band on the Wall.