Zebunnisa Hamid is an Assistant Professor of Film and Screen Studies in the Comparative Literature and Creative Arts (CLCA) program at the Mushtaq Ahmad Gurmani School of Humanities and Social Sciences (MGSHSS). She completed her Ph.D. in Film Studies from SOAS, University of London. Her research explores alternative filmmaking and counter-narratives, film production and circulation, particularly how streaming platforms and digital media are reshaping film cultures, and gender and the urban space on screen. She has collaborated on international projects on the decolonisation of film studies and streaming in the Global South. She is currently writing a book on New Pakistani Cinema and the evolution of cinema in the digital age. Alongside her academic work, she has trained as a film editor and worked as a production consultant on Mira Nair’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist. She has also served on Pakistan’s Oscar Committee to select the country’s official entry for the Academy Awards.
Hamid, Z. (2020). Behind the Scenes: The Women Filmmakers of New Pakistani Cinema. BioScope: South Asia Screen Studies, 11(1), 15-26. https://doi.org/10.1177/0974927620942316
Hamid, Z. (2023). Circulation, Reception and the Cinematic Contradictions of New Pakistani Cinema. Film International, 21(4), 7-20. https://doi.org/10.1386/fint_00231_1
New Pakistani Cinema: The Evolution of a Cinema in the Digital Age. In preparation, 70% complete. 3 of 7 chapters drafted.
Hamid, Z. (2025). Finding Contemporary Pakistan on Screen: The Case of The Legend of Maula Jatt and Joyland. In A. Ranjan & I. Talbot (Eds.), Challenge, Continuity, and Change in Pakistan. Routledge.
Hamid, Z. with Irene Gonzalez-Lopez. (Accepted/Forthcoming; Expected publication date: 2026). The City as a Site of Contention: Contemporary Japanese and Pakistani Cinemas in Conversation. In L. Dovey & K. Taylor-Jones (Eds.), Global Screen Worlds. Bloomsbury Press.
Hamid, Z. (Accepted/Forthcoming; Expected publication date: 2026). Constructing Gender in New Pakistani Cinema. In A. Gehlawat & J. Beaster-Jones (Eds.), Routledge Handbook of South Asian Cinemas. Routledge.
Hamid, Z. (2020). The Birth of a Cinema in Post 9/11 Pakistan. In E. H. Chowdhury & E. N. De (Eds.), South Asian Filmscapes: Transregional Encounters. University of Washington Press.
Hamid, Z. (Accepted/Forthcoming; Expected publication date: 2026). Fringe Filmmaking in Pakistan: Counter Screen Cultures in the Age of Streaming. In M. P. Pereiro, S. R. Baamonde & C. T. Uzal (Eds.), Small Cinemas and Beyond: Peripheral Film Production and Distribution in the Time of VoD. Edinburgh University Press.
Hamid, Z. & Kirk, G. S. (2022). Introduction: Volume 4. Reel Pakistan: A Screen Studies Forum, Vol. 4, 1-3.
Hamid, Z. & Kirk, G. S. (2021). Introduction: Volume 3. Reel Pakistan: A Screen Studies Forum, Vol. 3, 1-2.
Hamid, Z. & Kirk, G. S. (2020). Introduction: Volume 1 - Pakistan Screen Studies: Widening the Frame Article. Reel Pakistan: A Screen Studies Forum, Vol. 1 & 2, 1-3
"Pakistani Filmmakers on the Fringe: Navigating Circulation in the Age of Streaming." International Symposium: Streaming in the Global South. Institute of Asian & Transcultural Studies, Vilnius University, Lithuania (virtual). January 2024.
"Changing Gender Roles in New Pakistani Cinema." Nation, Gender, & History: Asian Cinemas in Perspective International Conference. Center of Oriental Studies, Vilnius University. Lithuania. September 2017.
"The Rise of the Multiplex and the Role of Bollywood in Pakistan s New Emerging Cinema Culture." 1st Postgraduate Symposium. Center for Film Studies, SOAS, University of London. June 2015.
"Alternative and Counter Screen Cultures: Independent Filmmaking in Pakistan." AAS-in-Asia Conference. Association for Asian Studies (AAS) & Social Science Baha. Kathmandu, Nepal. June 2025.
"The City as a Site of Contention: Contemporary Japanese and Pakistani Cinemas in Conversation" (co-presented with Dr. Irene Gonzalez-Lopez, Birkbeck, University of London). BAFTSS Conference. University of Warwick. March 2025.
"Finding Hope and Despair in the Transnational Cinematic City: The Case of Laal Kabootar."11th International Small Cinemas Conference. Babe?-Bolyai University, Romania (virtual). September 2020.
"Urban Space and Shifting Realities in New Pakistani Cinema." 13th Asian Cinema Studies Society Conference. LASALLE College of the Arts. Singapore. June 2019.
"Operating on the Periphery: Independent Filmmaking in Pakistan." 52nd Annual Conference on South Asia at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. October-November 2024.
"Reflecting on Feminist Praxis: Pakistani Cinemas" (co-presented with Dr. Gwendolyn S. Kirk) Biennial Conference of the Society for Cultural Anthropology (SCA) & the Society for Visual Anthropology (SVA). University of Toronto (virtual). May 2020.
"The Male Anti-Hero and New Gender Constructions in Contemporary Pakistani Cinema: Moor and Zinda Bhaag." 47th Annual Conference on South Asia. University of Wisconsin at Madison. October 2018.
"Negotiating Censorship, Circulation and Competition: New Pakistani Cinema in a Post-Covid World." 12th International Small Cinemas Conference. University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain (virtual). October 2021.
"Urban Spaces on Screen: Mapping the Transnational Cinematic City." Everyday Life in Times of Ruination Workshop. Mushtaq Ahmad Gurmani School of Humanities and Social Science (MGSHSS), LUMS. Lahore, Pakistan. March 2020.
"Locating the Transnational City in New Pakistani Cinema s Urban Film." 10th International Small Cinemas Conference, University of Lisbon (ICS-UL). Lisbon, Portugal. September 2019.
"Deconstructing Traditional Notions of Gender in Contemporary Pakistani Cinema." International Conference on Film Studies, Identity, Projection & the Other. London Centre for Interdisciplinary Research, Birkbeck, University of London. February 2019.
"New Pakistani Cinema: Emergence of a Small Cinema and Opposing Forces." 8th International Conference on Small Cinemas. The University of Basque Country. Bilbao, Spain. September 2017.