Projector

Films galore in Panaji

K.S. SIVAKUMARAN in Panaji, Goa

Last Monday on this page, I gave our readers a brief introduction of the current film festival in the Goan capital which opened on Friday last. And I promised to write about the films I had seen so far. But this I have to postpone for the edition on December 3 due to exigencies of time.

This week I shall run through the list of some of the films screened at the festival. One cannot see all the films shown at film festivals because in each of the seven theatres each day five different films are shown simultaneously. One has to make a choice. It is difficult because one does not have sufficient prior knowledge of the films to see.

Further a Press representative such as yours truly only five passes are supplied for a day in the 11-day festival. If you are an ordinary delegate three passes are given each day.

As far as possible, I shall post brief reviews of films I had seen. You may ask what purpose is there to read about films that are not shown in Lanka.

Well, the local foreign missions and TV channels can get them down for viewing if serious filmgoers would let them know. And students of serious cinema who follow courses in the universities on Mass Media and Aesthetics or Fine Arts can benefit in knowing about what’s going on in the artistic film making around the world.

Let me let you know some of the foreign films shown in the ‘Cinema of The World’ segment at the 38th International Film Festival of India (IFFI 2007):

1. Four Months, Three Weeks and Two Days

2. Fados (pronounced Fadoohs)

3. Intimate Enemies

4. Goodbye Bafane

5. The Jane Austen Book Club

(I am sure Emeritus Professor Yasmine Gooneratne who is a world authority on Jane Austen would like to see this film)

6. Black Book

7. Orchestra Seat

8. The Calling Game

9. Emotional Arithmetic

10. The Missing Star

11. 12.08 East of Bucharest

12. Light in the Dusk

These films are besides the other foreign films shown under various categories.

Let me now come to the ‘Indian Panorama’ which means films produced in India in various indigenous languages in that country:
 

The Juries for the Indian Panorama Section had recommended 21 feature and 15 non-feature films for screening.

Lenin Rajendran’s ‘Ratri Ma (l) zha’- Night Rain is in Malayalam, a south Indian Dravidian language spoken in Kerala state, India. And Samir Chanda’s ‘Ek Nadir Galpo’ is a Bengali film. They will represent India at the Asian African and Latin American Competition of the IFFI.

‘Ore Kadal’ is a Malayalam film directed by Shyam Prasad. This film opened the Indian Panorama Feature Film Section. ‘Bagher Bacha’ is a Bengali film directed by Bishnu Dev Halder.It opens the non-feature section.

We understand that the heads of the respective Juries K.S. Sethumadhavan and Arun Kopkar viewed 119 feature films ad 149 non-feature films and selected the films that would be shown at the festival.

The selected best feature films are:

Malayalam:

01. Naalu Pennugal by Adoor Gopalakrishnan

02. Ore Kadal by Shyama Prasad

03. Rati Mazha by Lenin Rajendran

04. Kayyoppu by Renjith

05. Thaniye by Babu Thiuvalla

Bengali:

06. Ektir Nadir Galpo by Samir Chanda

07. Jaara Brishtite Bijichilo by Anan Das

08. Ami, Iyasin Ar Amar Madhubala by Buddhadeb Dasgupta

Marati:

09. Tingya by Mangesh Hadawale

10. Mai aap by Gajedra Ahire

11. Aevdhe Se Aabhaal by Bipin Nadkarni

12. Kaal Chakra by Vishal Bandari

Kannada:

13. Kada Beladingalu by B.S. Lingadevaru

14. Mogigna Jade by P.R. Ramdas Nadu

15. Daatu by K. Shivarudraiah

Thamil:

16. Periyaar by Gnana Rajasekaran

17. Ammuvagiya Naan by Padma Magan

Hindi:

18. Gafla by Sameer Hanchate

19. Dharm by Bhvna Talwar

Assamese:

20. Jaatingaa Ityaadi by Sanjeep Sabhapandit

Manipuri:

21. Yenning Amadi Likia by Makhonmani Mongasba

If you care to know the names of the non-feature films, I shall only mention the names of the directors of the films.

There are three films in English made by Aribam Syam Sharama, Suprtiyo Sen, and Meren Imchen.

Six films made in Hindi by Buddhadeb Dasgupta (Naushad Ali - The Melody Continues), V.Pakiriswamy, Ladly Mukhopadhyay, Asok Rane, Manisha Issrani Misra, Bipin Choubal

One film made in Bengali-Bisnu Deb Halder

Four films made in Malayalam by M.A. Rehman, Vipin Vijay, Ador

Gopalakrishnan (The Dance of the Enchantress) and Dhiraj Meshram.

One film made in Manipuri by Haobam Paban Kumar

Well, that’s it for this week. Please read the December 3 edition for the summing up of the best films I had seen at the IFFI. Yours truly hopes to cover the Kerala Film Festival, which begins on December 7 and ends in December 14. Please keep reading.

Diploma Course in Cinematography

The National Film Corporation has called for applications for the 2008 Diploma Course in Cinematography. The subjects include script writing, film direction, cinema photography, editing, film ethics and review.

Candidates will be selected through a competitive examination and interview. Any one with G.C.E. Advanced level or higher qualifications could apply. Application forms can be obtained from the Cinema Culture Bureau at 303, Bauddaloka Mawatha, Colombo 07, in person or by post on or before December 31 on payment of a fee.

Applications should be addressed to the Chairman, National Film Corporation at the above address to reach him on or before January 31 2008. For further information contact 011-2585721.