GOA, 26th NOVEMBER 2018: Day 7 of 49^th International Film Festival of India marked the presence of directors, ICFT jury member, UNESCO representative and the local filmmakers who shared their views with the media.

Indian filmmakers Lijo Jose Pellissery, Ram and Pratima Joshi interact with the media

Elaborating on the genesis of his movie, Ram said that the story is about a spastic child and the parenting issues associated with her. "The screening of Perambu at IFFI was a very thrilling experience. I find that the Indian audience is very mature and celebrates film as an art. Indian audience’s level of understanding films and film art is far ahead compared to European or Chinese audience”, he said.

Lijo Jose Pellissery said that cinema should not be categorised as regional and national or commercial and parallel. It should be categorised just as good cinema and bad cinema; that will be easier for film makers and audience, he added

An actor and a costume designer turned director Ms. Pratima Joshi said that she doesn’t believe in the often repeated statement that “women are the enemies of women”. ‘Aamhi Doghi’ touches upon the bonding between a young woman and her ‘not-so-old’ step mom.

World renowned cinematographer, Pierre Gill shares insights on cinematography  

Pierre Gill, a Montreal native, is a cinematographer and assistant director, known for Upside Down (2012), Casanova (2015) and Polytechnique (2009). He is a member of Canadian Society of Cinematographers (CSC).

“My passion for cinema comes mostly from storytelling. Storytelling makes me dream. A good story or good script brings out the creativity in me”, said Pierre Gill who wishes to work with some Indian production houses one day.

Speaking on his experience in Blade Runner 2049, he said “My unit in Blade Runner 2049 worked on stunts, explosion, flying ships and underwater sequences and I used green screen technique to a large extent. The whole experience was really fun, due to the big scale of the movie. Movies like Blade Runner 2049 give you the opportunity to try all the latest equipment.”

“VFX of Blade Runner 2049 won the Oscar award and I worked with all teams working on VFX for that film, so in a way I too won that award; it feels nice to think you have a share, even if small, in winning the Oscar”  

“You have to be very strong; it is going to be a very difficult life. The life of cinematographer is by the second. Also, you have to travel a lot. Don't do it for the money; money will come if you do well. You have to be a very good psychologist as well, since you have to deal with a lot of departments and have to be always on toes to attend to their questions. You have to be very open-minded. You have to be humble, if you don't know, you must be able to say that you don’t know”, advised Pierre.

Is technique Over-riding Content? Discussion in the Open Forum

Exchange of views on existing trends and importance of content ended with the mutual agreement on the importance of content. “Technology is a boon in today’s era. It has made a lot of things easier but at the end emotional quotient forms the crux of a film”, said A. K Bir, cinematographer, writer and director.

“In order to get audience to watch the film technology becomes vital. However it’s the emotional connect that binds the audience and we cannot deny that”, added Klaus Heydemann

National Award winners and FTII batchmates, Swapnil Vasant Kapure and Medhpranav Powar, interact with media

Selected in the Indian Panorama section, movies Bhar Dupari and Happy Birthday both won the 65^th National Award. Interestingly Swapnil Vasant Kapure and Medhpranav Powar were batchmates in FTII and their movies were a part of the FTII diploma course.  “Winning the National Award and now being part of the Indian Panorama has placed a great responsibility on our shoulders now”, shared Swapnil whose film Bhar Dupari is an insightful portrayal of a woman finding courage to fight her demons”.

Happy Birthday, directed by Medhpranav Powar is a meaningful exploration of a small boy’s changing attitude towards his father’s sacrifice and love. “It is the story of a child and his father. As children, we are unaware of the sacrifices our parents make, though we harbour certain expectations from them. The movie is an attempt to explore the idea of this dynamics in the relationship between a father and child. For me, cinema is about telling stories and portraying them effectively. If you have a good story, it can be easily presented in any medium. Finding a child actor for the role was a tough job. A lot of improvisation was done during the shooting.” He added that he likes to work on content which is entertaining as well as contemporary.

Filmmaker Marcos Loayza presents his film Averno at IFFI 2018

The director of ‘Averno’, Mr. Marcos Loayza was at IFFI today, to speak about his film. He explained that his movie is an adventurous, realistic and mythical story that talks about maturation and anthropology. It is about the struggles faced by the protagonist Tupah, a young shoe shiner who sets out on an impossible journey to save his uncle. “It took a great deal of time for the movie to get materialized. Getting the right people, who are knowledgeable about the story and culture of Bolivia, to play the characters was a huge challenge. I am curious to know how the film is going to be received in India”, the director said.

Producer/ Actor Chitrangada Singh and Director Shaad Ali present their film Soorma at an open-air screening at IFFI 2018

This year as an extension of the Khelo India Branding, Indian Sports Biopics are being screened at the 49th IFFI. As part of this initiative today the film Soorma, a biopic on the extra-ordinary journey of hockey player Sandeep Singh, was screened in the presence of Producer, Chitrangada Singh and Director, Shaad Ali.

While speaking at the occasion, Chitrangada Singh said, “We knew we had the right intent and right content to make the film. This is a small effort to make a hero out of a real-life hero. Here’s to Sandeep Singh.”

It was an open air screening where a large screen was put up. Apart from Soorma, the other films screened in this section include Gold, Mary Kom, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, 1983 and MSD: The untold story.

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