Nothing called anti-national cinema, all are Indian films: Rawal
RUCHA PRABHUDESAI | 21 November 2018 13:41 IST“There is no such thing as national film or anti-national film; the jury considers all movies that comes before it as Indian movies”, claims Rahul Rawail, Chairman of the Jury of Indian Panorama (Feature), of the 49th IFFI.
Addressing a press conference here in Panaji, the noted filmmaker admitted that the controversy regarding omission of certain movies from Indian Panorama is unfortunate.
“The jury was given full autonomy in arriving at its decisions”, he added.
“A day is not too far when all regional cinemas of India would be called cinema without any regions or boundaries. The regional cinema in India is growing with huge strides”, said Rawal.
He said the range of cinemas featured at Indian Panorama this year includes films set in Ladakh, Lakshadweep, Tulu and Assam. It was a tough exercise to select 22 films from a list of more than 100 films. All were simply great, he added.
He was joined at a press conference here in Panaji by jury members, film-maker Major Ravi and K. G. Suresh, Director General of Indian Institute of Mass Communication in New Delhi. Also present were the jury members of non-feature category of Indian Panorama: actor Parvathy Menon and director Suneel Puranic.
Rawail said that the festival collection includes some fantastic films with brilliant content that were not previously experimented. He said that the films selected were those worthy enough to showcase India on the global stage, and that content that engages the audience was given prominence.
MULTIPLEX MAFIA
Speaking on the importance of highlighting movies that tend to be ignored by the market, Rawail observed that the biggest mafia ruling the industry is the multiplex mafia as they are not interested in the content of the movies and only interested in movies which helps them to attract crowd.
He said that there is a need to develop infrastructure for distributing good films that deserve to be watched, at low cost.
Vinod Ganatra, Jury Chairman, (Non Feature Films) said that with the advent of digital technology, short films with exceptional content are coming out in large number.
However, he pointed out that ensuring quality is the biggest challenge for film makers; with a mobile phone in hand, everybody has now become a film maker. He said that while amateur films can be hits, it is a dangerous trend that such films are increasing.
The Chairman said that in an age of decreasing attention spans, short films are going to take over feature films in a short time as many filmmakers are coming forward with beautiful content that are able to powerfully connect with audiences.
Two-thirds of the non-feature movies were short films, he said, adding that Short Films are very much helpful for those who want to get in to the system of film making. He advised young film makers not no compromise on script which holds the key for making a good film.
Major Ravi said that 18 transgender films were considered for selection in this year’s edition. He pointed out that the jury members have taken a lot of pain in selecting the best films made in the country and have ensured that the Indian Panorama section presents a pan-Indian movie experience to the viewers.