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Underlining the importance of the films festivals, Uma daCunha
said, "There is much more to it than what meets the eye -
how you launch a film festival; why you launch one; where
do the finances come from; what is the motive behind these
festivals; and lots more. "
The brief panel speeches followed by a few questions from
the audience drew up the following conclusions:
* Film festivals bring nations closer; cinema knows no caste
and creed. When one appreciates a particular nation's cinema,
one develops a bond with that nation.
* Moreover, these help the filmmakers to get good buyers
for their products. For example, a film called Tale of
a Naughty Girl had three buyers vying with each other,
the moment its screening got over at a film festival!
* The criteria of selection of a film to be screened cannot
be outlined. Though a tight script is certainly a must, the
film need not be essentially brilliant technically. What counts
is how skillfully the filmmaker has made use of his/her available
resources. And of course, the film must hold the jury's interest
throughout its run. The less predictable it is, the better.
* If a filmmaker desires to send his film to a film-festival,
he/she need not go through government agencies. He can directly
approach the film-festival he wants his film to be screened
at. There are websites for all the film-festivals today. The
entry forms are available on these sites.
* There is a need for the film-festivals to encourage participation
of students. Most of these festivals do not have a provision
of permitting a student to enter his/her film if he/she has
made one.
* Certain film-festivals like Toronto Film Festival for
one, have started accepting even animations and documentaries.
Others must follow suit.
* Screening the films at these festivals does create the
hype required to win an Oscar. Theresa Hayes was quite vocal
about this when she said, "Most of the films which have won
an Oscar have been screened at Palms Springs Festival which
is held just a little before Oscar."
* The governments must take up a larger part of sponsorship
than what they're doing presently. It is very dicey to rely
on private sponsorships.
* Film festivals are a boon to the filmmakers. These makers
get to view the creamy stuff, and thereby, learn a lot of
tricks and trade on how to make their next product superior.
* Six Indian films Bandit Queen, Lagaan, Devdas,
Monsoon Wedding, Everybody says I am fine and
Mr & Mrs Iyer have impressed the international audience
greatly, in the recent past.
One would have loved to know from the panel's opinion on
why Lagaan could not win the Oscar?', or say, why No
Man's Land scored over Lagaan?, but somehow the
topic did not come under discussion.
Uma daCunha winded up the pleasing and informative session
by saying, "I badly need a cup of tea. How about you?", but
not before, offering a vote of thanks.
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