Renowned
filmmaker Kamal has been involved in a number of capacities in past instances
of the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), but feels the situation
has changed for the better in the upcoming 20th edition.
Citing as improvements, the streamlined
selection process and increased participation from the countries that haven’t
been the regular contributors, he said, the festival’s unique quality and the
experience for the viewing public will be enhanced.
““IFFK 2015 will be different. Instead of
the regular emphasis on East Asian films, we have better representation from
countries that don’t usually feature in the competition category – from Haiti,
Palestine, Nepal and Kazakhstan, among others – have come up in the same this
year,” said Kamal, who chaired the International Competition Movies selection.
“It’s a good change.” he added.
But, he insisted, there was no relaxation
of academic rigour and cinematic quality requirements in the pursuit of
diversity – nor was the IFFK’s traditional emphasis on films from Asia, Africa
and Latin America underplayed.
“We saw 140 movies and the best 10 have
been selected to compete for the top prize. Naturally, we won't be able to
include movies from all countries. So, for a movie to be selected, it should
ably represent the region from which it comes.”
“Take Arab Nasser’s Degrade. I felt it’s a
movie that represents Palestine's frail social system. People are very familiar
with the missiles and conflicts and most movies narrate the Palestine story
from a man's point of view. Though directed by a man, this movie takes
perspectives from a cross-section of the region’s women. It’s a very relevant
movie.”
“Then, we have Murder in Pacot selected
from four Haitian entries, all set in the backdrop of the 2010 earthquake.”
“Every film selected to the competition
section will offer a different experience for film lovers,” said Kamal, adding
that splitting the selection process into three separate jury – one each for
Malayalam, Indian-language and World cinema – played a key role.
“It was a relief compared to my previous
experiences in selection camps. Earlier there were no separate committees
because of which the jury members after a point of time would get exhausted
after casting a critical eye to several movies in a row.”
But he would have taken up the offer to
chair the jury regardless, Kamal said. “I never miss a chance to sit in on the
selection process. We might have to go through 15-20 movies a day. But I have
never felt it as a tiring routine. We are utilising our time watching movies,
learning a lot from them.”
“The best part is the thrill you get
watching around 140 greatly diverse films. This is a rare privilege and it has
always benefited my filmmaking.” Among this year’s crop, he singled out Jun
Robles Lana’s Tagalog feature Shadow behind the moon from the Philippines as
having “amazed me as a filmmaker with its clever narrative techniques”.
This is why, he said, young aspiring
filmmakers should make use of the opportunity afforded by the IFFK to the
fullest. “They should see this as a part of their learning process like I do
and be more serious about watching movies rather than going for fun’s sake.”
“For me, the itch to make movies came from
such opportunities to watch movies from around the globe. I was very passionate
about it right from my college days and so have been associating and attending
the IIFK since the first edition.”
