Noted Manipuri filmmaker Mohen Naorem announces 2nd Imphal International Short Film Festival – IISFF 2013
Noted Manipuri filmmaker and Festival Organiser Mohen Naorem announced the 2nd IISFF 2013 – the second edition of Imphal International Short Film Festival that share a common theme – including social issues, public service messages, love, horror and experimental.
Open to all Indian and international filmmakers having made their film post January 2011 till December 2012 and up to 30 minutes long are eligible to apply and register at this Festival. To be independently adjudged by a panel of renowned Jury members, this festival has a competition section offering total prize money of close to Rs. 2 Lakhs in 17 award categories apart from a citation, medal and a certificate of participation.
“It is marvellous to see that Imphal International Short Film Festival has grown over the past one year and is taken seriously amongst the well known filmmakers and institutes. With the theme line “The Big Picture in Shorts”, IISFF 2013 event has begun accepting entries for the festival and is much talked about in independent film making circles and that amongst student film makers,” says Mohen Naorem. “Movies are a great way of communication breaking all stereotypes. We will strive and continue to have a grand repertoire of films this time too. In fact, we have received a tremendous opening with entries pouring in from various parts of the globe as well as from Indian participants including from renowned institutes like Whistling Woods International and others.
Commenting on the line up of films, Film maker and Festival Director Mohan Das, said, “This being the centenary year of Indian cinema, the festival promises to feature a line-up of over 150 short films including films from UK, USA, Russia, Bangladesh, as well as from other parts of the globe including French, Italian, Afghan and Indian cinema as well as silent film entries – something that is new to the festival. However, keeping the centenary year of Indian cinema in mind, we have planned to have an “Indian Film” as the Inaugural and opening film irrespective. This is a small gesture on our part as a token of gratitude to the founders of Indian cinema.”
To be held between March 24 -28, 2012 in Imphal, Manipur in north east India, the festival will feature more than 150 films from more than 12 countries. The buzz among those wishing to submit their films has already picked up, and is slated to persist until the last day of entry submissions – January 31, 2013. This is one opportunity no budding film maker worth his or her salt would like to miss.
In the core team meet held recently, Mohen Naorem unveiled the new look of the festival with a special logo depicting the Kangla Sha or the Manipuri Dragon which is the symbol or the National Emblem of the Meiteis. At the same time, he also unveiled two posters for the festival – one that depicts the mood of the festival while the other was done to call for submissions. While the logo and the promotional poster was designed by Amrita Dutta from Mumbai, the ‘call for submissions’ poster was designed by ace graphic designer Indranil Banerjee from Kolkata.
“With the support of Shamiana – The Short Film Club as well as Films & TV World – the online magazine on Films and Television, IISFF is an attempt at bringing the best in shorts from around the world to Indian audiences, showcasing a genre of movies which generally is inaccessible to the mainstream audience. It is also a platform for Indian filmmakers to reach out to a larger audience,’’ said Mohen. “This year, till now, we have received entries in varied regional Indian languages including Tamil, Malayalam, Bengali, Marathi and even Silent films. Apart from this, we are also looking out to receive some Gujarati as well as a Bhojpuri language short film.”
Recognized as a major film event in the north east India, the 2nd Imphal International Short Film Festival will once again showcase a host of quality movies from around the world in the presence of prominent guests and the cine enthusiasts. Films & TV World is the online Media Partner for the festival.
About Imphal International Short Film Festival: The 2nd Imphal International Short Film Festival is organized by Legend Studio Manipur and Action for Social Advancement (ASA) Manipur with the support of Film Forum Manipur. Noted filmmaker Shri Mohen Naorem heads the body that consists of eminent personalities from the film industry including Mohan Das from Eon Films and Cyrus Dastur from Shamiana, India’s only dedicated and fastest growing short film club which is passionate about showcasing the finest shorts from India and all over the world.
