Acclaimed Australian Film-maker to head IFFI-2006 jury

Panaji, Nov 24 (UNI) Acclaimed Australian film-maker Rolf de Heer will head the jury at the 37th International Film Festival of India (IFFI).

He joins leading film-makers from India and around the world at IFFI 2006, where a retrospective of his multi award-winning films will also be screened.

Presented as part of AusArts India - Celebrating Australian art and culture 2006-2007, the two year cultural promotion in India supported by the Australian Government, Rolf de Heer's films provide audiences with a snapshot of the diversity of Australia and the excellence of his film-making.

Australian films and the work of Rolf de Heer will also feature prominently at upcoming Indian film festivals in Chennai (December 17-25,) and Mumbai, (January 14-28), and were also part of the recent Kolkata film festival.

"Australia's strong cultural links with India have been forged over many years with the encouragement of both governments.

Australia's participation in Indian festivals in 2006 and 2007, including the prestigious IFFI, is part of the AusArts India programme and highlights the enduring strength of the Australia-India cultural relationship and the warmth of the people to people links," claims Australian High Commissioner to India Mr John McCarthy.

The two-year AusArts India promotion was all about bringing to India the best of Australian film, literature and arts. Mr de Heer's works fit the bill perfectly, being renowned as among the most captivating films to come out of Australia, he added.

Mr de Heer is one of Australia's most respected film-makers, and his movies consistently challenge conventions and push the boundaries of the film-maker's art. This retrospective features some of his most significant films and includes the stunningly beautiful Ten Canoes, winner of the Special Jury Prize at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival, and the first feature film to be shot entirely in Aboriginal language.

This film, along with his 2002 production, The Tracker, showcase the dramatic natural beauty of the Australian outback and chronicle stories from Australia's indigenous communities, providing a unique window into Australian culture, landscape and history.

The Rolf de Heer films at the IFFI are: Ten Canoes, Bad Boy Bubby, Alexandra's Project, The Tracker, The man who read love stories, Dance me to my song and The Quiet Room.

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