Move to ensure indian Panorama films promotion gains ground

Panaji, Dec 1 (UNI) A move is gaining ground to suggest steps to ensure promotion of films being screened under the Indian Panorama section of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI).

Panorama section has assumed significance this year because a package of Indian films from this section is being selected for the 60th Cannes film festival to commemorate the 60th year of India's independence. Mr Serge Sobczynski, who is the curator of the Cinema of the World section at Cannes is in Goa and is watching all the Indian films.

Filmmakers like Girish Kasarvalli and Jahanu Barua feel that independent filmmakers all over India should be consulted and their views will be sought on how to promote Panorama films.

The ball was set rolling yesterday by Kochi-based short filmmaker Ravindran, who moderated the Open Forum on promotion of films and filmmakers in the Panorama section. He said the need of the hour was to present a cross cultural representation of regional films from different parts of the country.

Mr Kasarvalli was of the view that filmmakers from various regions were facing difficulty in promoting their creations abroad post-1990s.

He said India needed an agency to promote its cinema abroad, particularly of those filmmakers who did not have the wherewithal to promote their films internationally.

"Abroad, they look at Bollywood films as non-Hollywood representation of films for their festivals. This is the crisis that most Indian filmmakers face," he said Since the 1990s, he said, there has been an increased divide between Bollywood and regional cinemas of India, which had led to difficulties for regional filmmakers in promoting their films.

"Only very established names like Adoor Gopalakrishnan and Buddhadeb Dasgupta get some outlet, but others find it very difficult," he said.

There is also a view that a platform for art house cinema should be formed to showcase panorama section under one roof.

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