The Chief Minister will honor director Mahnas Mohammadi, who is fighting for women’s rights in Iran, with the Spirit of Cinema award. Greek filmmaker and jury member Athena Rachel Sangari will receive the award on behalf of Mahnas, who was unable to attend the festival due to travel restrictions. Jury chairman and German director Witt Helmer will participate in the ceremony.
The festival book will be released by Labor Minister V. Shivankutty to Transport Minister Anthony Raju. Minister for Food and Public Supplies GR Anil will release the festival bulletin to Mayor Arya Rajendran.
Minister of Food and Public Distribution G.R. Anil Mayor will present the festival bulletin to Arya Rajendran. The festival edition of the film festival Adv.V.K. Prashant MLA KSFDC Chairman Shaji N. Karun will be released
After the opening ceremony, there will be a sitar concert by Purbayan Chatterjee at five. After the concert, the opening film Tori and Lokita will be screened.
This is the first screening of this film in India which is a joint venture between Belgium and France. The film tells the story of the bond between a refugee boy and a girl who are born in Africa and grow up on the streets of Belgium.
186 films from 70 countries will be screened in the eight-day fair from 9th to 16th. 14 films will be screened in the international competition category, 12 films in the Malayalam Cinema Today category and seven films in the Indian Cinema Now category. 78 films will be screened in the world cinema category.
Six films from Serbia will be screened in the country focus category. The retrospective section will feature films by early filmmaker FW Murnow, Serbian director Emir Kusturica, American director and screenwriter Paul Schrader, and Chilean-French director Alejandro Jodorowsky.
The latest films of Jafar Panahi, Fathi Akin, Christoph Sanusi and the last film of Kim Ki Duk will be screened at the fair. Five silent films will be screened accompanied by live music.
The fair will also have a special screening of Swayamvaram, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, and a screening of the revised version of the film Thumb.
The best films in the international category will be selected by a jury consisting of Wheat Helmer chairman and Greek filmmaker Athena Rachel Sangari, Spanish-Uruguayan director Alvaro Bruckner, Argentinian actor Nahul Perez Biscayart and Indian director Chaitanya Tamhane.
A film eligible for the Golden Chakoram for Best Film will receive Rs 20 lakh. The best director eligible for the Rajata Chakoram will get Rs 4 lakh and the best debutant director eligible for the Rajata Chakoram will get Rs 3 lakh.
The director of the film that is eligible for the Audience Award will receive Rs.2 lakh and the best debutant director of India who is eligible for the KR Mohanan Endowment Award will receive Rs.1 lakh.
On the occasion of the fair, Punalur Rajan’s exhibition of 100 photographs, ‘Anarghanimisham’, and ‘Sathyan Smriti’, an exhibition of 110 photographs of Satyan, on the occasion of his 110th birth anniversary, will be organized at Tagore, the main venue.
There will be many events like In Conversation with Directors, Open Forum, Meet the Director, Homage to the late filmmakers, Aravindan Memorial Lecture, Master Class etc.
