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RSIFF, 12: Bakhtawar Mazhar: In Flames of Glory
A day before the awards were announced, declaring In Flames the best film, at the Red Sea International Film Festival (RSIFF), I was face–to-face with Bakhtawar Mazhar, one of the protagonists of In Flames, her feature debut, a film that had made a tremendous impression on me. This, a face-to-face with a Pakistani actress, had never happened before, and I was not going to let this opportunity go by. We got into a car, and started talking.
...
RSIFF, 11: Winners Declared, the Festival over, or is it?
Red Sea International Film Festival was to be held from 29 November to 09 December. But when we got our invitations to the closing night, it was indicated as 07 December. Sounds strange, doesn’t it? But if you have attended other film festivals, like the Mumbai Film Festival (held by MAMI), you would not be surprised. Actually, it is a great idea. Announce the awards two days before the closing, so that the invited guests do not ha...
RSIFF, 11: The Origin-al Don Quixote, in a Ferrari
At an average length of 100 minutes, and a 14-hour day, which is what is available to an average person, after accounting for sleeping, eating, travel, etc., I should think four. Spot on. RSIFF allowed you to book 4 tickets a day, 48 hours in advance, as the clock clocks. But there are the riders, which mean, “but….”. Shows began only at four o’clock or a little before that, in the afternoon, and continued till late i...
RSIFF, 10: Foundation, Fun d-a-mentals, Funding, Figures and Films
A major initiative of Saudi Arabia in developing film production and co-production is the Red Sea Film Fund. Supporting Development, Production, and Post-Production of Arab and African Films. The Red Sea Film Festival Foundation is a non-profit cultural organization registered in Saudi Arabia. The foundation is chaired by Jomana Al Rashid, the president of the foundation is the Saudi producer Mohammed Al Turki.
The Red Sea Fu...
RSIFF: Souk, the appetiser, and the dessert in the desert
In Arabic, Souk is market. In India we have a Film Bazaar at Goa during the International Film Festival of India, every year. Most major festivals in the world hold a film market, where film-makers and persons connected with the film industry set-up stalls or booths. A lot of business takes place here and a lot of projects are green-lighted. And the two halls, Violet and Orchid, at the Ritz Carlton, were just the place for RSIFF to loc...
RSIFF, 08: Keep counting the celebrities, and be blown over
Opening the act was Yasir Al Yasiri’s HWJN, with its world première and the screening was attended by the director and lead cast: Nour Alkhadra, Baraa Alem, Naif Aldaferi, Alanoud Saud, Mohsen Mansour and Shaimaa Al Tayeb. Jury President Baz Lurhmann was in attendance, with his jury - Joel Kinnaman, Freida Pinto, Amina Khalil, Paz Vega, Hana Alomair and Fatih Akin. So...
RSIFF, 07: Competition Section films that I saw, and my opinions about them
THE TEACHER
Palestinian school-teacher Basem (Saleh Bakri) grapples with personal devastation, after a tragic incident involving his son, who dies in custody merely suspected of participation in a protest. His life takes an unexpected turn when he forms a deep connection with Adam, one of his traumatised students, who has suffered personal losses in the ongoing conflict. He also develops an unexpected b...
RSIFF 06: Competing against the best
I wrote about Insha’Allah, a Boy in the last instalment. Now I shall talk about the other competition films I have seen.
BEHIND THE MOUNTAINS
A meta-physical film that starts with a man entering the office where he works, and smashing the furniture. He then jumps out of the window, and behold! He survives the fall. The man is Rafik, is a desperate man. He is now convinced he can fly, and is determined, in the face of his family scepticism, ...
RSIFF 05: Raising the curtain, well begun is half done
At the Spectacular festival, the opening film had to be one from the Spectacular Gala. They chose a supernatural comedy, called Hjwn. In attendance were music video specialist Yasir Alyasiri (Iraqi director; producer writer On Borrowed Time-2018, 122-2019, Murk Light 2012-3), Nour Alkhadra (actress), Baraa Alem (actor), Naif Aldaferi (actor) and Shaimaa Al Tayeb (actress). Based on the best-selling Saudi Arabian fantasy novel by Ib...
We are very happy to announce that the director ANA BILIC won BEST DIRECTOR at the International Motion Picture Awards in Brooklin, CANADA. The festival describes itself: “We crave to form and empower alternate and diverse motion picture society with substantial networking opportunities as an alternate solution from mainstream regulations and culture.” Great honor for both the director and the entire team!
☞ Watch the trailer: https://youtu.be/oXuEJiN3rD0
☞ Wat...
Discover the fascinating world of film festivals and podcasts in our latest episode! Join us as we explore the inclusion of podcasts at prestigious festivals like the Tryon International Film Festival (TRIFF). We answer questions from film industry experts, enthusiasts, and creators from around the world, diving deep into the challenges, opportunities, and unique experiences that podcasts bring to the festival scene. Don't miss this insightful conversation that sheds light on TRIFF's ris...
RSIFF, 03: Elusive interviews, while the stars emerge from the Red Sea
Some three weeks before the festival began, while still in Mumbai, I thought of doing an exclusive interview with Shivani Pandya Malhotra, and some 2-3 other curtain-raisers. Now this could only be done via video or audio or email. I was ready for any of the three modes. But I had no way of contacting these officials, and approached the PR agency to help me out, which said that organising interviews were st...
RSIFF: A Colourful Ocean of remarkable films at the Red Sea
A film festival named after the Red Sea? Where is the Red Sea? Let me see…it touches Eritrea, Djibouti, Egypt and Jeddah. A film festival in Jeddah? Ok, so Jeddah is by the sea, and a good location to hold a film festival. A film festival organised in Saudi Arabia? You will be surprised.
Incidentally, this was not the first edition, but the third. For me, though, it was the first.
Another surprise, to an Indian, was that a c...
Red Sea International Film Festival, 2023, 01: A royal pilgrimage for film-buffs
On the registration form, there was question, ‘Will you be going to the Medina pilgrimage?’ I wasn’t, so I typed, “No”. On the Saudi Airlines direct flight from Mumbai to Jeddah, the man seated behind me asked me the same question. “I could take you to Medina. It is only 480 kms from Jeddah, but at 180 kms per hour, we will take you there in no time.” Turned out th...
Premier film festival streaming platform Entertainment Oxygen (eo), the one-stop shop for indie film festivals and filmmakers, is celebrating the new year with announcement of three new topline international festival partners - Soho London Independent Film Festival (January 25-28, 2024), Auroville Film Festival in India (January 22-28, 2024) and Utah International Film Festival (February 12-17, 2024).
CEO/founder eo Apple TungFong comments, We're de...
IFFI 54, 5: IFFILMS, In Retrospect, Part III
I continue my views and mini reviews, about films I saw at IFFI 54, held in Goa, during November 20-28, 2023.
Toxic
An odd love story, Toxic is based on a public swimming pool as its centre-piece. Coming from the Czech Republic, and directed by Stefan Vorzacek, it is the story of a lonely executive, Tomas, who visits the pool as a form of workout, and falls in love with its enticing attendant, Esther. But the affair goes awry with the intervent...
IFFI 54, 4: FILMIFFI, In Retrospect, Part II
Continuing my sharing of views and mini-reviews of films screened and seen at the 54th International Film Festival of India.
The Zone of Interest
We begin with The Zone of Interest, set in Auschwitz. Chronicling the life of a German Commandant, Rudolf Höss, his wife Hedwig, and five children, it shows how attached one can get to a house, garden, orchard and vegetable plot, after taking pain-staking efforts to nurture them make them really ...
IFFI 54, 03: IFFILMS, In retrospect
In my last post, I talked about the Competition Films that I saw. Didn’t catch many, but you can never have enough of them. Here, I will move on to the other sections, which, too, had a mix of the very good, the good and the fair. From these, I will begin with the opening film, Catching Dust, which was described in the catalogue as a slow burner thriller.
Catching Dust
Slow burner it sure was, but the thrills were few and far between. The first thi...
IFFI 54, 02: IFFILMS in Competition
When recalling the films you have seen, over a month ago, the 360-page catalogue is indispensable. I will refer to it, to recap the fare which I could manage to see in the seven days I spent there IFFI is usually held from November 20 to 28, in Panaji, Goa. I always arrive 1-2 days earlier, by train, and then begin watching from the inaugural film, which is the only film screened on the first day. My visit was curtailed because of the invitation from the Re...
International Film Festival of India 54, 01: Glitches galore
It was inevitable. Since I had to leave for Mumbai on the 27th of November, to catch my flight to Jeddah, to attend the Red Sea International Film Festival, I had to miss the last two days of IFFI. As if this was not enough, I was unfortunate to catch only the bad to mediocre films shown at the festival. Add to that the pain in the neck arrangements for the press, under the leadership of Ms. Monideepa Mukerjee, the Director General ...
RSIFF: Winners Declared, the Festival over, or is it?
Red Sea International Film Festival was to be held from 29 November to 09 December. But when we got our invitations to the closing night, it was indicated as 07 December. Sounds strange, doesn’t it? But if you have attended other film festivals, like the Mumbai Film Festival (held by MAMI), you would not be surprised. Actually, it is a great idea. Announce the awards two days before the closing, so that the invited guests do not have t...
RSIFF: The Origin-al Don Quixote, in a Ferrari
At an average length of 100 minutes, and a 14-hour day, which is what is available to an average person, after accounting for sleeping, eating, travel, etc., I should think four. Spot on. RSIFF allowed you to book 4 tickets a day, 48 hours in advance, as the clock clocks. But there are the riders, which mean, “but….”. Shows began only at four o’clock or a little before that, in the afternoon, and continued till late in t...
While the El Gouna Film Festival-GFF unveils its program "Window on Palestine" showcasing a powerful collection of films that delve into the heart of Palestinian narratives, the Iran International Documenaries Film Festival CINEMA VÉRITÉ takes it a step further and puts Gaza in the Spotlight of it's 17th edition.
While GFF 14-21.12 will be finishing in 3 days, CINEMA VÉRITÉ just started.
Wh...
RSIFF: Foundation, Fun d-a-mentals, Funding, Figures and Films
A major initiative of Saudi Arabia in developing film production and co-production is the Red Sea Film Fund. Supporting Development, Production, and Post-Production of Arab and African Films. The Red Sea Film Festival Foundation is a non-profit cultural organization registered in Saudi Arabia. The foundation is chaired by Jomana Al Rashid, the president of the foundation is the Saudi producer Mohammed Al Turki.
The Red Sea Fund w...
RSIFF: Souk, the appetiser, and the dessert in the desert
In Arabic, Souk is market. In India we have a Film Bazaar at Goa during the International Film Festival of India, every year. Most major festivals in the world hold a film market, where film-makers and persons connected with the film industry set-up stalls or booths. A lot of business takes place here and a lot of projects are green-lighted. And the two halls, Violet and Orchid, at the Ritz Carlton, were just the place for RSIFF to loc...
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