By OUR STAFF REPORTER
Mussoorie, 24 Dec: The second edition of the ‘Mussoorie International Film Festival’ is being organised between 27 and 29 December, in which about 42 films (both feature and short length) will be screened. Talks, workshops, concerts and heritage walks will also be held. This years’ edition of the festival has a special focus on films that are made on environment and climate action.
The festival celebrates the passion and artistry of cinema amidst the breathtaking backdrop of the Himalayas. The aim of the festival is to create and nurture an ecosystem for cinema in the region and to establish Uttarakhand as a destination for films, film making and the arts.
The curtain raiser edition of the festival was organised last year from 24 to 29 December. This festival is organised by Himalayan Film School with the support of Government of Uttarakhand – Department of Information and Public Relations and Uttarakhand Film Development Council.
The festival will showcase a wide range of exciting cinema, shorts, features and documentaries, followed by interactive sessions with select film makers. The venues for the festival are Fern Brentwood (27 December) and Ritz Cinema on the Mall Road (28 and 29 December). Participation in the film festival is free and open to all, however prior registration is mandatory and can be done on the website: www.mussooriefilmfest.in.
The festival is committed to platforming and encouraging the growth of films and film making in the region. For budding filmmakers, Mussoorie Film Festival offers opportunities for learning and engagement through events such as Short Film Competition, Film Appreciation Workshop and Masterclasses on acting and screenwriting.
The festival has a special focus on showcasing and promoting the artists and film makers of the region and hopes to establish Mussoorie as a destination for films, film making and the arts. As a part of the festival, it will screen award winning films and documentaries made by film makers from the region, or those that are shot here or portray the stories and culture of the region.
The hill town of Mussoorie has a long and illustrious history of association with Cinema. As a heritage hill station, it has the distinction of having the second electric motion picture theatre in the country set up here in 1909. In its heyday, the town boasted of more than 7 state-of-art cinema houses, which were thronged by enthusiastic cinema lovers.
The objectives of the festival are to create a platform that benefits artists and film makers of Garhwal & Uttarakhand; to create the genesis of a cinema movement in the region through fellowships, workshops and masterclasses; to showcase, celebrate and promote Uttarakhand for culture and heritage based tourism; to encourage and promote contemporary cinema, art and independent media practices in the Himalayan region.
The Mussoorie International Film Festival is organised by Himalayan Film School, an institution dedicated to nurturing aspiring filmmakers in the heart of the Indian Himalayas.
The Festival Director is Gopala Krishna AB, who has studied Communications Management from MICA (Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad), and has worked as an Assistant Director on several movie projects in the respective film industries of Mumbai and Hyderabad. He is an award-winning filmmaker and also the founder of Himalayan Film School, Mussoorie. He was also the festival director of two editions of “International Women’s Film Festival of India” Hyderabad.
