Amit Halder
Port Blair, Dec 22: A three-day non competitive Documentary, Short and Animation Film Festival ‘MIFF in Andamans’ was inaugurated today at ASI building at 02 pm by the Deputy Commissioner Shri. Udit Prakash Rai, IAS, who was the chief guest on the occasion. The guest of honour, Padmashree Naresh Chandra Lal and Veteran theatre artist Geetanjali Acharya who also is a member of Andaman Islands Film Society also graced the occasion alongwith Shri. Sumay Mukherjee, Sr. Branch Manager of Films Division was present on the occasion.
The film festival is being organized by the Films Division, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, GoI in association with Andaman Islands Film Society.
Large number of students of Kamraj English medium School attended the Film Festival.
Earlier, In a press conference held here yesterday morning at Megapode Nest, the Senior Branch Manager from Films Division, Ministry of I&B, Shri Sumay Mukherjee, stated that it is for the first time the Division is organizing this festival in A&N Islands. Shri Mukherjee said 20 award winning films of MIFF will be screened during the three-day festival. The film will be shown from countries like Romania, UK, Australia, Bangladesh and India. ‘MIFF in Andamans’ is a festival of award winning films from the ‘Mumbai International Film Festival for documentary, short & animation’, which is held biennially at the financial capital of our country. This festival is an effort at expanding the horizons of knowledge as well as inspiring the people of A&N Islands, he added.
He urged the children of the Islands to witness the short films which are based on good themes. More than 35 to 40 countries participate in every edition of the festival, which serves as a platform of documentary film makers to meet, interact and exchange ideas. The festival attracts the best of films made all over the world on varied subjects, he mentioned. Budding film makers from the Islands can contact him over ph. no. 9830361642 for producing short films and the Films Division will provide necessary equipments and bear the cost. For more details log on to www.filmsdivision.org. Ms. Samitha Acharya of Andaman Islands Film Society briefed about the festival and said that it is an opportunity for the Islanders and the children in particular to witness documentary, short and animation based award winning films. She said ‘Little Terrorist’, a short film a 15 minutes directed by Ashvin Kumar, which was also nominated for the 2005 Oscar Awards for the live action short film will be screened as the opening film.
Shri. Nisar Mohammed, PGT (Maths), representative from Kamaraj English Medium School, which is a partner in this noble initiative said that short films will definitely inspire the young children.
