Lifetime Achievement award to celebrated Canadian director Atom Egoyan.
IFFI 2017 has already garnered a great
amount of buzz owing to its stellar announcements that include many firsts. The
Festival that is credited with a Grade “A” status by the International Federation of Producers’ Associations
(FIAPF) today announced that the festival will be presenting 195 films from
over 82 countries of which there will be 10 World Premieres, 10 Asian and
International premieres and over 64 Indian premieres as part of the Official
programme.
The Festival will open with the much
talked about new feature, “Beyond The Clouds” from acclaimed filmmaker
MajidMajidi and presented by Namah Pictures and Zee Studios and Close with the
World premiere of the Indo Argentinian Co-production “Thinking of Film”
directed by Pablo Cesar. It was also announced that while noted actor Shahrukh
Khan will grace the opening ceremony of the festival as a special guest, the
closing ceremony will be graced by noted actor Salman Khan, this in addition to
a galaxy of noted industry professionals, international guests, dignitaries and
film celebrities.
The press and delegate screenings that
will kick off on the 21st of November will also see the opening of
the Indian Panaroma section, with the section being inaugurated by renowned
actress Sridevi. The same day will also see the IFFI 2017 Country Focus on
Canadabeing celebrated with a grand red carpet opening and amidst the presence
of noted Canadian actors and celebrities. The Country focus Canada that has
been organized in association with the government of Canada with the
collaboration of Telefilm Canada, curated by the Toronto International Film
Festival,
The International Competition section
of IFFI 2017, which carries a cumulative cash prize of over Rs. 1 Crore(Rupees Ten
Million) will showcase 15 of the finest films of this year, competing for the
Golden and Silver Peacock awards. The
International Competition jury will be headed by renowned filmmaker Muzaffar
Ali, who is joined by his fellow jury members Festival director Maxine
Williamson from Australia, Actor-Director Tzahi Grad from Isreal, Russian
Cinematographer VladislavOpelyants, Director and Production Designer Roger
Christian from the United Kingdom.
This edition of the Festival will also
be presenting films from a record number of women filmmakers (Over 30) in
addition to a carefully curated section of Restored classics from across the
globe, which includes the recently completed restorations of Fritz Lang’s
Metropolis and Tarkovsky’s Sacrifice among some other notable films.
Among many other firsts at the
Festival, IFFI 2017 will present a specially curated section celebrating the
most loved spy in films, James Bond. The section will showcase films featuring
the various leading actors who have essayed the iconic character, through a
package of 9 films. Additionally the Festival will present 4 films from young
filmmakers of the Biennale College as a first of it’s kind collaboration with
the the Venice International Film Festival. Speaking about the same, Venice
International Film Festival Director, Alberto Barbera said “I am particularly
grateful to IFFI for the collaboration that gives the Venice Film Festival the
opportunity to present four films produced in the frame of the Biennale College
Cinema, a projects we are greatly proud of for the results obtained in
supporting young filmmakers from all over the world. I am sure that the
audience of the prestigious IFFI will appreciate the quality of these
micro-budget films, and combined efforts of our two institutions to offer them
a larger visibility. I wish that we will be able to continue our collaboration,
which is based on shared feelings of love for good cinema and passion for young
talented film directors”.
The 2017 edition of the Festival will
also host a Mixed Reality Sidebar featuring Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality
activities in addition to a series of Master Classes and Panel Discussions
featuring the who’s who of the entertainment industry, including noted
filmmakers Atom Egoyam, ShekharKapur, NiteshTiwari and Farah Khan, as well as
Oscar winning sound designer Craig Mann.
IFFI 2017 will present the coveted
Indian film personality of the year award on acclaimed actor Amitabh Bachcchan
and the Lifetime Achievement award to celebrated Canadian director Atom Egoyan.
