Nov 18 – More that 270 films, 180 of which are international will be showcased at 55th International Film Festival of India(IFFI) at 6 venues in Goa including Inox Panaji, Maquinez Palace, Inox Porvorim, Z-Square, Samrat Ashok and Magic Movie Ponda. Australia is the Country of focus this IFFI. Total of 6507 delegates have registered for the festival. These include 4023 Cine Enthusiasts, 1288 students and 1196 film professionals. The festival will be inclusive and Persons with Disability(PwD) friendly, informed CM Pramod Sawant. He also announced a ‘Akashkandil’ competition at the IFFI venue in Panaji on Nov 22. He was speaking at the Curtain Raiser press briefing on 55th IFFI.
14 films to be screened at Special Goan Section
Special Goan Section at IFFI received 25 entries of which 14 have been selected by the Jury for screening at the prestigious event.
The 55th edition of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI), jointly organized by the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (Government of India), the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) and the Government of Goa via the Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG), is all set to take place from 20th to 28th November 2024 in Goa. Explaining the new initiatives lined up for this year, Dr. Sawant informed that ‘Sky Lantern’ competition entries will be showcased on the route of IFFI parade, and cash rewards will be given to the participants. IFFI parade is being organized on 22nd November from ESG office venue to Kala Academy. 180 international films from 81 countries will be screened during the festival. Free transport facilities will be arranged to facilitate the travel across the festival venues. The Chief Minister further informed that there will be special segment on Goan Films in which 14 films will be screened, celebrating local talent and culture.
Shri Prithul Kumar, MD, NFDC said that Association of YouTube influencers in the festival is ensured through a partnership with Google and My Gov platforms. An Australian Film Pavilion will be featured in the Film Bazaar. The festival will also be graced by the renowned personalities from Film Industry such as Vidhu Vinod Chopra, A.R. Rahman, Vikrant Massey, R. Madhavan, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Kirti Kulhari, Arjun Kapoor, Bhumi Pednekar, Rakul Preet Singh, Nushrratt Bharuccha, Sanya Malhotra, Ileana D’Cruz, Boman Irani, Pankaj Kapur, Aparshakti Khurana, Manasi Parekh, Pratik Gandhi, Sai Tamhankar, Vishnu Manchu, Prabhudeva, Kajal Aggarwal, Saurabh Shukla and others.
MD, NFDC further informed that 6500 delegates have been registered this year marking an increase of 25 percent over last year. To make the film festival more accessible to the film lovers, 6 more screens and 45 percent more screening theatres will be made available this year.
Prithul Kumar also informed that a press tour will be organized to acquaint journalists with all the verticals of Film business with an in-depth understanding of various aspects of the film industry. IFFI 2024 focuses on young filmmakers and has received a record 1032 entries in CMOT section
