'IFFK attracts a fantastic audience’

From Japanese horror to the latest of Senegalese film to be screened at the International Film Festival of Kerala this December, promises film editor and organiser Beena Paul.
With the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) just around the corner, it looks like the event's artistic director Beena Paul Venugopal is the busiest person in the capital city.The National Award-winning film editor talks about all that’s planned for the
upcoming festival that is on from December 9 to 16.
“In this edition, we have included Philippine and Arab cinema that is sure to engage the audience,” she says, adding that the central focus of IFFK has always been Asian, African and Latin American movies. However, that doesn’t mean that IFFK would be shying away from showcasing the latest trends from the international film industries.
“The Philippine movies were chosen as they have gone one step further by including digital technology on a bare minimum budget,” she explains. “They have set a new benchmark in filmmaking.”
Stating that Kerala was always driven by a strong film society, Beena recalls how the seed of IFFK was planted in 1996. “Few prominent Malayalis, including Soorya Krishnamoorthy and PK Nair, had organised a small film festival in a Calicut theatre by screening films from their archives. It turned out be a huge success,” she says.
KSFDC then took over the festival till the Chalachitra Academy was formed in 1998. Beena says, “Though the inherent vision has not changed, it has evolved with every new chairman.”
Shaji N Karun focused on screening good cinema, Adoor Gopalakrishnan brought intensity to the event, TK Rajeev Kumar made it more organised and a people’s festival, and now under Priyadarshan’s tutelage, it has taken flight, she points out, breaking off to attend a call concerning the jury members of the IFFK.
Beena also notes that though the audience has been increasing through the years, the cross section of people turning up seems to have changed. She attributes this to “good programming, good planning and a good team.”
“Earlier, the fest was only catering to the converted, for those who admire the so-called art films, while today there is something to satisfy everyone,” she reasons. The 16th IFFK, this year, will screen 185 films from 62 countries with some unique highlights being the Japanese Kaidan horror classics, the football movies in Kicking and Screening category and retrospective movies of Senegalese filmmaker Djibril Diop Mambety, who Beena
describes as the ‘John Abraham of Africa’.
“The selection process by the team involved a year-long effort of networking, travelling to different countries, putting in hours of research on the internet,” exclaims the IFFK artistic director, before being interrupted by a slew of calls concerning the promotion of the event.
Talking about the influence of the festival on the people of Kerala, she says, “Outside this state, most people have not seen a single Cuban, Korean or Spanish movie. But here, people come and support these movies and it actually opens your mind to the world.”
Remarking that cinema also has a business element, Beena claims that the Academy had planned to develop a market for distributors and buyers during IFFK on the lines of the Film Bazaar at the International Film Festival of India.
With the IFFK scheduled close on the heels of IFFI, the team is looking at USPs to attract the filmmakers to the south. “We offer the most fantastic audience and the screenings run packed for the entire week, unlike at the IFFI,” beams Beena.