6th December to 13th December 2012, Mumbai
Contact details are here.
Spectrum Asia
Contemporary Asian films will be showcased in this section to capture the cinematic trends in Asian countries.
First / Second Film Competition
The Festival is starting a competition of first or second film made by Asian director. Director of the film must have debuted not before before one year of the festival.
This competition will be adjudged by an International Jury.
Best Film will be awarded Trophy + cash prize of US$ 2,000.
Best Short Film Competition
Many aspiring young directors and film school students in Asia are making digital short fiction films. 8th Asian Film Festival is organising Short Fiction Film Competition. The idea is to hunt new talents in direction.
Short Fiction Film made two years before the festival are eligible. Duration should be upto 30 minutes and in digital format - preferably DVD. Running time of more than 30 minutes will be at the discretion of Festival Director.
This competition will be adjudged by an International Jury.
Best Film will be awarded Trophy + cash prize of US$ 1,000.
Master of Asian Cinema
Japanese master Akira Kurosawa first placed Asian cinema squarely on the world map with his classic, Rashomon by winning the Grand Prix at Venice International Film Festival in 1951. Thereafter, Asian cinema has slowly but steadily emerged into international spotlight by winning top awards at world's important film festival.
The Award Winner will present some of these award-winning Asian films that bagged the top honours at Global film festival.
Satyajit Ray Memorial Award
Ths award will honour the person who's lifetime mission is to propogate film culture by running of film society, writing books or Magazine etc.
Focus on One Asian Country
A package of six to seven films will be screened showcasing the trends in cinema in that country
Retro
Tributes will be paid to Indian and Asian directors by organising Retrospectives of their films.
Asian Film Culture Award
The award will honour the achievements of Asian directors, who remain unknown to common cinemagoers in India. There is a little awareness about Indian directors in other Asian countries and vica versa.
The award will be presented to recognise the achievement of the director in popularising Asian cinema and artistic achievement in cinematography. The award will be presented to the winner during the Festival's opening ceremony.
Background:
Cinema arrived in Mumbai, formerly Bombay on the western coast of India, in December 1896 with the package of first ever films made by Lumiere brothers. By 2000, the Mumbai Film Industry had truly acquired the dimensions of an Entertainment Industry, catering to the entertainment needs of a nation of one billion, currently poised on the verge of corporatisation and expected to touch a total turnover of Rupees 15,000 crores.
India remains the only country perhaps where Hollywood has failed to capture the local theatres. The Hollywood blockbusters prefer to dub in regional Indian languages to gain foothold in the Indian market and compete with the indigenous cinema. In a country where Hollywood machinations, with its smart marketing and sleekly made films, have made a dent in India slowly in the last five years. However the concept of Asian Cinema is completely alien. It is interesting to note that while the Asian Cinema has been winning accolades in the international festival circuit, none of the SAARC countries screen Asian cinema commercially. It is not even much known in film society network of South Asia.
The Asian Film Festival is one such beginning in the right direction. The Festival aims to establish interaction between Asian Film fraternity and create a dialogue with the West.
Extending from Turkey to Japan, and divided culturally in the Middle East, West Asia, South Asia, Central Asia and the Far East, the Asian Cinema is as diverse and rich as its topography. Yet, the Asian countries share cultural similarities, and a comman socio-economis scenario. They are plagued by similar problems of poverty, illiteracy, population, lowly status of women. Cinema could be a comman bond, which could create awareness about each other amongst Asian countries.