The Hindu : A film festival with a difference

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Feb 26, 2004

National

National

A film festival with a difference

By Prafulla Das

PURI, FEB. 25. The setting was just right — sun, sand and the sea — for the "Bring Your Own Film Festival" (BYOFF) that concluded here today. More than 100 films of different genre were screened at this unique five-day event.

Organised by a group of adventurous filmmakers, it saw about 200 participants sharing their experience and ideas with the directors and the audience. Many were making their debut.

The films were screened inside two makeshift tents, Bhadaas and Dho, erected on the sands. The Oriya words, meant to express feelings of excitement, reflected the enthusiasm of all those present.

The organisers had issued no formal invitations to the film-makers, the viewers or the media. The festival virtually took shape on the Internet. Messages were sent through e-mail to some film-makers and they helped spread the word in tinsel world. No entry formalities, no bureaucratic hassles.

As film-makers from different parts of the country and abroad arrived, the festival began to take shape. It had to be extended by a day to accommodate all the directors. No government or corporate help was sought.

"It was purely participatory in nature. We will not lose this identity of the festival in future," said B. Surya Pratap, an organiser.

Said Nell Keay from Scotland, who was making her debut in documentary filmmaking: "It was a magical experience with amazing films of different standards and different stories."

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