The Hindu : Kerala News : MACTA extends support to producers

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 05, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

MACTA extends support to producers

By Our Staff Reporter

KOCHI, APRIL 4. The Malayalam Cine Technicians Association (MACTA) has extended total support to the film producers in the ongoing clash between the Kerala Film Chamber of Commerce and the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes (AMMA). It said that the Chamber would have the last word in all business-related matters in the film industry.

Addressing a press conference after the MACTA general body held here today, the organisation chairman, K.G. George, and the general secretary, Sibi Malayil, said that the MACTA's first and foremost commitment was towards the producers. Maintaining financial discipline was of prime importance for the well-being of the film industry, they said.

The MACTA would request drafting of an agreement between the producers and technical artistes at the beginning of a film's work. The absence of such an agreement had led to much confusion in the past, they said.

The meeting decided that any crisis in the Malayalam film industry would most acutely affect the ordinary members of MACTA who often depended on their daily bata. Hence the association would cooperate with anyone who would come forward to start production work, it said.

MACTA would also support the Chamber's demand to the Government regarding entertainment tax and power tariff exemption. It would take a more active role in fighting to obtain these concessions for saving the film industry and for the sake of curbing video piracy.

Reading out a five-point resolution adopted at the general council meeting after much deliberation, Mr. George said that the only way out of the present imbroglio was for the artistes to accept the conditions put forward by the Chamber. However, he said that they did not agree with all the clauses in the agreement and that the points that appeared one-sided or partial should be levelled out.

Denying reports that appeared today hinting at a possible division of opinion and the existence of rebel groups within the association, Mr. Malayil said that today's was the most peaceful among the meetings that MACTA had held recently.

Mr. George said that justice was with the producers who had been hit hard.

Actors and actresses had no botheration once they finished their work and received payments. But the producers and distributors had to work for taking the films to the cinemas, Mr. George pointed out.

The MACTA members said that the organisation had no intention to mediate in the light of the failure of an earlier attempt offered by them. Only if somebody approached MACTA would it consider taking up such a role, Mr. George said.

He said that MACTA had already foreseen this turn of events even as AMMA had decided to go ahead with the award nite in March.

Four years after it was formed, MACTA had drawn up draft agreements between the technical artistes and the producers. That practice had been ignored for many reasons and that had led to the present crisis, he said.

More than 180 members attended the general body meeting.

Mr. Malayil pointed out that nobody could subsist in the film industry without the support of the theatre-owners. The MACTA members pointed out that making a film without the support of the Chamber would be difficult.

The film director, P.G. Vishwambharan, and the lyricist, Shibu Chakravarthy, were present at the press conference.

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