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International cinema absent

Ziya Us Salam

PANAJI: International cinema continues to be conspicuous by its absence at the 37th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) here. Following the cancellation of the Al Pacino retrospective and the complete absence of the cast and crew of Volver from the festival's inaugural show, the film producers-distributors axis failed to attract any prominent production house to market its wares.

At the Film Bazaar section, inaugurated by Goa Chief Minister Pratapsinh Rane on Friday, prominent Indian producers and distributors occupied almost all the space, leaving virtually nothing to global cinema market.

With the Indian Film Exporters Association, South Indian Film Exporters Assocation, Indian Independent Filmmakers group, National Film Development Corporation, Films Division and the Children's Film Society parading their accomplishments, the section is reduced to a mutual backslapping zone.

On Thursday, Film Federation of India Chairman Boney Kapoor waxed eloquent about globalisation of the Indian cinema.

And Information and Broadcasting Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunshi talked of cinema providing employment to over 40 lakh people without much Government support. However, the ground reality at the IFFI is very different.

Focus now on locations

Chairman of Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) Entertainment Committee Bobby Bedi says: "At the moment the market is focussed on locations. Foreign buyers are looking beyond Hindi cinema."

Citing the recent shooting of a Brad Pitt-Angelina Jolie film in Pune and a Bond film in Goa as instances, he claims foreign producers have shown increased interest in India.

He, however, admits there is not a single foreign film stall at the festival, and attributes it to the selling of big budget Hollywood films at the initial stage itself.

No Hollywood studio or any prominent production house has set up its shop at the festival where 52 films from 48 countries are participating in the section, "Cinema of the World."

"A lot of films have been sold out before the festival. Not many rights are left," admits Manmohan Shetty of Adlabs. "International films are largely sold through studios. Next time we will target smaller countries," he adds.

Incidentally, at the festival there is a solitary representative of Cannes. He is here to "select Indian films for India Focus section" at the festival.

And there are moves afoot to get delegates from China, Germany and Oman, among other countries.

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