Goa likely to host documentary film festival

It's raining film festivals in Goa! After the International Film Festival of India (IFFI), the denizens of the state are likely to be treated to another film festival.

The Films Division is contemplating to hold a festival of documentary films here.

Scheduled somewhere in February-March 2007, the festival is as part of the division larger programme to reach out to the people across the country, according to Kuldeep Sinha, chief producer of the Films Division.

He also informed that a similar international film festival for documentary films had already been scheduled to be held at Kohima in Nagaland from December 2 to December 6. Whereas, the exact date of the documentary film festival to be held in Goa will be decided by mid-December.

The Films Division describes the Kohima festival as a unique opportunity to see the cream of best documentary, short and animation films made in different parts of the world.

The festival also will feature the package of the award winning films of the Mumbai International Film Festival (MIFF) as well as a package of films made within Nagaland to encourage filmmakers from that state.

On the problems faced by the Films Division, Sinha said the exhibitors were shying away from showing the FD documentaries probably for commercial reasons.

When asked about the Supreme Court decision, which makes it compulsory for cinema theatres to screen documentary films, he said the theatres do not come under the purview of Films Division.

"The Films Division has no mechanism to control the screenings in theatres, but it is under the respective state governments," he said.

Sinha adds, "To overcome these problems, the Films Division is trying to create alternative avenues by organising state-level festivals across India."

A real boost to the documentary film movement would come from having a documentary channel for the Films Division, where all the regional documentaries could also be screened, he said.

A proposal has already been placed before the Union government. "If a united demand is made from all quarters for the quick implementation of this channel, it would help the cause," Sinha said.

He disclosed that the Films Division was engaged in the conservation of old films by digitising about 8,100 documentary films.