Academy not just 'Hollywood bubble', says its president; vouches for Indian representation abroad

John Bailey, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, on Saturday encouraged the idea of representation of Indian cinema in new Academy museum in Los Angeles. He also stated that opening an office in India is an "excellent idea".

"We have an office in London and in New York. India is the largest film-making country in the world. India makes up to 1,800 movies a year, which is more than four numbers of times that we make (Hollywood) in the US. It's an excellent idea... Mumbai would be such a strong connection to all of South-East Asia. It makes a lot of sense," Bailey, who is in India along with his wife Carol Littleton, told media here.

"The Academy is not a company or a corporation... The reason to have an office anywhere is based upon the services the Academy can provide to the membership. So, the key to having an office in Mumbai or in India would be to being able to service the members and the community and expand the outreach. Last year, the Academy accepted 928 new members from 56 countries... The Academy is not just a Hollywood bubble," he added.

Talking about the Academy museum, he said, "The Academy museum is going to open early next year. We hoped that it would open by the end of this year, but due to various events we have decided to open it in March or April probably."

He added, "I am very proud to be here as the first President of the Academy to visit India. Carol and I come from the ground level of film-making... We bring a perspective and an understanding of the film-making process."

Asked about representation India cinema abroad, Bailey said, "I think that they need a much broader distribution in large parts of the world. I know there are Indian films they continue to show at Cannes and in Venice. But it's very hard certainly in Europe and the US for these films to get much of the exhibition in the theatres... It's such a rich tradition. Most of us only know Indian cinema today from a very limited perspective of musical and dance films of Bollywood, but there is so much more. There are ways to do it."

Also present were State Cultural Affairs and Education Minister Vinod Tawde and Principal Secretary, Cultural Affairs, Bhushan Gagrani.