Festival of short films focuses on disability

A series of 19 films, most of which are less than 5 minutes long and directed by filmmakers from nine countries and focussing on prevalent stereotypes about disability and the disabled were recently awarded here.
Films from Iran dominated the 13th edition of the 3-day 'We Care Film Festival on Disability Issues' that concluded last evening lapping up a total of seven awards.
The films were shortlisted from a selection of 953 films and documentaries from 98 countries that entered the festival.
They were divided into four categories based on their run time of under 1-minute, 5-minute, 30-minute and 60-minute. Interestingly, many of the award winning filmakers were disabled.

Iranian films 'Here' 'Fish and I' and 'Our Little 'Circle' won the first prize respectively under 1 minute, 5 minutes and 60 minutes category.
Indian film ' The Deep Rising' won the first prize in the 30 minute category. Films from Lebanon, Italy, Myanmar, UK Poland, Ukraine and Trinidad and Tobago were also awarded.

'Here', which was awarded the first prize in the under 1-minute category showed able people falling on the footpath only to look back at an out of place tile and move on, while a blind person makes an effort to put it back in place.
'The Known Silence' portrays the plight of the deaf and dumb and shows how the lead protagonist literally goes out of his way to look after a fellow 'deaf and dumb' woman who is being ignored by the so called 'able' society.

'Feet in the Sand' shows a small boy sitting on a wheelchair at the beach looking at his parents having fun without him, he sees another family playing with a football and instantly he yearns to have the same with his family.
The family looks at the boy with pity and judges his parents for leaving him alone while they are having fun. It is later revealed that it was in fact the mother who was bound to the wheelchair and not the boy. Other films screened were 'Ennam' by Indian director Rajesh J,'Hands for Father', 'The Deep Rising' and 'Turning Page'.

A 22-member Jury comprising eminent short film makers, social activists, artists, academicians, writers and media personalities judged the films.