Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Fresh talents hit the screen

— Photo: K.V. Srinivasan

SPEEDY EFFORT: Lyricist Vaali giving away the first prize to the winner of the Talent Campus Contest Varun Andrew David in Chennai on Friday. Film director P. Vasu, South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce secretary Katragadda Prasad, CIFF vice-chairman S. Ve. Shekher and Tamil Film Producers Council president Rama Narayanan are in the picture.

CHENNAI: The sixth edition of the Chennai International Film Festival (CIFF), which concluded here on Friday, not only proved a great learning experience for film enthusiasts, but also identified fresh talents through ‘Chennai Talent Campus,’ a contest held as part of the festival.

The Indo-Cine Appreciation Foundation (ICAF), which organised the festival, conducted the contest together with Cord Studio. Three amateur filmmakers were awarded prizes at the valedictory function of the festival.

A group of candidates, who came up with interesting scripts, were part of a workshop on filmmaking.

Following the sessions, they made their own 10-minute films with hand-held cameras. These films were screened at the festival, and the audience adjudged Varun Andrew David’s ‘Flicker’ as the best film.

Mr. David, who has just completed his engineering, made a film on a boy who imagined that his dead brother was alive and living with him. “I love films and have always wanted to make one…this was a great opportunity,” he said.

Gauri Shanker G.A., who has also recently completed his engineering at the Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, and Anoodha Kunnath, a final-year student of architecture from Chennai, won consolation prizes for their films ‘The Devil’s God’ and ‘I can hear you…’

While Mr. Shanker has already been placed, he is certain about making films simultaneously.

Ms. Kunnath, whose film was about a child overhearing the parents fighting, said she liked writing stories, and that prompted her to try making a film.

Lyricist Vaali, who spoke at the valedictory function, said he was observing the film industry for the past 50 years and found many interesting changes.

“There have been so many scientific and technological advances, but there are directors such as S.P. Muthuraman, P. Vasu and Rama Narayanan who made notable films before such advances,” he said.

As for the festival, he said Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, who had given Rs. 25 lakh for it, was familiar with the film industry. “He knows a lot about this industry.”

Tamil Film Producers Council president Rama Narayanan commended the CIFF’s artistic director E. Thangaraj for his effort.

CIFF vice-president S.Ve. Shekher, director P. Vasu and South Indian Film Chamber’s honorary secretary Katragadda Prasad spoke.

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