AUGUST 2013 | ISSUE 1 5/SYMPOSIUM 4/INTERVIEW

Umbra is a journal of screen culture published by Lightcube Film Society. The present edition carries interviews, essays, opinion pieces, a symposium on film societies and film listings of umbra the month. 02 A TABLOID OF SCREEN CULTURE umbra EXCLUSIVE COLLEGE

Film Festo is a film club which is run by the students of Jadavpur University. It first came into existence in the latter half of the year 2011 when a group of students hailing from the Arts Faculty of the university decided to start a club which would encourage serious study of cinema and its peripheral fields among the students.

Shounak Mukhopadhyay

ilm Festo aspires to not merely just screen films as most university film clubs and societies have done in the past but also to bring into focus, through discussion and debate, the nuances of this art form. We believe this will Fassist any discerning viewer/member of the club in understanding and appreciating the increasingly important role being taken up by cinema in forming our collective perception of the world at large.

Kolkata was once a thriving center for the film society movement (as well as one of its founding centers); however, over the years, the fervor for the movement has decreased considerably, leaving thereby a gaping void in terms of any significant discourse among Image Courtesy: Donnabelle Garga, who also generously provided the text below. the people about films. It is as a reaction to this void that our film club has been formed. A film club, as we understand it, is not just supposed to provide people the opportunity In 2010, the Indira Gandhi National Council of Arts (IGNCA), New Delhi approached legendary film of watching films but also to grant people historian B.D. Garga to secure his vast collection of film memorabilia to then house it in their center in the liberty to make their qualms about the New Delhi. To accompany this sea of material, he composed an introductory note and an inventory list. epoch’s cinema be heard in a public forum. It has been observed that such places have given hitherto inexperienced yet extremely enthusiastic film lovers the urge to turn to atyajit Ray was the product not of want my house to be walled in on all sides filmmaking as well. For instance, Satyajit a film school but of a film society and my windows to be stuffed. I want the AN INVENTORY Ray, one of the founding members of the film which he himself helped found. cultures of all lands to be blown about my society in , in the days before he was a Godard, Truffaut, Chabrol and house as freely as possible. But I refuse to be RE-SILVER GELATIN PRINTS: Gelatin silver film director, once wrote a rather “explosive” Rivette are the “children of Henri blown off my feet by any.” prints are the most usual means of making black and white prints from negatives. They essay on what he considered to be the SLanglois and the Cinematheque Francaise” are papers coated with a layer of gelatin which substandard films churned out by the Bengali where they sat six hours a night, seven While a Film Archive performs the essential contains light sensitive silver salts. They were film industry. The failure of this particular days a week, getting a cinematic education task of spreading film culture and cinematic developed in the 1870’s and by 1895 had essay in garnering much attention amongst unequalled in its breadth and diversity education, its main function is to explore generally replaced albumen prints because they were more stable, did not turn yellow and were the filmmaking or film-watching populace anywhere in the world. Richard Roud, and preserve films- preferably all films, but simpler to produce. Gelatin silver prints remain only copper-fastened his determination to that keen observer of world cinema, says, because of the limitations of resources- the standard black and white print Silver gelatin change the contours of Indian filmmaking. “It seems to me that the significance of the money, men, space- it has to be selective. It is prints are unique for their handcrafted nature, Needless to say, film society, should ideally development of the film libraries of the a fair assumption that more films (of the silent depth of image, quality of tones, overwhelming beauty, lengthy tradition, and the fact that it provide an environment for its members to world corresponds to a certain coming-of- era, at least) have disappeared than survived. utilizes a precious metal. James Reilly, director engage directly with the ideas propagated age of the cinema.. a Bertolucci tells us that How much of Lumiere, Melies, Feuillade, of the Image Permanence Institute at Rochester within the films screened; without these, he was influenced by Von Sternberg in the Ince, Griffith, Pabst, Sjostrom, Dupont, Institute of Technology in Rochester, New York, there is hardly any reason for anyone to make lighting of The Conformist. Straub has been Chaplin, Lang, Max Linder and Clair, to tells us that it takes a sophisticated and costly process to manufacture silver paper, and, when films at any rate. Discourse of this sort has influenced by Lubitsch’s films, Godard by name a few have been lost through willful the market becomes so small that companies been replaced with sub-par reviews of films Dreyer. These were not films they saw at their destruction or plain neglect. How many cannot make the profit they want, they will stop in popular newspapers and magazines which, neighbourheed theatres-they were Archive million meters of priceless documentary producing silver paper. in most cases, completely reject an analytical films seen at Cinematheques.” material that could bring alive whole eras SILVER GELATIN PRINT (FIBRE AND RC, mode of reading films and, thereby, render have vanished. In our country, there is no RESIN COATED): Fibre print is a black and cinema powerless. Perhaps, is in need Mani Kaul, Kumar Shahani, Ketan Mehta, trace of the films of studios like Ranjit, Sagar, white photograph processed from a gelatin of a Slavoj Zizek to radicalise the way cinema Saeed Mirza, Adoor Gopalakrishnan all Imperial, Maharashtra Film Company and emulsion of silver within the paper. Although is treated in our country. had the benefit of National film Archive umpteen others. As a result, the silent era of much more labor intensive than printing onto RC paper, which can be machine printed, fibre screenings as students of the Film Institute Indian film is a total blank. All that survives prints must be printed by hand. Aesthetically, As a means of keeping this initial premise of India and their works bear traces of are titles and a memory. they produce crisp imagery, detail and greater alive the first ever program organized by Antonioni, Bresson, Godard, Jancso and tonal range when compared to other prints. the club was a discussion on “Nudity and other European filmmakers. Mrinal Sen, Not only in our country but even in the more Archivally, they can endure 100+ years. RC prints are also black and white photographs. the Use of Slang in Cinema”. The speakers Shyam Benegal, M S Sathyu, Govind advanced countries like the United.States The paper differs basically from fibre-based invited to address this topic included film Nihalani, Basu Chatterjee, Aravindan, Girish many masterpieces of the first fifty years have papers in that they have a polyuethylene director Q, Shilajit and Shubhajit Chatterjee, Karnad, Karanth and many others, learnt totally disappeared, some through greed coating, preventing chemicals from soaking a Faculty Member of the University’s Film their craft from foreign films shown by film or neglect, others because of the chemical into the paper fibres. Processing, washing and drying times are far shorter with RC papers. Studies Department. This was followed near societies or at the film festivals. Cinema being properties of the highly inflammable nitrate They have a much glossier surface than fibre- the end of the academic session by a film an international art, we cannot avoid this film. Just one example will suffice. Have based glossy papers. festival organised on the University premises. kind of interaction. Not only film enthusiasts, you heard of Harry d’Arrast (H.d’Abbadie In an attempt to remain true to its original but even the general public has been exposed d’Arrast)? Chances are you haven’t. Yet SYNOPSIS BOOKLET: These booklets printed in English, Hindi and sometimes Urdu aspiration, the next event organised by the to the best products of world cinema in all d’Arrast (who worked with Chaplin and ,contained the film name, complete credits, club was a discussion entitled “Devalue genres, ranging from Cocteau and Bunuel’s Lubitsch) was the creator of “eight of the synopsis of the film and lyrics interspersed by Ghatak”. This was based on the depiction of most abstruse experiments to Busby Berkeley loveliest films ever made by anyone” on the images from the film. legendary film director Ghatak in the musicals and Capra’s screwball comedies. The evidence of Fritz Lang. His films are lost C-PRINTS: These are colour prints also known film (2013); supposedly cineaste can get all his cinematic sustenance forever. Suchet Singh, an Indian film maker as dye colour prints, colour coupler prints, based on his life. Eminent film and theatre from Eisenstein’s dynamic montage, Carl who had also worked with Chaplin and chromogenic prints, etc; dye-based prints, director Suman Mukhopadhyay, Professor Dreyer’s rhythmic tension and precision (not who died young made four very interesting where the colour or tone is made up of dyes, Sanjay Mukhopadhyay and Professor not silver crystals (as in silver gelatin prints). one frame in Jeanne d’Arc seems superfluous) silent films includingShakuntala and Anindya Sengupta were the speakers at Fellini’s baroque fantasies, the “anti-cinema” Mrichchkatika. He also shot the funeral LOBBY CARDS: Promotional material used to this gathering, which turned out to be a cinema of Antonioni and Bresson. Bergman’s procession of Lokmanya Tilak in 1920. Not display in theatre windows and lobbies. resounding success in terms of a record oppressive, dark vision which is at once a frame survives, not even a still. To the attendance and also the sheer attention disturbing and sobering, the surrealist trade wing of the industry, the moment a POSTERS: Used to promote a film, they were printed on paper either by the lithographic it garnered. A more daring discussion creations of the Spanish master Luis Bunuel. “property” ceases to be “productive” it is best process or offset and in two different sizes (76 slated to be held very soon on the issue of forgotten. The researcher and the historian by 51 cm; 30 by 20 in and 101.5 by 76 cm or state imposed censorship in cinema with For the cineaste, discreet assimilation of apart, the man who really feels concerned 40 x 30 in. particular reference to the filmKangal will influences is necessary, otherwise a certain about it is the creator of the film. But not SHOWCARDS: Promotional item for the be conducted; with Suman Mukhopadhyay, disorientation is likely, resulting in a loss of having any commercial control over it, he is a theatre lobby, showcard is collage executed by Kabir Suman, , Nabarun national identity. In this context Gandhiji helpless spectator to the destruction of what using photographic stills of frames of a film. Bhattacharya and Manash Ghosh present, as perhaps has the best word of advice,” I do not is really a bit of his being. the speakers. AUGUST 2013 | ISSUE 1 03 umbra OPINION

UMBRA.

The Call of the New: The Film Umbra is published by Lightcube Film Society, a New Delhi based organisation. In the pages of this tabloid, we intend to cover, through journalistic reportage as Society Movement in the Future well as subjective commentary, various aspects of screen culture. Its pages will feature details of major developments in the sectors of film preservation, film The film society movement started with the aim to demarcate between the vulgarized mainstream cinema that archiving, film society activism and film was regularly projected in cinemas and cinema as Art, writes H N Narahari Rao, President, FIPRESCI India. literature. Our focus will be to establish a broad narrative or a lineage between the state of these areas in the past and their condition in the present. To ilm society activism in India, particularly quality programming and titles available with observe a number of formalities, regulations this aim, Umbra will feature a number in the last decade, has undergone total the foreign missions has dwindled drastically; and guidelines. We have observed that in the of interviews, essays, program notes, festival coverages, listings and director transformation. This is because of they now sparingly lend a few DVDs to select recent years, film society activists are largely filmographies in the coming issues. various phenomena, that are affecting centres. About the quality of these titles at an unable to find time for these. However, if the Fit directly and at a great pace. Firstly, because average? The less said the better. Federation consciously makes the necessary of the advent of digital technology; secondly, structural revisions and also undertakes because the utility of a film society is different In a situation like this, even these embassies the establishment of a library of specifically from what it was closer to its formation, and or consulates have to pay royalties to the right curated titles, as well as consciously guide thirdly, because the older film society activists owners, for a specific, pre-determined number a new generation of viewers, a number are totally disillusioned because of an inability of screenings. Quite directly, this is to say that of volunteers will participate an informal to keep pace with the rapid changes that are we cannot expect any sort of assistance from way. Communication itself has undergone taking place in this field. these bodies. As far as obtaining titles from a sea-change: therefore, screenings can be the National Film Archive of India (NFAI) publicized via social media outlets, digital As per the statistics available with the is concerned, most of the titles available platforms, SMSes and through emailers. Federation of Film Societies of India (FFSI), with them are on 35mm and 16mm formats; Digital projection on LCD screens can be there are around two hundred film societies thereby rendering most film societies easily arranged within a small hall and a in different regions affiliated to the FFSI, but incapable of screening them. Why? While 16 group of film lovers can gather at this venue. most of these exist only on paper and only a mm is now totally outdated, 35 mm screenings Infact, many such screenings now take place few societies conduct regular activities. have become prohibitively expensive. in residential colonies and smaller spaces with gatherings of 50 to 100 individuals. The Umbra will reach an audience of serious Why this downturn? Is it because the need for But right in the face of this rather bleak bottom line being: if the Federation doesn’t cinephiles & cultural enthusiasts. To film societies has dwindled? No. There is a prospect, the vast proliferation of digital tech move with the time, the future of an organised submit, subscribe or to advertise on its pages, write to [email protected] large number of individuals who still prefer to has come as a shot-in-the-arm for the film film society movement seems rather bleak u view titles that do not play in the commercial society movement. In fact, it has created a theatres. These include repertory classics, new dimension within the act of screening regional cinema, and also, contemporary films a film. The primary transformative power image-quality as compared to the standard that have won acclaim within the international of this technological upheaval is in terms of LCD projector. One may argue that it ‘looks’ festival circuit but have very little probability accessibility to and availability of these titles. FILMTECH brighter, and that it does not produce too of playing at a theatre near this viewer. The much noise - what more could you ask for very enthusiastic response received in terms of In the early days of its being, the movement Suraj Prasad Mahato, the Technical from a device that weighs about 400 grams delegate participation at various international had a very simple objective, i.e., of drawing Head and Founder of Lightcube writes and consumes 24 watts of electricity. If you are the kind of person who places comfort film festivals being held annually is sufficient clear lines and of distinction. The idea to on contemporary projection systems and economics above actual quality, then it testament to this increasing public desire for proclaim and protect the notion of cinema as is a rather convenient device, but here are the the alternative. Art and creating a clear demarcation with the The first image in cinema was projected facts: the standard LED projector produces vulgarized mainstream form of commercial onto a wall somewhere; so was the last one. 48 lumens of brightness per square meter, A vast selection of these films are easily cinema, that was being regularly projected Needless to say, it is the process of projection compared to a standard LCD projector, which available on both the primary digital formats: at most public theatres. The long-standing that simulates the experience of movement, of produces close to 2200 lumen of brightness. blu-ray and the DVD. Various marketing influence of Italian neo-realism on the film motion, the illusion, so to say. The equipment Moreover, the contrast ratio, which is the ratio agencies, film distributors, online retail society movement and the pivotal event of used to project these images have changed between the intensity of the brightest and the websites, film institutes and film bodies, etc. Pather Panchali’s release in 1955 fostered over time, though; from the Kinemascope, darkest portions of the image is just 300:1 for are working in the sector to release them. The a new awakening that resulted in a braver, a strong contraption constructed around the LED system, while it is close to 3000:1 for legal advantage of this situation is that these smaller cinema. Most of these films were several mechanical gears and pulleys, to the the standard LCD or DLP systems. The low institutions are copyright owners, and the often of a low budget (and of low production present day replicators: LED projectors. It contrast ratio degrades image quality by not copies in circulation are not pirated. Ideally, it quality) and could not yield any significant is now possible to project a high definition being able to reproduce the finer shades of image from the palm of your left hand gray. To understand this, consider a scene from should be the prerogative of the Federation to economic gain because they weren’t permitted onto a flat surface. The economic and the Django Unchained (2012), when Django establish an exhaustive library of these digital into the commercial circuit at all. But this social constraints have altered over the past is taken alongwith other slaves through the releases. At any rate, circulation of DVDs is utter failure was more than compensated for hundred years as well. The Kinemascope was night, and Christoph Waltz’ bounty hunter not as cumbersome or tedious as 16mm or the vast acclaim these films won at the state, still portable, but then arrived the mammoth stops the party to inspect him. This is meant 35mm prints that a film society activist had to national and sometimes, the international devices: projection systems that would in the film to be a scene set in the night, deal with till a decade and a half ago. level. It is in this context, that of the protection occupy an entire room, need a truck to be illuminated primarily by a sole lantern that the and exhibition of this alternative vision of carried around, a team of 4 people to operate bounty hunter carries. In a high-contrast ratio The only question, then, is how do film the cinema, that the film society movement it, and consume several thousand watts of scenario, the viewer will be able to perceive societies screen these films for their members? developed its most significant objectives. electricity; only to eventually provide the the finer details of his physical being, textures Most of these titles are not permitted for most immersive entertainment experience of the costumes, of the skin, etc. whereas in a public screening. Instead, they are sold Another significant development is in terms for several hundred people at the same time. low-contrast image, these details are lost and and distributed only for the cause of home of the films themselves – there are no clear, The contemporary projector is small enough the image translates as a flat pancake with to fit your palm, use just a few watts of power all the grey shades assigned a median value, viewing. While there does exist a provision unequivocal boundaries between art, and and project an acceptable quality onto your which then occupies a major part of the for screenings for study purposes within entertainment anymore. These distinctions bedroom wall. But there are other factors screen. This also means that even the faintest educational institutions, even these require were rather significant for the film societies here. of stray lightbeam into the viewing area will censor exemption. Needless to say, this is in their earlier days, because it assisted them spoil the image on the screen completely. a rather long-winded process, and one of in their programming. There were days when This sea-change has led to an evolution in our the central issues that must feature in FFSI’s film societies, in the name of ‘Art Cinema’, perception of image. The image is powerful, The screen size is another factor; the LED discussion with the Ministry of Information screened a number of worthless films just and definitely, can have a varied impact system provides you with a screen size and Broadcasting. because these did not contain the usual depending on the method and surrounding between 20 inches to 60 inches, which seems ingredients of the commercial cinema. In it is projected in. An image projected in pretty impressive. To use this screen, one Ever since the initial days of the film society the absence of this distinction, a number of a casual setting will, needless to say, be needs to place the projector at a distance movement in the 1950s and 60s, the main film societies are faced with this particular perceived casually, and this relates to qualities of atleast four metres from the screen; now providers for foreign films for purposes dilemma, one which they cannot resolve. This of attention span in a casual setting, posture, consider the luminosity available to us, and of screening were the foreign embassies, also features among the reasons for the decline as well as the number of distractions. For the you realise that 48 lumens is just not sufficient sake of moving ahead though, I will focus intensity for the image to reach the screen consulates and cultural centers in India. The of the larger movement. merely on the technicalities of the modern and still remain bright or clear, and therefore normal course of action for the Federation digital projectors that one may employ to truthful. This is perhaps the main reason was to source the films in the resident(16mm As per the constitution of the Federation, Film screen films for a small group of individuals. for all the major equipment companies to or 35mm) formats, procure the censorship Societies are legally required be registered refrain from manufacturing these, but many exemption and then circulate them among under the Registrar of Societies Act. This The LED projector, despite all the smaller manufacturers are assembling and the various affiliated film societies in different has various ramifications. A film society advancements as a device, as also its proliferating the open market with these regions. Over the years, the supply of high- is required, as an imperative, therefore, to portability, will always produce a far inferior devices u 04 A TABLOID OF SCREEN CULTURE umbra INTERVIEW

“... a movement is run by the people...”

From a Cinema of Resistance screening

Ishan Banerjee & Anuj Malhotra talk to the National Convenor of the Cinema of Resistance, Sanjay Joshi

Let us begin with a discussion of the notion basically functions with the aim of designing political act by a cultural activist. do think it is better if a film doesn’t have to be of resistance itself. Is it resistance that an intimate space for discourse on culture, translated, though. is individual, which may mean political or and as a demonstration of the success of You have talked in the past about publishing not, or is it collective social resistance? a people’s movement in the country. It is paperbacks on film makers around the And of course, what is it that a virgin film world. Has this idea developed further? Cinema of Resistance recently made their resistance, therefore, that is both economic audience must resist? What do you think is the importance debut in , Do you think the way Well, let’s start with the genesis of the Cinema and therefore, cultural. of literature in developing discourse on audience relate to these films is different of Resistance movement. We are associated culture and cinema? across regions in the country, or do people with the Jana Sanskriti Manch, which is Cinema of Resistance is definitely not event in smaller centres have a more or less A number of your festivals are run as public uniform manner of engaging these these management, it is an initiative. As in any a platform of intellectuals, from different co-operatives, where the viewing public films? streams and different cultural backgrounds. such initiative, the act of publication is very themselves are involved in the logistics, I agree with the latter part of your question; It is a front constituted by individuals who the organization of the event, as well as important. For instance, if we screen Anand there does seem to be a more or less uniform are painters, researchers, film makers, generation funds for it; what do you think Patwardhan’s War and Peace (2002), we have response to these films, but there is an performers, poets and most of them are of the general efficiency of this model? to prepare a set of articles on Indian nuclear important dilemma: how to screen a film. largely retted to the left ideology, i.e. to say I would say, it is not only the correct way, policy to accompany it. Every year during Nowadays it is essential to follow a coherent most of them are leftists. The organisation but also the finest manner in which to our film festivals, we prepare a brochure. method to the whole movement, because if the was founded in 1985, and famous Hindi sustain a concentrated people’s cultural Each of these brochures feature elaborate economic imperialists, large corporate MNCs poet Gorakh Pandey, was the first General movement. If I approach a corporate body or editorial notes. We have also been publishing and other such companies work in a very Secretary. Close to its initiation, it was a a NGO with a nice proposal, what happens? books; for instance, now we are in the middle organised manner; it is crucial that if we are to forum for working in various streams, like The entire available resource, in terms of of publishing a book on ‘Politics and the resist them, we organise ourselves even more PWA and Janawadi Lekhak Sangh, but it was manpower, energy and the money, will have Oscar Award’ (64pages, 40rps); and another astutely. For example, in Bengal’s Gauripur, centrally a forum focused on literature and in to be diverted towards the well-being of the by a poet contemplating the IPTA days and Naihati, and North 24 Paraganas district, we some manner, theatre as well. individual representative of this sponsoring finally, one by painter Ashok Bhowmick, who were screening our films among members In 2005, when the team from Uttar body: ‘where will he be put up’, ‘what he / she is writing on Progressive Painters’ Group. of the jute-producer community. We chose Pradesh invited me for their state meeting, I will eat’, and other trivial questions; questions Prof. Uma Chakraborty and Arundhati Roy our films accordingly; this is an important was involved majorly in popularising film as that should have the least priority but which have granted us permission to publish all of part of curation. We screened a film called well as publicising my own documentary. The instead, become rather crucial. This happen their work translated in Hindi. Gadilohardaga Mail. Before 2003, there was Secretary knew of this, and suggested that I not only within film festivals, but with the There is a famous quote in Hindi, it goes a metre-gauge from Ranchi to Lohardanga, contributed to the discussion there. I made political movements as well. Money tends to navi nal barth, which means that a child is but after that it became broad-gauge. The the recommendation of instituting a film impede momentum. In view of this situation, always connected to the belly button. Film film documents this transformation. This was festival because we have a very prominent it is the advisable that a movement is run by and literature share a similar relationship. We the first real representation of Jharkhand on history of the Film Society Movement in the people, the eventual viewers themselves. cannot disconnect them. Indian screens. our country, especially in places like Bengal and Kerala. So, I had it in my mind it that To arm a resident of small town or a We are also aware of your efforts to We wonder if you think of film as an there are historical precedents where film has village with a camera, is to arm him with disseminate Cinema to the masses by artform, or as a vehicle of social change. been utilised to create a space for cultural the power to record his own history, tell translating films from their original Do you think it is also essential to equip discussion among the people. We decided his own story. Do you think this is the language into Hindi .Do you supervise your viewers with the power to discuss that the festival will be conducted without ultimate political act? One that can also these translations yourself? Is there a film, Seriously as a medium as oppse to cause upshift in the power dynamics of possibility that the essence of the film any sort of sponsorship or private money – only making them aware through these this country? maybe lost in this translation? this was a major call, and one that defined the screenings? In that do you view film as principle of the Cinema of Resistance. Yes, I would like to quote a conversation No, I do not personally supervise the only a social project or also as a medium The major ambition of this movement between Fernando Solanas and Jean- translation all the time; but we have a team of art possibility? was to develop the film society movement Luc Godard here. This took place on the in place. We first prepare a live commentary Yes it is an artform, and it has its own largely in North India. It has never been sidelines of the Paris premiere of Hour of of the translation. The sound of the film language and meaning, but we don’t believe properly instituted in these parts or has had a the Furnaces(1968). Godard’s asking the is then lowered and replaced it with the in art for art’s sake. And in terms of social movement similar in magnitude or relevance questions, but Solanas interrupts to ask one commentary. But we’ve had our share of bad change, film can definitely be a wonderful to those in Bengal or Kerala; although a few of his own. ‘What about your film making, experiences. For instance, when we played instrument. For instance, the issue of SEZs very low-intensity film clubs do function in are you able to make films?’ Godard replies Sameera Makhmalbaf’s Blackboard in the is not restricted only to Bengal, but also is a university campuses of Benaras, Patna, Delhi ‘No, but I make four videos and two films.’ Children’s Section of the 5th Gorakhpur major point of discussion in Uttar Pradesh. and Allahabad – most of these are exceptions, And in 1969, Godard said very famously, ‘we International Film Festival, there was a young Only, perhaps, with a different name. In and not the norm. should use a camera, as the Vietnames use audience, but they could not comprehend the such a scenario, a film by Bansal Mohan The decision to not look for cycles against Americans in the war.’ language spoken within the film. Therefore, or Sanjay Kak can play a rather crucial role sponsorships, either from the government And this actually happened in Odisha. we had to request Serish Doval, a friend from in fostering discourse. For instance, in our or from the corporate sector, or even, from Sudhir Pattnaik and Surya Shankar Das, from the National School of Drama, to provide a first film festival at Gorakhpur, students the NGOs was taken to consciously resist an organization called Samdurasti, made a live translation of the film’s sparse dialogue to from the local University came to join the a monetary burden that may corrupt and film on Niyamagiri and Lanjhigarh. The two the audiences present. He tried his best, but a festival, and were startled by the sort of corrode the cause at the centre. This is the filmed videos of the vast encroachment of number of senior members of the committee cinema they saw – they were unaware of its basic concept of cinema of resistance: to resist the Niyamagiri hills by big corporations; the were rather displeased by his translation, existence, but are aware now u the prospect of this dilution. Now our intent film caused Church of England to withdraw which they pointed out was not accurate – is to basically focus on the smaller towns, and a vast fund of Rs 100cr from these industrial this, however, was the only method by which Learn more about the effort at further onto the villages also. The movement projects. This is an example of the ultimate we could have held the audience’s attention. I gorakhpurfilmfestival.blogspot.com AUGUST 2013 | ISSUE 1 05 umbra SYMPOSIUM

A symposium to anticipate the immediate future of the film society movement in the country. Contributions, 100-150 words long, were solicited from a number of film society activists of the past, film programmers, academicians, etc. The responses, below.

Illustration by Sourav Chatterjee

The means of a film society’s functioning have obviously undergone a sea-change in the digital age; to those that desire it, culture has never been more easily accessible, and yet, overabundance does not guarantee enrichment. As a famous critic once proclaimed, internet is merely an inert lump until someone mobilizes it for you; in a similar regard, cine-culture can seem to even a seasoned film-enthusiast as a giant maze that he cannot easily negotiate. In a situation like this, a film society can, through conscious programming and a linear curatorship, ensure that this film enthusiast, as well as a beginner, can be led through this melee of visual and image data suddenly available to humanity, and yet, at the same time, cultivate their own individual taste, sensibilities and choices. PUBLISHER’S NOTE

DEVDUTT TRIVEDI the film society movement itself. The ones by a eminent film society in Kolkata. I found N.V. MAHESHWAR RAO Consultant, IFFI 1 Film Programmer, MAMI who were office bearers once now yearn for many renowned individuals attending the 4 I have been brainstorming and talking to a few power. What is undeniable is that the past festival inauguration, but alongwith them, Historically, film societies would screen filmmaker friends. I realize I am interested had a very strong culture of the film society in there were a number of kids from the streets films for all age groups, once a month, on in a more sociological argument which is places like Bengal and Kerala where a number in attendance as well. This to me defines the 8mm, 16mm and 35mm formats. These film that why do certain films find an audience of individuals would carry projectors to their purpose of a film society today. This is what societies would also assist in the organisation and certain others don’t. A film society must villages. What is truly shameful is that we a film society is today. To be more specific, of various national and international film show a certain kind of cinema, that which don’t have an international film festival even I would love to say that in this era of major festivals held in the country. For instance, will never find an audience. This form of after six decades of the movement. mainstream proliferation, entertainment is it was the film society movement that was cinema has perhaps a very bare storyline, so in the hands of a handful of producers who instrumental in setting up the Open Forum at that one can concentrate instead on how it I suppose it’s a conventional suggestion, are involved in the production of traditional the International Film Festival of India, where is being told. In this way there is a story and but one that must be made again and again: films. In this regard, a film society can educate technicians can gather and discuss matters one is free of it as well. The imperative of the every college must have a film society. The curious audiences; those eager to learn about with the attending delegates. However, the film society movement therefore should be to Hindi belt is very problematic in that that it films all around the world or titles from fact of the lack of availability of various major help us move towards a discussion of a more still faces widespread cultural illiteracy. Film within the country that are of a certain quality world cinema titles on the DVD format, formalist cinema. education is the perhaps the only manner but are still obscure. alongwith with the lack of dedicated film in which to make a difference where it is society activists, as well as dwindling funds needed utterly. At any rate, 80% of our In this manner, perhaps, the film society is from the Central Government has led to the AJIT RAI population remains completely excluded the epicenter of the alternative film industry. movement declining in the coming years. Chief Advisor, Doordarshan 2 from this thought-movement; if anything, the A number of films are produced only to What’s the way forward? I suppose it is that an The society movement has collapsed, no film society movement can make thinking be showcased in festivals organized by the organised structure is put in place; especially doubt, but we need it immediately. Cinema is fashionable. film society movement. An aspiration of a in the manner of all film societies enrolling overrun by the new corporate culture, which number of intelligent filmmakers is to secure to a nationally recognised institution like the doesn’t exist in the service of film. The question endorsement/encouragement from the Federation of Film Societies in India (FFSI,) to be asked is: who can afford to watch movies SADEEP BHATTACHARJEE educated film society members. I suppose the which ofcourse, needs to get up on its own in a multiplex regularly now, but even more 3 Independent Filmmaker dream now should be of mass proliferation; feet again u of a malaise is the prevalent lobbying within Recently, I attended a film festival organized where every lane has its own film society. 06 A TABLOID OF SCREEN CULTURE umbra A panel on Film Restoration was hosted as an Open Forum at NCPA’s Experimental COVERAGE Theatre in October 2012. The editor of Projectorhead, Sudarshan Ramani covers it.

The panel comprises of Mike Pogorzelski (Academy Film Archives), Schawn Belston (Twentieth Century Fox), Margaret Bodde (Film Foundation), Davide Pozzi (Cineteca Bologna), Shivendra Singh Dungarpur (Director of documentary Celluloid Man), Kimball Thurston (Reliance MediaWorks). The panel was moderated by Ian Birnie, programmer of American independent films at the Mumbai Film Festival.

THE REVIVALISTS

The Red Shoes

IAN BIRNIE: I wanted to start with Margaret to restore it, because restoration is quite SCHAWN BELSTON: We’re lucky that the was important to know that one of the first because Film Foundation has been such an expensive while preservation is cheaper. chairman of the studio at the time was in- things we did was to make an interpositive important art venture, involving various Once you preserve the film, make a duplicate sistent that the films we put out on DVD from the negative, a preservation element archives, studios, various countries around or a copy of the film, and then decide what or Blu-Ray were of the very highest quality. before we started any handling the film. This the world. I know you have restored over 500 to restore or not. For me a film is preserved So instead of just making a digital scan and was a massive collaboration between the Film titles in the last twelve to fifteen years that you when you make a new 35mm negative for making video masters for Home Video, we Foundation, the Cineteca Bologna, Fox, The have existed. How do you make a decision in preservation. Essentially, , first you have to used the money to go back and actually re- World Film Foundation and Gucci. terms of what’s next? Is it four or five films stop the degradation of the film, and then you store the films preserved in our archive. Hav- that are important? can start restoration. ing said that, the number of films we put out SHIVENDRA DUNGARPUR: I read that on Blu-Ray or DVD is a very small part of the Scorsese saw the restoration [of The Leopard] MARGARET BODDE: Yes, to be clear, SCHAWN BELSTON: We know that film, archive. So we ourselves struggle to justify and he had some issue with the colour of “red Film Foundation restored The Red Shoes, properly stored and cared for, last longer the costs for putting out restored titles on the roses” in one scene? The Leopard and Once Upon a Time in than any DVD or Blu-Ray. We hedge our market, when it’s probably not going to re- America, films that are well-known, loved bets with digital preservation as well but for turn its investment. That’s one reason why the MARGARET BODDE: Yes, there is a and acclaimed films. But our mission us, we know that, despite, perhaps, becoming idea of the Film Foundation is so important. relatively subjective nature to restoration and absolutely includes an interest to preserve obsolete celluloid will be something that preservation of film. And it’s really important documentaries or films that may not have anybody with a lens and a light source will IAN BIRNIE: And yet, recently you put out a that there be someone in the room with an commercial value but scholarly value. Our be able to see. collection of early John Ford films. aesthetic sense of what films looks like and preservation program works in that we have what film’s nature is, the grain structure, the a meeting once an year, where archives from KIMBALL THURSTON: From a technology SCHAWN BELSTON: Yeah. The Fords were colours that are possible in a certain film around the world submit proposals and these standpoint, one of things I’ve been working an interesting example. How Green Was My stock. are based on materials that they have that on in the Academy’s Technology Council is Valley (1941) had more of a budget compared are in great need of preservation. We work defining color for digital restoration for an to Four Sons (1928) or, Steamboat ‘Round the SCHAWN BELSTON: One of the things we with the archives to identify the best available archival format, such that it’s a standard that Bend (1935). Films that are less evergreen if tell our archivists so to save as many prints as materials from which to make a restoration everyone can follow. you will. There are movie-lovers high up in possible so that future generations who were and then Marty [Scorsese] and the board will the company and they are like, “Oh, John not present at the time of the restoration can see how much money we have and how much MARGARET BODDE: I am just going to say Ford! How can you not restore all of his know what the film should look like. money we’ve raised in projects that year. Of that that there is currently no preservation movies?” We also really value our partnership course, sadly, there are many more projects to life-stance for digital. And everyone making with the archives, the Film Foundation, the DAVID POZZI: For instance, a black and preserve. We’ve done that over the years and films on digital cameras, which are fantastic Academy Film Archive, the UCLA Film and white from a French film of the 20s is that’s why there is a critical mass – we have since so many people can make films Television Archive, the Film Foundation and different from a film from the same period over 560 films actually. cheaply, but you need to arm yourself with AMC (American Movie Classics), a television in Germany, for instance. You have to respect the knowledge that you need to be very channel in the states. (The collaboration) is the original look of the film you are restoring. IAN BIRNIE: Shivendra, you could talk active in the preservation of the material. To important for us to because we don’t have the about the scene of restoration here, is there make sure you are migrating on hard drives resources to restore every single film in our a crisis in preservation and restoration in and keeping your knowledge of current library. India? recommendations. kalpana. IAN BIRNIE: You’ve also done a restoration SHIVENDRA DUNGARPUR: I think first DAVID POZZI: We’ve all heard that “Film in black and white, Kalpana, if you can tell us of all, it’s important to understand that we is Dead” but everyone knows, Fuji knows aesthetics. something about it? in India don’t understand the concept of that it’s tough to produce this stock except IAN BIRNIE: Maybe we can continue with preservation. What we normally do is, once the film preservation master. It follows that the precise example of The Leopard. How was DAVID POZZI: Shivendra was able to find, a the restoration is done, we scan the film and Fuji will continue to produce this stock for the negative once you saw it? third generation print a duplicate. We started put it on DVD. The NFAI (National Film preservation. There is still a market for that. to digitize this print, and we used a copy as Archives of India) have only DVD copies SCHAWN BELSTON: Well, with The reference for color correction. The print in your archive. And that’s what they think Leopard, we had to deal with the original was in bad shape. Not physically but from a is important to preserve. How can that be producer of the film. The company called photographic point of view. There were a lot possible? Titanus and we had to convince them to of scratches, a lot of white spots. That means master ford. move the original Technirama negative from it was much more complicated to fix. The DAVID POZZI: A so-called restoration is a IAN BIRNIE: I think it’s in the last twenty to Italy to Hollywood for the restoration. The most important thing is that at the end of true restoration for me, when a preservation twenty-five year swith the rise of home vid- negative itself was faded and damaged. The the restoration, we created a new negative for element has been made, because you have to eo, that the studios have realized the worth good thing about Technirama was that the conservation. So today you can choose which consider long time preservation. Preservation of restoring and putting out their library image goes sideways. It was like VistaVision output you want for next screening u should be the first step of restoration. With for public viewing. Fox has been a leader in and so limited in the number of times it could the thing preserved, you could set about that, in putting out their fantastic library. be printed incorrectly. So it was faded but it (This isPart-I of the transcription.) AUGUST 2013 | ISSUE 1 07 umbra

Jon Jost FILMOGRAPHY JON JOST

ANGEL CITY is the American Wenders, equally attracted JANET MCKINLEY, ROGER RUFFIN, JOHN POWERS, KATE DEZINA, JERRY BARRISH, 1976 | 16mm | Color | Sound | 76 minutes to but critical of Hollywood prototypes.”- Rahee JOHN BASSETT, PETER MACHEL Derek Malcolm, The Guardian Punyashloka producer JON JOST writer, editor, cinematographer JON JOST with BOB Rembrandt Laughing initiated what can GLAUDINI, WINIFRED GOLDEN, ROGER SLOW MOVES be called a trio of Jost’s most successful RUFFIN, KATHLEEN KRAMER, MARK BROWN 1983 | 16mm | Color | Sound | 93 minutes films. “This film is a portrait of the passage of one year in the lives of some San Born in Chicago on May 16, 1943, of producer JON JOST writer, editor, A detective fiction mixed with an Francisco friends, circa 1988 (before the a military family, Jon Jost grew up in cinematographer JON JOST with MARSHALL essay-documentary about Los Angeles, dot.coming of the city), a slow marijuana Georgia, Kansas, Japan, Italy, Germany GADDIS, ROXANNE ROGERS, ROGER RUFFIN, Hollywood and the film industry, Angel City AND BARBARA HAMMES hazed story which drifts like the fabled fog, and Virginia. Expelled from college in is a satiric comedy with serious intentions.” encompassing the quirks and habits of a 1962, he began making 16mm films Jost’s first (fiction) film firmly placated him “..”Fascinating, oddly gripping and often generation that made the city theirs, if only in January 1963. He is self-taught. He as a thorough ‘outsider’ of the Hollywood visually stunning. It’s not unlike a Peter for a while.” has made 34 feature length films on system with no intention of breaking in. Greenaway mystery translated to the dry celluloid, 16 and 35mm, and digital dusty heartlands of Malick’s Badlands, although here the emphasis is on spiritual SURE FIRE media, all of which he has conceived, 1988-90 | 16mm blown-up to 35mm | LAST CHANTS FOR A SLOW DANCE paralysis rather than Greenaway’s elegant written, photographed, directed and Color | Sound | 86 minutes 1977 | 16mm | Color | Sound | 90 minutes intellectual conceits. Written backwards edited; most of these he also produced. from its explosive end, the real Slow Moves producer JON JOST, HENRY ROSENTHAL producer JON JOST writer, editor, His films are championed by some of the doesn’t actually start until you’re leaving the writer, editor, cinematographer JON JOST with cinematographer JON JOST with TOM BLAIR, most important American film critics, TOM BLAIR, ROBER ERNST, KRISTIE HAGER, STEVEN VOORHEIS, JESSICA ST. JOHN, cinema.”– John Gill, Time Out KATE DEZINA, KAYE EVANS, & DENNIS including Jonathan Rosenbaum, Jim WAYNE CROUSE, MARY VOLLMER, JOHN BROWN music ERLING WOLD Hoberman, Dave Kehr among others, JACKSON BELL DIAMOND and have been screened in major festivals “Spare and disturbing, but with dark comic “...Last Chants does what virtually no other 1985 | 16mm | Color | Sound | 96 minutes like Rotterdam, Venice, Berlin etc as well touches, Sure Fire, like the work of David film made in the USA in the 70’s does -- as in retrospectives across the globe. producer JON JOST writer, editor, Lynch, taps into the noxious underbelly it exemplifies the possibility of a radical cinematographer JON JOST with MARSHALL of the picturesque American landscape.”- alternative cinema, radical and alternative GADDIS, SARAH WYSS, TERRILYN WILLIAMS, Variety Marked by a visual inventiveness, partly in economic, aesthetic and political terms SCOTT ANDERSON, PAT O’CONNOR, KRISTI borne out of small funds, Jost’s films are -- which does not inevitably condemn JEAN HAGER, HAL WALDRUP, DAN CORNELL, often about the “real” America which has itself in advance to an avant-garde elitist or ALAN GODDARD, ANNE KOLESAR, & RON HANEKAN ALL THE VERMEERS IN NEW YORK been shrouded by the absurd, Capitalist otherwise narrow audience.” – Jim Hillier, 1989-90 | 35mm | Color | Sound | 90 minutes glorification that locates these small Movie, 1981 “... with a story developed by the filmmaker producer JON JOST writer, editor, towns as idyllic landscapes and tourist and cast and completely improvised, the cinematographer JON JOST executive producer spots for families from larger towns to go CHAMELEON film deals with characters who are neither LINDSAY LAW FOR AMERICAN PLAYHOUSE to, during holidays. His films also posit 1978 | 16mm blown-up to 35 | Color articulate nor particularly attractive, music JOHN A. ENGLISH a (forged) dialectic between form and | Sound | 90 minutes but pays them the kind of respect and A parable of the missteps of life enacted content wherein the seemingly “realist” attention that they would never receive producer JON JOST writer, editor, from other quarters. Visually Jost’s most in the hothouse world of the late 1980’s content is explored through a myriad of cinematographer JON JOST with BOB impressive work to date. The impact of the New York, in which the art market and Cinematic techniques like split screens, GLAUDINI, NICK RICHARDSON, LEE KISSMAN, KATHLEEN MCKAY, ELLEN BLAKE, film’s original form of realism arrives only the stock market each boomed, and in complex mise-en-scene, animation etc. NORMAN GIBBS, FOX HARRIS, LOLA MOON, gradually, but once it registers, it becomes process spawned a smorgasbord of “yuppie” which tend to destabilize the didactic WINIFRED GOLDEN, GENE YOUNGBLOOD, indelible.”- Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago delusions which still persist; the ‘concluding one-to-one relation that conventional AND OTHERS Reader act’ of Jost’s trio of most ‘famous’ feature “realist” Cinema tends to have. films, and possibly his best film “…because Jost seems to have captured, more or less exactly, the kind of California REMBRANDT LAUGHING Jon Jost is also an accomplished life-style that makes a convention of 1989 | 16mm | Color | Sound | 100 minutes documentary and essay filmmaker. the unconventional, and because Jost’s However due to space constraints, only producer JON JOST writer, editor, Most of Jost’s films can be found, in inventiveness, undoubtedly born out of cinematographer JON JOST with JON A their best available prints, at his feature length fiction works till 1990 necessity, has an irrepressible edge to it that ENGLISH, BARBARA HAMMES, JENNIFER jonjost.com where Jost have been discussed here: stops pretension in its tracks. In a way he JOHANSON, ED GREEN, NATHANIEL DORSKY, personally administers their selling. 08 A TABLOID OF SCREEN CULTURE umbra FESTIVALS MUMBAI | JULY 2013 LISTINGS

A round up of the best films playing around town over the next month, across the major cultural centers, auditoria, film societies, A Hundred Years as well as independent, smaller venues and college film societies. This section is presented by Artview Blog. of Experimentation artviewblog.wordpress.com | @artviewtweets THE THREE DISAPPEARANCES OF SOAD HOSNI Khoj Studios |2nd - 18th Aug | 11 AM - 7 PM

Films Division, Mumbai hosted a programme to exhibit the strain of experimentation in This is an attempt to tell the story of Soad Hosni, one of Egypt’s most famous film stars Indian Cinema. Shivarth Pandey reports on the extensively-curated festival. who starred in eighty-two feature films between 1959 and 1991. From the age of 19 to 49, she plays in 82 feature films directed by 37 he three-day film festival organised an active search for alternatives to it. The Muktibodh rather than view it on the screen. directors. Comedian, tragedian, singer,dancer, in Mumbai from June 28-31, entitled films presented in this section wereExplorer , Another highlight of the film is the very the “Cinderella of Arabic cinema” was the daughter, sister, friend, fiancée, lover, wife of ‘Hundred Years of Experimentation in Claxoposion, Trip and Abid. by Pramod Pati; Bressonian method of shot taking, where the most famous Egyptian actorswhen Egypt Indian Cinema’, was another in a series Koodal by Tyeb Mehta; Child on a Chess the camera is deliberately held beyond the was the purveyor of fiction and the imagination of events organized by the government Board by Vijay B. Chandra and India ’67 by S. narrative scope to capture the ‘accidental’. factory of all the Arab world. T(whether through full or partial support) Sukdev. All the films were shown on 35mm around the notion of a hundred years of print. The utilization of sound in these films IN THE NAME OF THE ROSE Indian films. The curators of the festival; is still unique: it appear soccasionally and DAY 3 Italian Cultural Center | 17 August | 2 PM theorist and filmmaker Ashish Avikunthak sparsely, but when it does, it seems placed The last day of the festival began with the Adapted from Umberto Eco’s best-selling novel, and cinematographer Pankaj Rishi Kumar, only to make a certain point or underline a session ‘Experiments with Animation’. This director Jean-Jacques Annaud’s The Name of recruited perhaps by the Films Division, moment. session was co-curated by Nina Sabnani, the Rose is a 14th century murder-mystery painstakingly handpicked and presented The third session titled ‘Experiments Associate Professor at the Industrial Design thriller starring Sean Connery as a Franciscan before the audience a bunch of titles with the in the School’ presented the work of Centre, IIT Bombay. It presented work from monk called William of Baskerville. When a murder occurs at a secluded Benedictine purpose of acquainting viewers with different young filmmakers at FTII and SRFTII. the students of this center. The session began Abbey, William is called in to investigate. As he strains in experimentation, or the idea of The films presented were Bodh Vriksha by with some of the earliest work done in the and his apprentice, Adson von Melk (Christian ‘prayoga’ (from Cinema of Prayoga, as well as Rajan Khosla, In Short by Kuntal Bhogilal, field of animation during late 60’s in India Slater), delve deeper and deeper into the case, the curatorial concept note) inherent in the Repentance by Rajeev Raj, Chinese Whisper and later presented more contemporary more dead bodies begin to turn up. Eventually, Bernardo Gui, an inquisitor played by F. Murray Indian cinema over the last century or so. by Raka Dutta, Airawat by Renu Savany and work that clearly exhibited how advances in Abraham gets involved, but he may not have the Moon Star Lovers by Jeassica Sadana. All the technology have greatly affected this field. best intentions. Sean Connery’s performance films were shown on 35mm print. A number of films experimented with earned him the award for Best Actor at the DAY 1 The day ended with the screening the application of various types of natural 1988 British Academy Awards. The festival opened with a session titled of Malayali feature-filmKanchan Seetha sounds, others borrowed from the field of ‘Experimentation with Gods’, wherein a by G.Aravindam. The film was shown on clay modeling to textile designing and sand YELLA collection of early films made by D.G. Phalke 35mm print. Curiously, there is no physical art. One of the trends pointed at during the India International Center | 21 August | 6:30 PM between 1913 and 1919 were presented. The embodiment of Sita in the film; she exists in session was the kind of experimentation Boardroom drama? Supernatural thriller? films presented in this section includedRaja the film in a representational way. Sita is to prevalent in mainstream commercial Damning critique of German capitalism? Yella Harischandra (1913) (popularly thought be ‘felt’, not seen and to an extent, Aravindan filmmaking. The making of the title track is all of these things and more, a slippery and haunting tale of Yella an East German migrant of as the first proper Indian film), Lanka achieves this effect. The other noticeable of the film Taare Zameen Par was shown who flees her unhinged ex-husband to pursue Dahan (1917), Shree Krishna Janma(1918) quality of the film is its presentation of to demonstrate this; also cited were the an accountancy job in Hanover. What she and Kaliya Mardan(1918). All the films mythical characters of Ram and Laxman. various animation techniques inherent in the discovers is a ruthless world of sharks in suits were available and screened on 35mm print. Firstly, the actors are not professional actors, presentations of music channel MTV. led by venture capitalist Phillipp. Hounded by her past and suffering strange episodes of déjà Out of the four films onlyKaliya Mardan but members of a tribal community in The second session on Day 3 was vu, she is adrift in a world that’s quite literally exists in its complete form; the other titles Andhra Pradesh. Secondly, the conventional called, ‘Cinema of Prayoga’, a key session soulless. were screened in bits and pieces because imagery, such as regal headgear to portray highlighted by the curators of the festival. the original negatives have either been Ram and Laxman is not used, but instead, The films included in this section were SHOLAY destroyed or lost. These films reveal that the they are portrayed as tribesmen. meant to challenge the western notion of India Habitat Center | 21 August | 9 PM moment of birth of Indian cinema belonged an ‘experiment’ and drew its philosophical to a man who was not merely applying a genealogy, instead, from the Indian The quintessential Bollywood film, this is DAY 2 the saga of a police Officer, whose family is new technology, i.e. ‘moving pictures’ to metaphysical tradition. The films shown in murdered by a bandit named Gabbar Singh,. He tell old stories; but instead, was prepared to The first session was namedExperiments ‘ this section were And now I feel I don’t know decides to fight fire with fire and recruits two creatively engage with cinematic apparatus with the Documentary’. The films anything by Kabir Mohanty, Egotic World convicts, Jai and Veeru. He approaches them and explore its possibilities. The manner of presented in this section were I am Twenty by Vipin Vijay, Kramasha by Amit Dutta, in jail, places the proposal in front of them, and they agree to bring in Gabbar Singh alive - for a his dealing with horizontal and vertical axes, by S.N.S Sastry, Tales from Planet Kolkata Vakratunda Swaha by Ashish Avikunthak hefty price. After their discharge from jail, they as well as with the dilemma of carving three- by Ruchir Joshi, Brahma Vishnu Mahesh by and 21 Chitrakoot by Shambhavi Kaul. All travel by train to the village where the Police dimensional action in two-dimensional R.V. Ramani, Presence By Ekta Mittal and these films made a pronounced departure Officer lives - with his widowed daughter-in- space, and finally, the use of natural imagery Yashaswini B.R and Nayi Kheti by Pallavi from conventional narrative and were law. The three band together to fight one of the most elusive and dreaded bandits of all time. was truly astounding. Cinema for Phalke was Paul. One could argue against the selection committed instead to the exploration of the Will the two ex-cons be able to bring Gabbar not another narrative medium but something of the films in this section, especially when temporal nature of the cinematic medium. alive to the Police Officer? with intrinsic properties that could transcend documentary has been one of the prominent To quote Mani Kaul, their “shots were cut in this oppression. Phalke chose subjects for his spaces for experimentation. These titles t i m e”. THE ILLUSIONIST films that were resonant with the revivalist seemed to be plagued at times by the malaise The final two sessions of the festival Alliance Francaise | 23 August | 6:30 PM streak dominating nationalist discourse at of ‘experiment for experiment’s sake’ featured Om Dar Ba Dar by Kamal Swaroop that time. The second session, ‘Experiments and Kaal Abhirati by Amitabh Chakraborthy. The Illusionist is one of a dying breed of stage entertainers. With emerging rock stars stealing Out of the four films shown in this with the Short Film’ featured six films: These were shown on 35mm print. Om Dar his thunder in the late 1950s, he is forced section, Lanka Dahan (nine minutes Niranjan Godhuli by Santosh Gaur, Dust Ba Dar tells the story of Om, a young boy, as to accept increasingly obscure assignments survive) utilised the camera in a manner so by Ashim Ahulwalia, Atreyee by Shumona he grows up in a small town in India. The film in fringe theatres, at garden parties and in as to show the act of Hanuman climbing the Goel, Straight 8 by Aiysha Abraham, Bare appears to exist as some sort of a collective- bars and cafés. Then, while performing in a village pub off the west coast of Scotland, he tree in Ashok Vatika as a three-dimensional by Santana Issar and Jan Villa By Natasha collage. The fact that in a way ‘liberates’ encounters Alice, an innocent young girl, who image. Curiously, this was first super-hit Mendonca. A film likeBare experimented this film from the canopy of the ‘cinema of will change his life forever. movie in British India. Kaliya Mardan, which with the use of ‘found footage’ for cinema; prayoga’ is its humour. Kaal Abhirati, which dealt with the childhood of Lord Krishna Atreyee dealt with the notion of presence refers to an obsession with or an addiction TO LET THE WORLD IN (VOL I. & II.) underscored the issue of use of humour to of the ‘unpresent’ (used instead of ‘absent’); to time deals with the concept of “duree”. School of Arts & Aesthetics | 30 August | 7 PM present a mythic story. Jan Villa dealt with the notion of history of The film features a rather generalized notion The second session entitledspatial locations as an account of the stories of space and time, which could be viewed A two-volume film project, it looks at a significant period in the history of contemporary ‘Experiments in the State’ featured films of those inhibiting these spaces. Likewise the objectively without loading this judgment Indian art from the early 1980s to the present made at Films Division (FD) during the late next session ‘Experiments in the Gallery’ with any preconceptions or values. day. The film features three generations 1960s, when it was headed by the dynamic presented some rarely seen or rather The festival itself presented a number of of celebrated Indian artists who share recollections, reminiscences and concerns Jean Bhownagray. Films Division, in spite of unknown work. films, in various categories, but what seemed about their practice. The conversations are being a state funded institution became one The last session featured Mani Kaul to be genuinely amiss was the opportunity of intimate, with interviews conducted by art of the earliest centers of experimentation Satah se Uthata Aadmi on 35mm print. a dialogue. As pointed out in the concept note historian and curator Chaitanya Sambrani in the practice of film making. The focus Curiously, the film is not very easily available, by the curators, the ambition of the whole and filmed by film maker Avijit Mukul Kishore, who is a regular collaborator on film and video of this experimentation was not only via- and Kaul himself wouldn’t discuss the film affair was to argue against the prevalent based installation art projects. . What emerges cinematic apparatus, but also also through very frequently. The film is based on the notion of experimentation and institute in its through this exercise is an invaluable document an active inquiry of the claims made work of Gajanan Madhav Muktibodh, one of place an entirely new nomenclature by which of some landmark moments in Indian art history by the independent Indian state. It was the most important literary figures of post- to identify experimentation in filmmaking. in the last three decades. Bhownagray’s vision that the films made at independent India and yet, it would be a In this regard, perhaps, it would have been FD were coherent with the social mood of mistake to try to understand the personality more crucial to engage with the audience to To bring a screening to our notice, write to: the country; one of disillusionment with the of Muktibodh through this film. The viewer gauge the level of their participation in this [email protected] promises made by Nehruvian socialism and is expected to experience the universe of project. u