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Mumbai Film Festival(MAMI)
The Salt Of Life (Gianni e le Donne)
DIRECTOR: Gianni Di Gregorio
COUNTRY: Italy
Gianni, the actor and director, has crafted a refreshingly beautiful movie about his fascination with a last shot at romance. Gianni is a retired husband, unhappy with his marriage, and constantly heckled by his ailing yet fit-to-play-poker mother. He is a middle-age ...
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Tagged Gianni Di Gregorio, Italy, The Salt Of Life
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Love You To Death
DIRECTOR: Rafeeq Ellias
COUNTRY: India
Love You To Death is an eccentric tale of love, money and revenge. The plot concerns a married couple, Atul and Sonia, who are bound to each other by money. Sonia has all the money, thrives on tarot cards and uses crystals for ...
A People Uncounted
Director: Aaron Yeger
COUNTRY: Canada
An eye-opening and path-breaking documentary crafted around the Nazi genocide and the atrocities committed against the Roma (Gypsies) people. Since we usually assume that Nazi atrocities were committed against the Jews, the eye-opening angle in this film is that the victims are the ...
La Conquete
DIRECTOR: Xavier Durringer
COUNTRY: France
A political thriller set in France, this film traces the rise of French President Nicolas Sarkozy. The director, for obvious reasons, states that this film though based on real events, is a work of fiction. Still, it gives you insider accounts of the ...
Best Intentions
Director: Adrian Sitaru
COUNTRY: Romania
Director Adrian Sitaru’s second feature film, Din dragoste, cu cele mai bune intenţii is a new ‘part of the pack’ in Mumbai Film Festival. With various new techniques in direction of photography, Adrian stands apart due to his unique presentation.
The story ...
Whose Script Is It Anyway?
An open forum on the state of screen-writing in the Hindi film industry was held on the seventh day of the 13th Mumbai Film Festival. The panel comprised Saurabh Shukla, Abbas Tyrewala, Sagar Bellary, Dev Benegal and Vinay Shukla. The discussion was moderated by Atul Tiwari and highlighted the importance ...
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Tagged Abbas Tyrewala, Atul Tiwari, Dev Benegal, Sagar Bellary, Saurabh Shukla, Vinay Shukla
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“India Was In George’s Destiny”
Editor David Tedeschi and Producer Olivia Harrison on the documentary George Harrison – Living In The Material World
What is George Harrison – Living In The Material World all about?
Olivia Harrison (OH): I wanted to have an honest and accurate record of George’s life. Other people wanted to ...
Posted in Mumbai Film Festival(MAMI)
Tagged Bob Dylan, David Tedeschi, Olivia Harrison, Osbournes, Rolling Stones
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Falling Through The Cracks
Film historian Ian Birnie on the importance of government funding for film festivals
The 13th Mumbai Film Festival is drawing a good response. A host of people comprising not just cinephiles and film students but also directors, producers and scriptwriters have turned up to make their presence felt. This is ...
Posted in Mumbai Film Festival(MAMI)
Tagged Locarno Film Festival, Sundance Film Festival
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Bijuka (The Scarecrow)
DIRECTOR: Ashter Sayed
COUNTRY: India
Bijuka (The Scarecrow) is a practical feature film shot in Rajasthan. ‘Inspired by true events’, its plot revolves around an abusive arranged marriage between Lalli, a pretty young woman, and Painku, her abusive and heartless husband. The pompous and arrogant Painku is easy ...
Pina
DIRECTOR: Wim Wenders
COUNTRY: France/ Germany
The concept is simplistic – an ode to Pina Bausch, the most brilliant dancer of all time. It is a dedication of dance pieces to her comprising of modern dance and ballet by her colleagues and students from the dance company. Everyone ...
The Monsters’ Dinner
DIRECTOR: Ramin matin
COUNTRY: TURKEY
Despite its few gut-wrenching scenes and its gross concept, the film is a class apart as it depicts hideous acts with humour.
The story is set in one single night. A couple, J (Ibrahim Selim) and M (Pinar Tore) invites their friends ...
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Tagged Gizem Erdem, Ramin matin, The Monsters’ Dinner, Tugrul Tulek
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All For One
The challenge was to create a poster that would be adaptable to various collaterals such as hoardings, tickets, catalogue covers and invitation cards, and also a strong visual that was easy to recall. Instead of an iconic mono-graphic, I created a background, a kind of tapestry of the city of ...
Where Small Is Big
Marathi films, even though sub-titled, rarely get the exposure they deserve. There are a lot of limitations that work against regional cinema and it is really tough for Marathi films to have a decent release.
Thus, the MFF is an important platform for filmmakers like me to screen their ...
Reviewers Reviewed!
A panel discussion on the relevance of film reviews was held on the sixth day of the 13th Mumbai Film Festival. Filmmaker Nikhil Advani and film reviewers Mayank Shekhar, Bhawana Somaaya and Anupama Chopra were part of this discussion.
Chopra opened the debate by narrating how a film reviewer ...
“I Hope MFM Grows Over The Years”
Adam Davies, CEO, Sanona Limited
I have been a regular visitor at film markets all over the world for 15 years, but this is my visit to the Mumbai Film Mart at the Mumbai Film Festival. The Film Mart is just a couple of years old so it is ...
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Tagged Adam Davies, Mumbai Film Festival, Sanona Limited
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Rapid Fire With Onir
What do you feel about the MFF this year?
It has not brought about a change in cinema for me personally as I have been making films before the MFF started. It is slowly creating an audience for world cinema and also for non-commercial cinema being made in ...
A Shammi Kapoor Festival?
I am pretty glad that the MFF is doing a niche boutique job of showcasing cinema from Mumbai’s point of view. It is high time Mumbai has its own film festival because Mumbai is a ‘film country’ by itself and not just a city. Also, with Reliance’s sponsorship the MFF ...
Posted in Mumbai Film Festival(MAMI)
Tagged Aditya Raj Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor, Teesri Manzil
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“I don’t compare film festivals”
Na Hong-jin, jury member for the International Competition section
When and how did you first learn about the Mumbai Film Festival?
Honestly, I was not aware of the MFF and learnt about it only when I was invited to be a jury member.
What made you ...
That Summer (Un ete brulent)
DIRECTOR: Philipp e Garrel
COUNTRY: France
That Summer chronicles the lives of four people and the metamorphosis of their
relationships over time. The film is narrated by Paul, a struggling actor, and his friendship with Friedrich, a painter in Italy. The two connect over political ideologies and ...
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Tagged Friedrich, Paul, Philipp e Garrel, That Summer
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Kes
DIRECTOR: Ken Loach
COUNTRY: UK
The innocence of childhood and its travails have been brought to life in the liveliest manner as penned by Barry Hines in his novel, A Kestral For A Knave.
The movie walks you through memory lane, back to a time when friendship was uncorrupted ...
She Monkeys (Apflikorna)
DIRECTOR: Lisa Aschan
COUNTRY: Sweden
She Monkeys is a Swedish drama which takes you for a surprise ride. The film is about two young girls Emma (Mathilda Paradeiser) and Cassandra (Linda Molin), who are close friends but still, there is no bonding between them.
Emma joins a group ...
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Tagged Linda Molin, Mathilda Paradeiser), She Monkeys
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A Heady Mix
The confluence of art and commercial cinema is inevitable
The Mumbai Film Festival is well attended, and I notice the young crowd is attending
the festival enthusiastically. I also see a mixture of popular cinema and independent cinema. And because of the advent of digital technology, anyone can make ...
Queering The Pitch
On the fifth day of the 13th Mumbai Film Festival (MFF), an open forum discussion on the ‘Queering India: Gay & Lesbian Portrayals In New India Cinema’
was held at Cinemax Versova. The panel comprised eminent people from the film
industry including filmmakers Tarun Mansukhani, Onir and Sridhar Rangayan, actor ...
Rapid Fire- Rohan Sippy
What do you feel about the Mumbai Film Festival this year?
It is terrific and getting better and better every year. Another advantage is that the festival is taking place at Cinemax in the heart of the city, where the business actually takes place. I am also looking forward ...
“2,000 requests, 400 meetings”
The 13th Mumbai The film mart this year has been great. We organised at least 400 meetings, we had a list of 2,000 meeting requests from both sides – independent filmmakers and buying agents. We are happy that so many meetings took place.
We also had a booth for ...
MFF Bytes- Rajashree OjhA
This year, MFF is more organised. Also, better films have been selected and screened. MFF has come a long way. I was part of the festival five years ago, when my film, Chaurahen, was chosen for screening. Last year, I was part of the panel. So it has been a ...
“We Must Focus On Creating A Market For Films”
I have been a trustee of MAMI ever since its inception. It is overwhelming to see the queues outside every screen to watch the films. This only makes it evident that people are hungry for good cinema. We have a very good collection of films and the response I have ...
MFF Bytes- Sakshi Tanwar
The films selected this year are an interesting lot and cater to a wide audience who enjoy both regional and international cinema. The Mumbai Film Festival’s 13-year journey has been very fruitful. This year, I especially like the Film Mart, which will help international buyers directly get in touch with ...
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Tagged Film Mart, Mumbai Film Festival, Sakshi Tanwar
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MFF Bytes- Divya Dutta
Film festivals are a celebration of cinema. There are so many global films that the audience would like to watch. We are more of a massy audience who watches typical commercial films. But here we have films that are not watched by everyone. Thus, it is heartening to see like-minded ...
Rapid Fire – Madhu Mantena
What do you feel about the Mumbai Film Festival this year?
It is fantastic, just fantastic! You have to see for yourself the kind of crowd that is turning up to watch films here. I haven’t seen this kind of a response for any film festival.
How has ...
Cinemax Hosts 13th MAMI Film Festival
Leading Indian multiplex chain Cinemax is the mult...
Leading Indian multiplex chain Cinemax is the mult...
13th Mumbai Film Festival to welcome renowned French artists for ‘4thRendez-vous with French Cinema’
The 13th Mumbai Film Festival welcomes some of the...
The 13th Mumbai Film Festival welcomes some of the...
To Market, To Market
Key players share their vision to turn the Mumbai ...
Key players share their vision to turn the Mumbai ...
Here’s looking forward to a fantastic Mumbai Film Mart!
The Mumbai Film Mart will be held from the 15th to...
The Mumbai Film Mart will be held from the 15th to...
Beyond Film Festivals
Dr Jabbar Patel, who has made many classic Marathi...
Dr Jabbar Patel, who has made many classic Marathi...
The Artist
An unapologetically sweet and endearingly drama, T...
An unapologetically sweet and endearingly drama, T...
Cairo Exit
Cairo Exit is about the harshness of life in Egypt...
Cairo Exit is about the harshness of life in Egypt...
Chinese Filmmaker Zhang Yimou To Be Awarded
Zhang Yimou will be awarded the Lifetime achieveme...
Zhang Yimou will be awarded the Lifetime achieveme...
“Inclusive was our watchword”
I am in complete agreement with Norah Jones when s...
I am in complete agreement with Norah Jones when s...
Workshop Calling
DAY 1 Claire Dobbin hosted a panel discussion ...
DAY 1 Claire Dobbin hosted a panel discussion ...
“Hopefully, festivals will boost regional cinema”
I’m making sure that I can learn as much as I can...
I’m making sure that I can learn as much as I can...
"Gangoobai is an amalgamation but she is very close to my grandmother"
Gangoobai is about an old woman who is based in Ma...
Gangoobai is about an old woman who is based in Ma...
