Still from I Am Kalam
The Manhattan Short Film Festival (MSFF) will soon be back, but in a new avatar! This year, media person and noted filmmaker S Ramachandran has tied up with festival director Anil Sadarangani to bring the MSFF to Mumbai.
"The MSFF shares a special relationship with India because the winner of the 2004 festival, Ashvin Kumar's Little Terrorist, went on to earn a nomination at the Oscars in the Short Film category," says Nicholas Mason, Founding festival director from New York City.
"The short film genre is a great way for filmmakers to experiment without worrying about the factors that come into play when making a feature film. It also brings recognition to the filmmaker. You learn how to tell a story economically and within a time limit. In this sense, the Manhattan Short Film Festival is very important. A win is a win for any filmmaker and I encourage people to participate in it." says Ashvin Kumar.
India's first Oscar winner, Bhanu Athaiya was present at the festival last year. when the MSFF came to Mumbai for the first time. "Last year, we saw a good selection of films from across the world, understandably worthy of making their mark at platforms like the Oscars. The calibre of films was excellent."
The Manhattan Short takes place in over 200 cinemas in 200 cities across six continents including Asia, North and South America, Europe, Australia and Africa during the week of September 25 to October 2, 2011. This is a filmmaker's chance to be part of one of the largest cinematic events of the year, the Annual Manhattan Short.
Audiences across the globe will come together to watch 10 finalist films and vote for the winner.
All submissions for the festival have to be sent to New York by July 31.
