Day 2 at First Frame International students’ film festival was an eventful one. A Talkshop by Mr. Hemant Gaba and Dr. Ullas Batra, Live Streaming, Live Circles, On-the-spot mobile filmmaking competition along with a live performance by Kingdom of Dreams, supplemented the screening of 33 National and International Student Films and F8 National Photography exhibition at First Frame 2014- Sixth International Students’ Film Festival.
The event came to a close with the valedictory ceremony where the names of the winners were announced. The award for best International Fiction Film went to Selvi from Sri Lanka Foundation Digital Academy, Best National Fiction Film went to Kanyaka from SRFTI, Kolkata, Best International Documentary Film went to Ghumantu from NID, Ahmedabad, Best National Documentary Film went to This Filthy Life from NID, Ahmedabad, Best Ad Film went to Firefox from VIPS, Delhi and Best Student Film went to Footbal from Deshbandhu Vidalalaya.
On declaration of the results, Mr. Mike C. Berry said, “A very energetic and youthful crowd . Love the spirit of the festival, Love the line-up. I’ve been to many International Festivals and this festival is at par with a lot of them”
Ms. Shazia added, “I feel great to be a part of this festival. I love the audience and the films. I wish the best of luck to the organizers in all their future endeavors”.
The films on Day 2 were screened to an open audience comprising of students, professionals, critics, writers, and other members of the media, and were subject to judgment by a Final Preview Committee who decided the winners.
The Final Preview Committee consisted of Mr. Mike C. Berry Emmy and BAFTA Awards Jury member and Founder of Golden Tulip Films and Ms. Shazia Khan, Director, producer, Saffron Films. Cash awards worth 1.6 lakhs along with trophies, citation and vouchers along with other goodies were distributed to the winners of the festival and the winners of the other ancillary events of the festival.
Mr. Hemant Gaba, nomination jury member said-“The festival’s category of the student film (school) is very close to what we call the mumblecore in the west”.
Organised by Madhu Bala Institute of Communication and Electronic Media (MBICEM) affiliated to Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (GGSIPU), New Delhi, First Frame was India’s first ever Students’ Film Festival to go International. As the festival came to a close, Prof. M.B. Julka, Festival Director and Director of MBICEM, said in her closing address, “ The festival has grown bigger, better and grander in every possible way and MBICEM will continue to foster the festival for all of the editions to come..”
Chief Guest for Valedictory Function was Mr. Kim Kum Pyoung, Director, Korean Cultural Centre, India. In his address to the audience he said-“It has been 40 years since the Indian-Korean ties and our agenda is simply to exchange our country’s art and culture with the Indian audience. To give them a taste of our culture and what better than showcase our films and TV programme’s at Indian Film Festivals.”
Shri. Bimal Julka, Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Government of India, was the Chief Guest for the Opening Function. Shri Bimal Julka addressed the gathering saying, “MBICEM is providing an excellent platform for media students to find new innovative ideas. The F8 National Photography Competition and Exhibition, is another innovative idea and so is the blogging competition.
Another attraction was the screening of the worldwide popular TV show Dr. Hur Jun, followed by a critical appreciation round. Ms. Renuka Sharma, filmmaker and dubbing artist, Sanchar Bharti along with Mr. Kim Kum Pyoung and the festival co-ordinator Ashish Adpur moderated the session. It was a healthy discussion and addressed many issues related to the TV show and its run in India and how it can seep into the daily television watching routine of the Indian masses.
Parallel to the film screenings were two ancillary activities of First Frame 2014: The F8 National Students’ Photography Competition & Exhibition and the On-the-Spot Mobile Filmmaking Competition. Mr Shailendra Pandey, National Photo Editor, Group Patrika, was the jury of the F8 National Students’ Photography Competition. Yash Goenka from Blue Bells was the runner up in the school category whereas the winner of the competition in the school category was, Nayan Dhameja from Manavsthali. In the College category Nadeem Ansari from AJK MCRC and Rahul Chaudhary from AJK MCRC bagged the 1st and the 2nd prize respectively. The theme for the competition was ‘Celebrations’.
The on-the-spot mobile filmmaking Competition received 10 entries from media students who shot mobile films and submitted them in less than 5 hours time for the competition. The films were then screened on day 2 and were subject to judgment. The 1st and the 2nd prize winners in this category were Amit Sharma from MBICEM and Antarik Anwesan from AJK MCRC respectively.
The festival ended on a high with a closing dinner party where the guests and the jury along with the participants joined in for discussion and for the celebration of the festival.