Leader of Opposition and Margao MLA Digambar Kamat on Wednesday demanded that Goan films should be screened at official sections of the upcoming International Film Festival of India (IFFI).
Demanding that Chief Minister Pramod Sawant ensure the screening of Goan films at IFFI, Kamat said, “It is most unfortunate that every year, the BJP government wakes up only after we raise our demand for special section for screening of Goan films in IFFI. Shockingly, the chairman of the Entertainment Society of Goa has openly admitted in a section of media that he is unaware about the films produced in Goa after IFFI 2020.”
“If there is no concrete help from the government to the local filmmakers, how will they make films?” he questioned.
He further said, “During the Congress rule from 2008 to 2011, IFFI's five official programming departments were under the full control of the Goa Entertainment Corporation. We started the ‘Goa on Celluloid’ section at that time only for the screening of Goan films.”
“During my tenure, maximum benefits were given to local filmmakers and most of the films in Goa were screened in the official sections of IFFI, which helped local filmmakers to avail additional benefits under the film finance scheme,” he added.
The nine-day long festival will start on November 20.
Critically acclaimed Hungarian film director Istvan Szabo, American filmmaker and actor Martin Scorsese will be conferred with the first Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award at IFFI.
IFFI has also invited major over-the-top (OTT) players to participate in the festival.
