The Bengaluru International Short Film Festival (BISFF) is ready to host its 12th edition from August 4th – 14th, 2022. This year the film festival will be in a hybrid format. OTT screenings will begin on August 4th, 2022 and screenings will take place in theatres at Suchitra and Goethe Institut Max Mueller Bhavan from Aug 11-14, 2022.
Enthusiasts can log into www.bisff.in and enjoy a plethora of short films from different categories. The awesome-sauce feature at BISFF this year is that once registered for the festival the movies can be viewed anytime throughout the 10 days. The festival will go on air, upon registration.
This year the festival is dedicated to Satyajit Ray for his centenary in 2022, with the poster as a homage to his legacy depicting the most memorable pose from Pather Panchali.
Created as a platform for young and amateur filmmakers, where they could screen their shorts to discerning audiences and, more importantly, find constructive and critical feedback from achievers in the field, BISFF has come a long way in identifying and nurturing young filmmakers and providing a platform for them to showcase their talent.
It was a proud moment for BISSF in 2020, when the festival was approved as an Oscar® Academy Qualifying Festival for the Short Films.. The winning short films in the International and Indian Competition sections of BISFF 2020 are automatically eligible for consideration in the Live Action Short Film Category of the Academy Awards®, without a standard theatrical run, provided the film complies with the stringent Academy rules.
This year, BISFF received 3000 plus submissions from across 90 countries, out of which 23% are Women filmmakers. Around 250 films have been shortlisted for the festival screening.
Every year, BISFF has been including new categories in the annual festival, and this year too, it brings an exciting category of short films to all its audience:
| Competition Sections | Juries |
| International Competition | Jukka-Pekka Laakso – Tampere, FinlandArmyn Naderi – Tehran, IranEmil Kalus – Berlin, Germany |
| Indian Competition | Manju Bohra – National Award Winning Indian Filmmaker – Assamese CinemaSiddharth Siva – Indian film director, producer, actor, – Malayalam cinema. |
| Karnataka Competition | Hemanth Rao – Indian Filmmaker – Kannada CinemaAniruddha Jatkar – Actor – Kannada Cinema |
| Let’s Include | Preethi Srinivasan – Founder, Soulfree, Writer at moviebuff.comKatia Martin-Maresco – film director, and director and founder of the International Film Festival on Disabilities Rupa Hemanth – Centre head at Rasa Aadharan, a centre for special needs Bangalore. |
| Animation | Vivek Ram – Indian CG, Animation and VFX artist Bony Pinto – Animation Director at Nickelodeon |
| Women in Cinema Collective | Priya Belliappa – Indian FilmmakerPreetha Jayaraman – Award-winning cinematographer |
The competition section, Women in Cinema Collective, will feature short films by women filmmakers, a segment powered by Jain Trust.
The festival team continues with its commitment to making cinema accessible. They would also like to draw the attention of cinephiles to a cause dear to the festival, children from marginalised communities. The “DONATE NOW” button on the website will direct a donation of your choice to ‘Vidyanikethan’, an indigenous NGO with deep roots in communities in Bengaluru. Additionally, to add to the excitement each registered audience will receive a free NFT (in collaboration with TreasureClub).
Festival Discussions and Workshops:
- Discussion – Story? Script? – A talk on Literature in Cinema in collaboration with BookBrahma
- Masterclass – Blocking for the Camera by Balaji Manohar
- Talk – Suchitra Cine Academy – New Cinema School in Bangalore
Prakash Belawadi, Actor, Director, and Mentor, BISFF, said, “BISFF, that has grown over a decade into an international event that Bengaluru can proudly own, has built a fellowship and network of short film enthusiasts and experts from around the world. The online structure has helped us create more inclusive spaces for new ideas and new imagination”
Anand Varadaraj, Festival Director, BISFF, commented, “BISFF is back to theaters this year after a 2-year hiatus. I love the energy that film festivals bring to filmmakers. We are happy to support a special section for Women filmmakers and Films on Disability. The audience will also receive a free NFT from the festival.”
“As an edupreneur, movie buff and someone who is keen to uplift members of society, especially women and the youth, this initiative feels like an ideal way to associate and contribute to an art form that liberates people and dismantles barriers of gender, culture, and language, which I truly appreciate. Knowledgeum is a hub for research, practice, and continuous learning where the teaching-learning process leads to useful knowledge creation. At Knowledgeum, it is our way of encouraging the artistic works that are created and curated by some exceptionally talented artists in the short film
industry” – Ms. Aparna Prasad, Founder, Knowledgeum, Jain Trust
The partners include Suchitra -Puravankara Foundation, Centre for Film and Drama, Goethe Institut, Jain Trust – Knowledgeum, India Inclusion Summit, Kshamata Innovative Foundation, Movi Garage, ShortsTv & Vidyanikethan.
About Bengaluru International Short Film Festival (BISFF):
BISFF was launched in 2010. It now has the distinction of being one of India’s largest Short Film Festivals. BISFF showcases shorts from across the world, creating a physical space for a great experience of cinema. It brings together keen, like-minded audiences for the filmmakers. BISFF also exhibits works by past masters who have dabbled in short filmmaking that today is an independent art forms. In 2020, BISFF received Oscar accreditation, making it the only Oscar Academy qualifying short film festival in India for the Live Action Category.
Additionally, the festival presents talks, panel discussions, demonstrations, and workshops with leading thinkers, professionals, and industry practitioners, providing an opportunity for young filmmakers to interact with the best in the industry.
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