Noted film actress Rekha lighting the lamp to inaugurate the 39th International Film Festival of India (IFFI-2008) at Kala Academy, in Panaji, Goa, on November 22, 2008. Goa Governor SS Sidhu, Chief Minister Digambar Kamat, Union Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting and External Affairs Anand Sharma and others are seen alongside.

     Panaji: The 39th International Film Festival of India opened here Saturday with the screening of the period Chinese film Warlords, set in the year 1850s, portraying the Taiping rebellion against the Qing dynasty.

     The sufferings of the 430 million Chinese people under the corrupt rule of the Qing dynasty had set the stage for the rebellion. During the decade-long civil war, 50 million people died from either hunger or battle. In the fall of 1870, Gen Pang stands high atop the city walls fully attired in governor's robes. Peering down upon the site of his inauguration, he is filled with dreams and ambition. Pang has taken a path of no return; had he chosen differently, he might have been one of the heroes to later overthrow the corrupt Qing imperial regime and establish a new China. He could have changed the course of history. But two bandits and a woman have changed the course of his life - helping him achieve his goal, but ultimately causing his demise. The two bandits are his sworn blood brothers: Zhao Er-Hu and Jiang Wu-Yang. The woman who comes between them is Zhao's wife Lian. Peter Chan has been quoted as saying that the film, mounted on an epic scale and marked by spectacular battle scenes and great visuals, was influenced by the late Chang Cheh's 1973 film The Blood Brothers, but also that it was not a remake.

    Peter Ho-Sun Chan co-founded the United Filmmakers Organization (UFO) in Hong Kong in the early 1990s, and produced a solid track record of box office and critical hits. Chan has made an indelible mark on both sides of the Pacific with his Hong Kong comedy-dramas Alan and Eric: Between Hello and Goodbye; Tom, Dick & Harry and He's a Women, She's a Man. His commercially and critically acclaimed Comrades: Almost a Love Story was named one of the Ten Best Movies of 1997 by Time Magazine and swept a record-breaking nine Hong Kong Film Awards. In 1998, he was voted one of the Top Ten Helmers to watch by Variety. Chan established his own company, Applause Pictures Ltd, in year 2000. The films produced include: Jan Dara (Thailand-Hong Kong), One Fine ring ay (Japan-Korea-Hong Kong), The Eye (Singapore-Thailand-Hong Kong), Three Thailand-Korea-Hong Kong), Golden Chicken and its sequel Golden Chicken 2, The Eye 2 (Thailand-Singapore-Hong Kong), Three…Extremes (Japan-Korea-Hong Kong), The Eye Infinity and McDull, The Alumni (Hong Kong-China).

    In 2005, Chan widened his range by embarking on Hong Kong-China co-productions. Perhaps Love, his first collaboration with film professionals on the Mainland, became one of the best-selling Chinese films in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan that year, picking up 29 honors at nine awards ceremonies. It was also selected as Hong Kong's entry to the 78th Annual Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Language Film category. In 2007, Chan produced Derek Yee's Protégé and directed The Warlords. The two films took the top two spots as the highest grossing co-productions of the year both in Hong Kong and China.

India The Big Picture meet inaugurated

     Earlier, speaking at the inaugural function of the day long ‘India – The Big Picture’ Conference organized by the Confederation of Indian Industries here, Anand Sharma, the Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting and External Affairs, said the Govt will extend all possible help to the media and entertainment industry in the country, which he said also generated employment. ‘New Dreams, New Directions’ was the theme of the Conference.

     The Minister said that the country has bountiful creative and technological talent available, and can become hub for outsourcing as well as making and exporting original animation films to other parts of the world. He said, the Government has liberalized the policy with regard to foreign direct investment and expressed hope that the foreign companies will take the benefit of this in ever-greater numbers to usher in new models that will lead to greater cooperation and greater profitability. The initiatives taken in this direction has already started yielding results, he added. The Minister also announced plans to set up a National Centre of Excellence for gaming, animation and visual effects and a Moving Image Museum at Mumbai. There are also plans for upgrading the Films and TV Institute of India, Pune and adding new streams of courses to meet the demand in new emerging areas, he said. The National Film Archives of India too is being upgraded for preserving classic films.

NFAI exhibition opens

     An exhibition of the wall posters and photographs on the theme of nation building focusing on films as ‘Edutainment in India’ organized by the National Film Archive of India (NFAI) was also inaugurated by Anand Sharma as part of the International Film Festival of India. There are around 200 exhibits depicting the origin and development of Indian cinema, the exhibition displays how Indian cinema has dealt with the burning issues before the nation like eradication of untouchability and caste consciousness, class conflicts, emancipation of women, child abuse, old age issues, problem of mentality and physically challenged people, rural upliftment, rural urban divide, urban development, regional and linguistic differences, communal intolerance, prohibition, terrorism, instilling pride in Indian heritage and culture. The exhibition offers some insights to the film enthusiasts and scholars into the role of Indian cinema in shaping, moulding and reforming the Indian society. The NFAI has arranged the screening of the masterpiece of Dada Saheb Phalke’s silent cinema “Kalia Mardan” made in 1919 with live musical accompaniment on November 23 for delegates and guests. NFAI also focus on internationally acclaimed Indian films till 1950 under ‘Treasures from Archives’ title. The screening will start on 24 November with the screening of 75 year old ‘Karma’, which is the first international production by Himanshu Rai. The other films to follow in this segment are ‘Saint Tukaram’, ‘Journey of Dr. Kotnis’, ‘Neecha Nagar’ and ‘Kalpana’   
-Nov 22, 2008