13th Dhaka International Film Festival
The festival in full swing
A good number of viewers are watching films at different venues of the 13th edition of the Dhaka International Film Festival.
This reporter found a large number of filmgoers enjoying the films in festive mood on Tuesday and Wednesday at the National Museum auditorium and at the Shawkat Osman Auditorium of the Central Public Library, the main venues for the public shows.The turnover at the other three venues – Alliance Française de Dhaka, Begum Sufia Kamal Auditorium and EMK Centre in Dhanmodi – is also quite satisfactory, said the organisers.
Each day around 30 feature, short, independent films and documentaries are being screened in these venues of the nine-day festival that began on January 10.
The turnover, however, was not satisfactory in the beginning due to the ongoing political turmoil.
At the Shawkat Osman auditorium viewers enjoyed the Iraqi film Where is the Land in the evening which was competing at the Australasian Competition section. Directed by Hushyar Z Nerwayi, the film centers on a man’s and his wife’s self-discovery through a family drama.
‘It was a marvelous film. I thank the organisers for creating the opportunity to watch such wonderful films from different countries. We usually do not get the chance to watch most of these films,’ said Monira Shormin, a government employee who came to enjoy films with her husband on Tuesday.
Audience also enjoyed the French films Indian Summer, directed by Simon Brook, and HHH, directed by Olivier Assayas screened respectively at the main auditorium and Sufia Kamal auditorium of National Museum.
Some of the audience however expressed their displeasure at the poor management of the screenings.
‘I have been watching the films at the festival from the first day. Some of the films have good picture quality, and some of them were not in good condition to enjoy to them in the fullest,’ shared Md Sharifuzzaman, an audience at the festival.
The organisers admitted that some of the films screened at the festival ‘betrayed’ them by getting stuck in the middle of the screenings.
On the organisers part, they expressed their inability to advertise extensively to attract audience.
‘We could not advertise the festival as much as it was done in the previous year, which could be a reason for comparatively low turn-up of audience this year,’ said Mizanur Rahman, chief coordinator of the festival.
‘The political situation of the country in last few months was not in our favour. We did not even get expected sponsors, which made the management very difficult for us,’ added Mizanur Rahman.
-With New Age input
