Held since 2009, the Auroville Film Festival is a biennial event devoted to cinema, and stands as one of the highlights of Auroville’s cultural life. It aims to further the aspiration of human unity on which Auroville was founded, by connecting with people and cultures both within and beyond it.

Expressing the non-competitive spirit of Auroville and its aspiration for harmonious growth, winning filmmakers were awarded saplings ready to plant rather than trophies. Following the conclusion ceremony in which the jury’s selections were announced, the event ended on a joyful note with a lively concert by two Auroville groups – Sound Mirage and Ronny’s Band – who moved the audience to dance to classic rock and reggae anthems by artists such as the Rolling Stones, Bob Marley and Deep Purple.

For the International category of “films that develop the theme of human unity”, the judges accorded twin Wisdom Awards to ‘Aware: Glimpses of Consciousness’ by Frauke Sandig and Eric Black and to Shaunak Sen’s All That Breathes. The documentaries, coming from Germany and India respectively, were noted as exploring the interconnectedness between all life forms, and the close ways in which humans are related to their environment.

Jury Awards were conferred on Elizabeth D Costa’s ‘Bangla Surf Girls’ and Anam Abbas’s ‘This Stained Dawn’, films featuring strong women struggling for emancipation and self-definition on the beaches of Bangladesh and in Pakistan’s maidans. The two films were inspiring for their depiction of the energy of a subcontinent’s youth striving for a better future.

The Cinema Paradiso Award for Human Unity went to Kaushal Oza’s ‘The Miniaturist of Junagadh’, a moody short starring unforgettable Naseeruddin Shah in an adaptation of Stefan Zweig’s acclaimed novella ‘The Invisible Collection’ to a household during the time of the 1947 partition. The brooding, poetic story was noted by the jury as leaving a sense of “Nambikai” – hope or trust in Tamil – in terms of the possibility for a meaningful human connection across cultural and religious lines.

The Auroville Film Festival is noted for shining a light on life in the international township itself as well as its bioregion, which encompasses a coastal area of northern Tamil Nadu and the city of Pondicherry. In the category of “films made by Aurovilians, bioregion residents and guests of Auroville”, the Cinema Paradiso Award was given to Sugumar Shanmugam for ‘Thirai Virutham’, an in-depth exploration of the folk performing art Therukkoothu practiced in the area since time immemorial.

Serena Aurora’s short, ‘When Goupi Met the Mother Mira Alfassa (Founder of Auroville) and Found Home’, earned the Jury Award for its heartwarming portrayal of an early Aurovilian. Comfortably seated in a lotus posture, French-born Goupi resembles a smooth-headed monk who, even into old age, remains as radiant as ever. A series of old photographs serve him to reflect on the remarkable encounters which surrounded his fateful journey from France to Pondicherry in 1966.

Meanwhile, the Wisdom Award went to Michèle Decoust’s documentary, ‘The Path of the 12 Petals: Shanta, an Initiatic Journey’, for its study of an Auroville artist’s journey of self-discovery in the light of Alfassa’s teachings and budding community. The Mongbra Award was accorded to Valentina Beatriz’s dance short, Fallin’, depicting the dynamic use of the body to illustrate the experience of falling in love.

The jury also favourably noted Saumya Srivastava’s ‘Kolam’, an experimental art film revealing Auroville’s hidden beauty via slow-motion photography, and Mélusine Schellenberger’s premiere, Meat the Vegan, a student film inquiring into an alternative dietary lifestyle.

The highlight of this year’s edition has been the Question and Answer sessions conducted in the afternoons with most participating filmmakers following the screening of their submissions. The directors appreciated the possibility to interact over conference call with fellow creators across the world, delving into their inspiration and creative process.

An independent event, the Auroville Film Festival prides itself on remaining non-commercial, and Auroville looks forward to continuing this tradition in its next edition to be scheduled for early 2026.

—

by Daniel

International category of “films that develop the theme of human unity”

Wisdom Awards:

Aware: Glimpses of Consciousness by Frauke Sandig and Eric Black

All That Breathes by Shaunak Sen

Both the movies stand out for their brilliant expressions of the meaning of the connections between all forms of life which penetrate deeper into the layers of human unity. Though both the movies are documentaries, a very specific style of filmmaking adopted by the filmmakers helps bring the authenticity of the stories, people, context and so on. While the cinematography and background score of Aware: Glimpses of Consciousness takes us into the vastness of life, the film All that Breathes connects us with the nuances of life.

Jury Awards:

Bangla Surf Girls by Elizabeth D Costa

This Stained Dawn by Anam Abbas

These two documentaries, each lasting an hour and a half, complement each other in their expression of human unity. These two films speak to us of emancipation, emancipation of oneself but also emancipation of others. We have the right to see our aspirations implemented. When we saw these two films, one phrase came to mind: “Femmes d’avenir”. The women of the future. In both films, we see women standing up to win their freedom, their right to dream, to be inspired, to be creative.

Cinema Paradiso Award

The Miniaturist of Junagadh by Kaushal Oza

This fiction movie, through its brilliant acting, sharp and poetic script full of layers and metaphors, unraveled one’s perception and imagination. It took us on a journey back in time in a seamless and gentle way bringing us into the context of households during the 1947 partition. It left us with a message of faith and hope. Hope, that despite our differences, whether cultural, religious, and whichever other label or belief it may be, that we can connect through something deeper: through poetry, through art, through creation, through emotion, through our humanity. The word that sprang to mind was Nambikai (Hope/Trust in Tamil)

Category of “films made by Aurovilians, bioregion residents and guests of Auroville”:

Cinema Paradiso Award:

Thirai Virutham by Sugumar Shanmugam

For narrating his personal journey with the art that has a long history and his deep rooted passion for this art “Therukoothu”.

Wisdom Award:

The Path of the 12 Petals: Shanta, an Initiatic Journey by Michèle Decoust

For taking the audience on Shanta’s self exploratory journey that is never ending and filled with growth, learning, challenges and creativity.

Jury Award:

When Goupi Met the Mother Mira Alfassa (Founder of Auroville) and Found Home by Serena Aurora

For its simplicity and for capturing the quote of Lao Tzu, “Journey of a thousand miles begins with one step”.

Mongbra Award:

Fallin’ by Valentina Beatriz

For an aesthetically alluring dance short depicting the dynamic use of body, energy, space and time.

Jury Mentions:

Kolam by Saumya Srivastava

Meat the Vegan by Mélusine Schellenberger

We open with the film “Kolam”, which is resounding, except it has little to no sound. It is a visual escapade. From the opening shot, it is sharply searing and visually-appealing, in slow-motion, in fast-forward and in close-ups. Gives one a totally alternative perspective on the people, artifacts and places of Auroville. It also captures an essence that usual, more commonplace cinematography cannot encapsulate.

The look of curiosity in a child’s eyes, the warmth in a baby caressing a puppy, workers dyeing cloth blue, are given a hyperaware sentience, even, in this astounding film. And so, it is with all the beloved places we know in Auroville from Matrimandir to Savitri Bhavan and so forth.

In the filmmakers’ discussion, we had some rousing conversations. The first movie to come up was “The Cloud and the Man”. The producer and director unraveled the film for us, it’s about a middle-aged lonely man who falls in love with a cloud. He wants to have his own life in a very regulated life,. Sounds familiar? Well, yes, the best of us have had our backs-to-the-wall, in a society that constantly wants to define us, to label us, to make us what it wants to make of us, call it persona/personality—I don’t care. That much of our lives is spent in the futility of trying to find our own Selves, while society wants to farm us in narrow little plantations; economical, socio-cultural, even demographic. That we have to find love to escape the labeling, defining, whether the love be of a cloud, or nature itself. To fully give in and up oneself to something outside of ourselves. To be as the man, a total misfit. For some of us, the relationships of the narrow and confined, juss ain’t good ‘nuff.

What then constitutes an identity? I think, for any question of identity there must be not only personhood, but subjectivity and agency…all of which can be aroused through loving. We are all looking for our own cloud. I mean to love is to resuscitate, to invigorate, to expand, to burgeon. Dude, I want my cloud!

By Gautam Emani

The city of Buenos Aires has been summoned to court to respond to accusations of abusing someone’s rights. On Argentina’s other side, another city – Mendoza – also seems to overlook the fact that every person has the rights to freedom, a life free from torture, mistreatment or isolated captivity. This is because not every person is human – such is the case made on behalf of Sandra the orangutan and Cecilia the chimpanzee.

It would not be the first time that legal definitions of rights have been amended, argue the revolutionary lawyers. In the not so distant past, debates raged over womens’ rights to vote and own property, and whether visible minorities such as Native Americans were human or had souls. Those debates are now past controversy. Says one campaigner: “We are evolutionists and we will not stop until the last cage is empty.”

Held for decades in inadequate conditions in zoos, mammals such as the great apes, bears and many more show apathy and depression. Many are ill and overweight, and held in isolation, where the only social behaviour they exhibit is asking for food. Apes who are accustomed to trees as an essential part of their natural environment are kept in cages with artificial poles for fear that a real tree would be used to escape.

For Proyecto Gran Simio (Great Ape Project), expanding the legal definition of personhood is a means of providing dignified lives to great apes such as Sandra and Cecilia who, unable to return to their natural habitat, would be happier in spacious wildlife sanctuaries designed by animal welfare experts rather than businessmen. But animals should not be bred in zoos to begin with, and the activists aim to preserve the natural habitats of great apes from destruction – which would naturally have consequences for the legal rights of aboriginal peoples on their land, so often pillaged and encroached upon.

Will human unity remain restricted to Homo Sapiens, or can dignity and freedom be extended to nonhuman animals? This is the question posed by Persona (no) Humana.

The character Iniyan, in the film “Iniyan”is the narrator’s link, and so our link, to an ancient civilization, now submerged in the Indian Ocean. What makes this civilization crucial and important is that it encapsulates Auroville’s credo—a place of human unity, of complete unity in diversity.

The film is an allegory. The director leads us into the story by setting up Iniyan’s character and the culture he represents. He represents History before History. He is of the ‘Amman’: a fertility cult with an agricultural tradition. To follow them would be to understand the symbols, archetypes and rituals of the ancient civilization.

Iniyan is the guide, the link, to a civilization of which we do not even know the alphabet. “Precious earth-moments when even evolution holds its breath.” The remnant descendants of the civilization stand separate from cultural, religious and caste systems…they remain aloof from it.

So, it is alluded that we are taken on this journey…with “a spirit of adventure, which grows and builds…an alchemical vessel to liberate the molten gold in the cells of man and in the atoms of matter…a house of transformation.”

This brilliant adventure ends by coming back to the beginning, a trope for the cyclical nature of History, which is about the continent that is now submerged. And yet, it has found a new home in Auroville, a new home for human unity.

The filmmaker panel discussion in the evening was a splendid occurrence, because three seemingly disparate documentaries found a commonality. The first documentary, “12 Petals” was of the spiritual exploration to design the Matrimandir. The second “Solidarity Crime” was about migrants in Europe. The third one was “Judges Under Pressure” where the Polish government has been undermining judicial independence.

The spiritual and the political found an agreement, for shouldn’t the two go about improving the lives of those involved? That going inward, spiritually, is filling a need to create dynamic compassion, which is what providing humanitarian aid to migrants, and canvassing and organizing for judicial autonomy are about anyway?

Also, I found a dynamism in each of the speakers as personalities. Juan from “Solidarity Crime” had a chatty effervescent energy, Kacper of “Judges…” had an erudite charm, holding back just that tad bit, and Michele of “12 Petals” had a warmth, and a keen sense of tying up things together which I felt helped the audience (especially at the end) create a shared space. I mean, she was talking of synchronicities, so…

Today was the screening of what I felt was my favourite documentary so far: Aware: Glimpses of Consciousness. The premises were “What is life?”, “What is consciousness?”, “What does it mean to be aware of being aware?” The conversation, the multiple frames-of-reference, the perspectives were of a Mayan healer from Chiapas, Mexico; a plant expert from Sydney, Australia; a neuroscientist; A psychedelic assisted therapy researcher from John Hopkins (I actually almost participated with their psilocybin study in Baltimore), and a Buddhist monk.

I felt there was a general tendency to ask questions more than finding solutions, given the nature of consciousness as not only on the fringes and the frontier of science, but the fact that questions arise as problematics to further research in any scientific endeavour. Questions are more compelling than blunt answers, they elicit awe and wonder, as impetus and momentum to continue searching, seeking, and exploration.

The awe and wonder leaps off the bat immediately: how did single cellular organisms evolve into the complexity of all the life we see around us? The Mayan healer says it’s not just human’s that think, but there is an essence in everything you can feel but cannot grasp. Deep. The neuroscientist: to delve into synapses and wonder where consciousness is. In all the grey goo of the brain, where is love? Or anger? Or jealousy?

Consciousness is subjective experience. But what does it mean to be?

In Buddhist science enlightenment is the direct finding of consciousness as pure awareness. The monk says science approaches consciousness from the outward in. But consciousness manifested as internal clarity is the true awareness of it.

To show us that plants also have consciousness, the plant scientist uses a Pavlovian method. Instead of food and a bell for a dog we have a light and a fan for a plant, and remarkably the outcome is much the same.

This same woman talks of feeling—and dreaming—of shamanic guides, the Mayan healer tells us all plants are sacred and some are even teachers.

Now, to go to psychedelic research with psilocybin “magic” mushrooms. “Meditation is a way to consciousness, mushrooms the crash course.” With psilocybin, feelings of transcendence, interconnectedness, even a profound feeling of “home-coming” a “remembering” occurs, even a readiness to face death in cancer patients with a sense of something continuing beyond death. Psychedelics, just like in meditation, shuts down the Default Mode Network—the circuitry of ego and Self—creating a state of mystical consciousness. As the ego and Self dissolve, one becomes fully aware of being aware…like hearing music for the first time or life’s heartbeat.

The documentary then gets deep and heavy—everything is of the same essence—there is a certain panpsychism.

Max Plank the great physicist declared consciousness as fundamental. Which I read as consciousness is irreducible, all things arise in consciousness. Let me elucidate: information from outside, say light waves, hit our sense instruments, here retina, is conveyed through the visual nerve to the occipital lobe where the waves are decoded. Does it truly reveal the world, with quarks and probabilities? Or waves beyond the visual spectrum? That sight and the seen are a common hallucination endemic to human beings, because we all have the same basic neuroanatomy.

And so, we must begin to see consciousness as irreducibly fundamental. Without a consciousness being aware what exists?

It doesn’t matter if you see yourself as a drop in an ocean, or an ocean in a drop.

The talk with Earthling Kaushalya director of “Crater” and Elizabeth Costa director of “Bangla Surf Girls”, was an energetic discussion.

I have talked earlier of the grotesqueness and gruesomeness of “Crater” before. The discussion turned out to deem the protagonist “pathological”. I hope Krishna wouldn’t mind my paraphrasing (and butchering) her comment that the acting was so bad and cliched it worked! Ha! The grandma—who is transgender—was an attempt to signify gender fluidity I found out (You learn something new every day! Ha!) I also gathered something fundamental about the repetition of the images, memories and scenes—to me they were not just imaginary but hallucinatory. Like I said, comforting, discomforting, the film contained a bit of jumping around in a very short span.

The discussion on “Bangla Surf Girls” went the way I thought it would. The girls did carry the banner of freedom through surfing. What was refreshing was that the filmmakers deliberately chose not to make it about solely “coming from poverty in a developing country”.

By Gautam Emani

Every year, thousands of migrants attempt the perilous journey from Africa to Europe. After crossing the Sahara they climb the border fences of Morocco to reach Spain’s coastal enclaves, or pay smugglers to ferry them in ramshackle boats from Tunisia and Lybia across the Mediterranean to Sicily and beyond. Fines, imprisonment and the occasional beatings are the best response the powers that be can muster to their glaring human plight. Concerned by the large numbers of refugees who routinely drown at sea off Europe’s coasts, civilians across southern Europe take the initiative to help the refugees, Challenging their own punitive governments, these warriors draw penalties to themselves.

“Solidarity Crime” documents an array of individuals willing to look beyond national and racial divides and take risks for others; from a Spanish catholic priest speaking out against the brutal treatment of refugees in Morocco, to activists meeting boats at sea, to the residents of a near-deserted south Italian village which has welcomed the newcomers into their abundant empty housing. As politicians focus on the legality of the travellers’ status, one migrant soberly explains their situation. For the few who do complete the journey into Europe after working temporary jobs in North Africa to pay the smugglers, there is no legal inclusion on the other side but only years of hard labour on European farms, without the prospect of social acceptance.

Meanwhile, on Europe’s other end, a different drama is unfolding. “Judges Under Pressure” follows the lives of members of Poland’s jurists. Three decades after their country’s liberation from Communism, these members of the judiciary serve as citizens’ strongest line of defence against police repression, yet are completely alone in their verdicts and vulnerable to slander and intimidation.

When a new government determined to consolidate power enacts a Muzzle Law, establishing a disciplinary chamber to bring its judges’ verdicts in line with their own policies, the jurists resist. It can be all too easy for those in positions of power to cave in to harassment of their family members or to the threat of losing their immunity and being locked out of the courtrooms. Yet these judges stand their ground, making the case that such policies contradict Poland’s constitution as well as EU law. They strive to continue to be present for those protesters risking arrest as they march against new restrictive legislation, refusing to see their country once again collapse into dictatorship.

Whether it is solidarity on the streets and at sea for those less priveleged, or work in the courtrooms to defend constitutional rights, Europeans are on the move to defend their ideals of freedom and compassion as evidenced in these two international documentaries. It is a struggle with no end in sight, but the outcomes will surely determine the continent’s prospects for human unity and progress.

In the villages of northern Tamil Nadu, kids secretly sneak out of home – but it is not for smoking or mischief. They go to watch and perform in Therukkoothu, a traditional performance art of south India involving theatre, song and dance, and centring on the land’s ancient gods and mythology.

In the documentary film Thirai Virutham, Sugumar shares his lifelong interest in this art form, first sparked by his performer grandfather. From childhood, he is fascinated with Therukkoothu’s instruments and stock characters such as the Buffoon, Kattiakkaran and the Mahabharata’s emperor Duryodhana. Always having wanted to learn the art, he finally gets his chance at the age of 20 upon encountering a street theatre troupe. They teach him how to play the instruments, sing background vocals and finally to act. But family insist on a sensible trade, limiting his practice time to evenings as he finishes a Bachelor of Commerce.

Even so, it is fate that Sugumar’s heart is not in his new profession. Fortunately, nearby Pondicherry University offers a program in drama, and he takes the chance to pursue this passion, opening up a whole new world of costume design, new musical instruments and literature, highly trained teachers from different parts of Tamil Nadu and much more. His journey leads him to Auroville, where he contacts and gets involved in the Auroville theatre group – which soon feels like a new family.

But his extensive study of acting methods from around the world always leads our protagonist back to his childhood passion, helping him to contextualize and understand his own cultural background and acting gifts.

The Auroville Film Festival is unique in presenting stories from Auroville’s bioregion, the extensive coastal and rural area surrounding the township. Sugumar’s film will stay with me as an introduction to a world wholly unfamiliar yet very close, fostering cultural exchange and understanding.

I attended the panel discussion with Yael Bartana of “Two Minutes to Midnight” and Aman Mann of “All That Breathes”. Although, I didn’t watch “Two Midnights…” I found the premise of a world run by women to be compelling and alluring. As an associate Cristophe said, the movie was an experimental, theatrical performance—fictional but very real. The idea is that world has come to a stalemate because of nuclear weapons, and missiles represent toxic masculinity.

“All That Breathes” is about two brothers in New Delhi who save injured black kites and heal and tend to them in their makeshift basement hospital. When it came to Aman’s chance a lot of background information was revealed. I did watch “All That Breathes” and I was struck by the visually-vibrant camera work. Aman tells us as they searched for wildlife in New Delhi, they spent days on single shots. The opening scene of the rats near a street took four days to shoot. With such care and delicate precision, it’s no wonder that the imagery was beyond scintillating.

Apparently, none of the crew on “All That…” were wildlife experts. Shaunak Sen the director studied Human Geography at Cambridge in 2018…which made him curious to find out about the human and non-human interactions, especially with such a concentration of raptors in such a small area in Delhi. Aman goes on to say that the makeshift basement hospital the brothers set up for the kites was “incredibly cinematic” with its water-logged floor and metal-cutting machines. So, the film found itself become a story of brothers and black kites, with its human and non-human interactions in a mega-metropolis of a city. Although, in Delhi the wildlife remains almost invisible.

The film, Aman says, was done in a languid style with focus shifts, which Cristophe called “poetic”.

However, in the backdrop was the protests and violence in New Delhi around the CAA and NRC Bills which was intentionally not brought to the foreground, so as not to sensationalize the violence.

The last question asked of Yael is a good segue into “This Stained Dawn”. When asked about women on both sides of the Gaza-Israel conflict could open communication, Yael gave us a vociferous: Yes!

Now, “In This Stained Dawn” the voices of the feminist women in the Aurat (Women’s) March in Pakistan is vociferous, but the results are bittersweet. There is the triumphant raising of women’s voices and yet an oddly severe backlash from Pakistan’s extreme Far-Right. The women are only claiming bodily autonomy and safety from rape and molestation through the slogan of “My Body, My Choice”. The women also want the freedoms of merely leaving the home, be it to get an education, or to work. The backlash is startling. One man goes off on a feminist on Nation TV with a “Shut up, bitch”. The women marchers are met with cowardly counter-protesters who through stones at them and run away. Nevertheless, a revolution is a carnival for the oppressed, and these oppressed, marginalized women want a fair share of their own seemingly necessary rights, through singing, dancing, carrying placards and a little bit of street theatre.

By Gautam Emani

Sometimes we need to step outside our world for a clearer view, and this is exactly what two filmmakers do in “Auroville Exchange”. Hailing from two opposite ends of India, Auroville’s Serena Aurora and Lobsang from Zanskar Valley in Ladakh each explore one another’s world on their quest for sustainable living.

With diametrically opposite climates and very different languages and cultures, it can seem as if Ladakh and Auroville were in two separate countries. Faced with melting glaciers and a rapidly rising population, Zanskar Valley, traditionally sparsely populated and self-sufficient, is threatened by water scarcity. An energetic campaigner for sustainability, Lobsang’s search for solutions for his people leads him across the country to Auroville, where he meets remarkable leaders in ecological experimentation. Meanwhile, Serena from tropical coastal oasis Auroville journeys to an altitude of 5000 m in Ladakh, where she explores traditional Buddhist culture and the authenticity of a self-reliant life in the highlands, far away from the city buzz.

Comparing their experiences, both travellers discover a deep commitment to their respective societies, which are as resilient as their residents. Their conclusion: Zanskar valley and Auroville are both spiritual communities worthy of a future. In this thought-provoking short film, Serena shows how human unity can be found even in our differences by holding true to our shared aspirations for a harmonious existence.

by Daniel

The Auroville Film Festival 2024 promises to be an electrifying immersive experience, if we are to go by the jolly good show of the opening ceremony. It sizzled and popped. What josh! The most scintillating part was the Kalaripayattu performance. With swords, and shields and steel whips and spears, I thought someone would get hurt! There was a dancing to it, a whirling, a spiralling. But the artistes were deft and adept and showed a remarkable dexterity, and I will let you know: nobody was hurt, and nobody died! The degree of control with which the artistes commanded their deadly weapons was frighteningly amazing.

There was also a minimalist musical ensemble (I am afraid I do not know the technical term for the kind of music), which began hauntingly like a whisper, a dainty whistling, before it sprang into a rhythmic, thumping display that exulted our ears.

Finally, there was a fire-dancing performance by a woman, who made sure nothing, and I mean nothing, was burnt to a cinder.

The film that grasped me by the scruff was “All That Breathes” is a quaint (as in “unusually beautiful” not “old-fashioned”) quixotic tale. It’s spacetime-gravity is warped by beautiful philosophical and metaphysical speculations. Two brothers in the convoluted mega-metropolis of New Delhi, take care of the birds of prey, the black kites, which are essential to the ecosystem of Delhi, yet are being suffocated out of existence. In their aviary of a basement, a makeshift hospital is set up. The narrative contains the story of one brother’s dreams and aspirations since childhood of becoming an astronomer or geologist, till he makes it to the US for higher education. There are striking lines in this charming film like, for instance, on the profound reality of Darwinian evolution—how that over generations kites have altered themselves to fit in with the whole mess of a city that is Delhi. The images in this charming movie are visually-vibrant; it’s top-notch cinematography. The story is direct and told with candour and clarity of the kind that drags you into its narrative. Deep, explorative with sly, light humour, this is a jewel of a film.

Overall, the first day of the Festival was pregnantly expectant (as they say—I guess). It started with the right dazzling kind of ambience, through the Opening Ceremony, which drew the crowd in, to anticipate some sheer artistry, be it the Ceremony itself, the music, the food, and of course the films.

It is January 22nd, and the blowing of a conch marks the start of the 8th Auroville Film Festival at the Town Hall campus. The audience are treated to a concert by the Saragam drummers, a martial arts show by Kshetra Kalari demonstrating the use of swords, daggers, a spear and other weapons, and a fire baton performance by Aurovilian Monica. Soon, dinner is served to the music of The Trio Jazztified, a band of Auroville musicians.

All That Breathes

There is an old belief that feeding kites – a common predatory bird – purifies one’s karma. This informs the life journey of brothers Nadeem and Saud, as documented in the opening film by Shaunak Sen. The siblings have devoted the past 20 years to a wildlife rescue centre caring for injured birds. Kites have adapted to Delhi’s chaos, feasting at its gargantuan landfills and hunting from rooftops. But in this city where monkeys scale the jungle of electric cables and chimneys spew pollution into the air, more and more birds are falling from the sky.

The brothers, meanwhile, can not ignore the political turmoil and flooding which are the background for their noble pursuit. It is 2020, and hatred erupts into violent religious riots and arson in their city. Yet the duo continue washing birds behind their ears, in the way that a mother washes her children. Transcending the species barrier is not something they have to fake or try to achieve. The two spontaneously feel oneness with all that breathes.

Two Minutes to Midnight

Yael Bartana asks a simple question: What if women ruled the world? A fictional country elects an all-women government on a platform of disarmament and pacifism. But are they naïve? When the routine puerile bullying of familiar-sounding President Arnold Twittler, the leader of a large foreign nation, takes on the increasingly ominous tone of a serious nuclear threat, their high ideals are tested.

Female experts and leaders gather in Dr. Strangelove’s “War Room”, now transformed into a Peace Room to experiment with dispelling the horrors of Mutually Assured Destruction. President Fouéré is supported by a circle of women committed to a different path, but the difficult choice is hers alone to make.

Adithalam (Basic Education)

It’s all too easy for children from farming families to get discouraged from education, especially when faced with shaming and the lack of support from teachers and family. Yatra Srinivassan’s film dramatizes one such situation, focusing on Saraswathi, a 6th-grader still struggling with reading and writing.

Yet a caring teacher at the right time can make all the difference between despair and the willingness to persevere in the pursuit of a better life than one’s parents had. Science teacher Sumathi has what it takes to give Saraswathi confidence, becoming her greatest inspiration in this sweet affirmation of inclusion and social responsibility.

—

by Daniel

On DAY 1 January 22, Monday:

In the venue of Cinema Paradiso at 21:07 is Adithalam (“Basic Education”)

It’s a charming low-budget film. The most striking feature is its believability. There seems to be nothing fake or phony about the film, it comes across as genuine and authentic, from the acting to the simple plot to the reality of education in a small backward village.

The young girl who plays the protagonist Saraswathy steals the show. Saraswathy struggles with her studies—she is in the sixth standard and can’t even sign her own name. Dismissed from school by the Principal, the heart-warming turning point occurs when a dedicated teacher takes a personal interest in teaching Saraswathy. The film ends with Saraswathy not only taking part in an essay-writing competition, but winning it.

Zoom Details:

Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82715680700?pwd=8SGdaKQYy494hoGDXnP7YobNsb34WD.1

Meeting ID: 827 1568 0700

Passcode: 214005

We recommend updating your Zoom application to the latest version for the best experience. You can also chose “join meeting from your browser”. The room will be open 30 minutes prior to each discussion for any technical queries. You are more than welcome to share the invitation link with friends and colleagues and/or join other discussions as well.

Here is the detailed schedule of the 8th Auroville Film Festival 2024 film discussions.

The discussions will be hosted via Zoom and are scheduled for 23rd – 26th January 2024 from 17:00 – 18:00 IST, and 27th – 28th January from 15:30 – 16:30 IST.

You will find the recordings of each discussion below here…

We will have daily music concerts every day 6pm – 7.15pm.

Performing bands are Aurocats, Beginnings, Collective Song, Deep Dawn, Dog Days, Jazztified, Noizegate, Ronny’s Band, Sound Mirage and The Trio.

All performances will be live streamed and the recording will be available afterwards (see below):

DAY 1: https://bit.ly/TheTrio_Jazztified_AVFF

DAY 2 *: https://bit.ly/DeepDawn_AVFF

DAY 3: https://bit.ly/NoizeGate_AVFF

DAY 4: https://bit.ly/Aurocats_AVFF

DAY 5: https://bit.ly/Beginnings_AVFF

DAY 6: https://bit.ly/DogDays_AVFF

DAY 7: https://bit.ly/SoundMirage_RonnysBand_ComeTogetherAuroville_AVFF

* Deep Dawn is an experimental jazzy funky rocky hip-hop poppy loopy trippy international instadimensional jam collective born in Auroville, India.
https://www.instagram.com/thedeepdawn?igsh=bHloeGE0d2Y4NzM5

Vocals: Mal (aka Helicopter Man aka Perumal the Poet aka The Big Black)
https://www.instagram.com/yep.that.malcolm?igsh=MWZod251ZWc4MmdxMg==

Drums: Mehul (aka Mehul Oblongata aka Drum & Drummer)
https://www.instagram.com/galacticfalcon?igsh=MW52cXZ3dzdlajd4Nw==

Bass: Henrik (aka Henny on the Rocks aka The Low-down Dirty Bassist)
https://www.instagram.com/henrikdutz?igsh=NGF0eHM5d25mMmth

Keys: Santosh (aka Santocracy aka Santo Domingo aka The Rock-hard Pianist)
https://www.instagram.com/santoshathreya?igsh=MTRndHIzNmRrZHltZw==

Guitar: Edo (aka Fettuccine Alf Edo aka Drop-dead Edo aka Mr. Plays-hard-to-Guitar)
https://www.instagram.com/edo_ardo1986?igsh=MXg4NTJxejR1dnJkdw==

All films will be available to watch from January 22 – 28, 2024. All films are available for free. 

All films of the Auroville categories are available worldwide. Most films of the Human Unity category are available online (some films in this category will only be screened live in Auroville as the filmmakers did not give permission for online screening), some of which are accessible in India only.

How to use the online platform:

1. Go to https://app.entertainmentoxygen.com/festivals/aurovillefilmfestival

2. Click “Sign up/in” on top right, enter email, follow instructions for varification and return to https://app.entertainmentoxygen.com/festivals/aurovillefilmfestival

3. Click “Buy Tickets” and choose “All Access Pass – Free“

4. All films will only be available to watch from January 22 – 28, 2024.

click to download screening schedule as pdf

Entries for the international category of “Films that develop the theme of human unity” are to be submitted via FilmFreeway.

Films for the three local categories

“Films made by Aurovilians, bioregion residents or guests of Auroville“,

“Films made about Auroville / bioregion”

and “Films made by students of Auroville / bioregion”

are to be entered using the submission form on this website.

Thursday, 10 February, 8.00 pm

• 48 Athisayam (Lockdown) – Specical Motivation Award
• En Udambu (My Body) – Jury Award
• Pre-Monsoon – Mongbra Award

Thursday, 17 February, 8.00 pm

• Conversations on Death – Wisdom Award
• Baluji – Jury Award

Thursday, 24 February, 8.00 pm

• Learning from the Intangible – Cinema Paradiso Award

Thursday, 3 March, 8.00 pm

• A letter from India – Wisdom Award
• White Eye – Cinema Paradiso Award
• In your Eyes – Cinema Paradiso Award

Watch videos with the two juries announcing the awards in the respective categories as well as short award acceptance video messages by the winning filmmakers below:

International category of “films that develop the theme of human unity”:

Wisdom Award

A Letter From India by Naveed Mulki & Shaktiraj Singh Jadeja

A small diverse village of 30000 in southwest India demonstrates its ability to live a harmonious existence. The film is shot in b&w with soft gentle awareness that brings a rich vibration to the viewers.

Cinema Paradiso Awards

In Your Eyes by Barak Heymann

A reflection of real, authentic, spontaneous ‘human unity’ is inevitably the internet, the world wide web, so to say… where all identities mingle, they can relate to each other, have access to each other… without judgement there can be understanding and acceptance. The ‘Web Stars’ or the internet influencers are in that sense true icons of human unity… as beautifully portrayed in the film ‘In Your Eyes’… In Israel, those from social margins, outside the mainstream, find a ground, a voice and a huge following, they find love and connection.

White Eye by Tomer Shushan

A young Israeli man comes across his stolen bicycle. Seeking justice he contacts the authorities. What develops changes his perception dramatically, compassion comes to the foreground too late.

Jury Award

Baluji by Marie-Cécile Embleton

If there is an inspiration, a lesson in indefatigable spirit, it is in the film ‘Baluji’… ‘Baluji’ also takes us into a sweet journey of love and dedication, the kind of love that we cross our fingers for! A story of truly empowering companionship and collaboration, we all yearn for. And of course music, its practice and pursuit and that can heal, connect and liberate!

Category of “films made by Aurovilians, bioregion residents and guests of Auroville”:

Cinema Paradiso Award

Learning from the Intangible by Alessandra Silver

The Cinema Paradisio award under the category of Auroville films at the 2022 Auroville Film Festival is given to ‘Learning from the Intangible’ by Alessandra Silver. It is a film that truly captures the essence of an Aurovillian educational experience for children, creating space and opportunities to learn and expand their knowledge and experiential horizons. The “Free Progress” pedagogy and curriculum are embedded in a value system that enables “integral education” grounded in reality, culture, and virtues essential for the sustenance of the human and ecological spirit. The voices of parents and children in Auroville make the “intangible” actually “tangible”, and the film becomes a medium of inspiring educators and parents to engage with a process that will build a generation of citizens who would actualise “the psychic being”. The film is shot and edited to make for lived storytelling. As India moves forward to implement the New Education Policy 2020, this documentary can sensitise and inspire educational policymaking and practice to transform education. The words “nothing can be taught” stay with you beyond the 85-minute film.

Wisdom Award

Conversations on Death by Serena Aurora

The Wisdom award under the category of Auroville films at the 2022 Auroville Film Festival is given to ‘Conversations on Death’ with Aurovilians by Serena Aurora and Danielle de Diesbach. A thought-provoking exposition, the film reflects on the meaning of death, and ‘death in Auroville’. A wide gamut of ideas is brought forth including the conquest of death “where each cell of our body will have to become conscious.” Pithy words by Sri Aurobindo and The Mother punctuate Danielle de Diesbach’s exploration as she sets out to interview Aurovillians, young and old. The perspectives of the interviewees along with the meditative words and music offer an understanding that frees you from the fear and apprehension of death. “The material or physical causes of death are not its sole or its true cause: its true inmost reason is the spiritual necessity for the evolution of a new being.” The film is aurally and visually orchestrated with substance and meaning, drawing ‘Death’, typically considered a ‘dark’ subject, into the light.

Jury Award

En Udambu (My Body) by Earthling Koushalya

The Jury award under the category of Auroville films at the 2022 Auroville Film Festival is given to ‘En Udambu (My Body)’ by Earthling Koushalya. A socially sensitive film on the use of online social media as a medium of sexual violence against women, this is a powerful representation of women reclaiming their bodies as their own, against this violation. The protagonist uses the same online space to challenge the male toxic behaviour that violates her privacy, with a counter-strategy in which her body becomes a weapon of resistance and breaks the barriers of social stigma and shame that she is threatened by. The private and public lens on ‘My Body’ merge in the depiction of love and pride that a woman has for her body, against the fear she is expected to live with, to protect her body. Subtle lighting and music combine to bring the actors’ narrative alive, with scope for more.

Mongbra Award

Pre-Monsoon by Jonak Chakrabarti

The Mongbra award under the category of Auroville films at the 2022 Auroville Film Festival is given to ‘Pre-Monsoon’ by Jonak Chakrabarti. A fun film with a youthful perspective… sometimes abstract, sometimes real…in Auroville. Awarded for its creative and experimental take on memories and growing up, relationships with the self and others, friendships and dreams… magnifying life with curiosity and love. A scientist, a detective and an experiment in an unsuspecting town, truly this is what an Aurovillian journey can be. Free of any ‘isms’, finding your own paths with freedom and a spirit of unlearning and being one with nature and its surprises. The scripting, camerawork and editing make the film engaging, but warrant a shorter and tighter film.

Special Motivation Award

Lockdown – 48 Athisayam by Yatra Srinivassan

Special Motivation award under the category of Auroville films at the 2022 Auroville Film Festival goes to ‘Lockdown – 48 Athisayam’ by Yatra Srinivassan. A satirical take on life within four walls, this film calls for public viewing on a significant day to day experience with male alcoholism and marital relations. This short film uses language and actions to open a window into the reality of life on the peripheries of Auroville.

MMC/CP and AVFF would like to THANK the following groups and people who each contributed importantly to the event.

We very much hope to be able to schedule the festival after lockdown restrictions are lifted. We were really happy that we were able to organise the online film festival platform with the support of Shift72, who came on as a partner with a heavily discounted package, and AVI USA who funded it.

Partners of AVFF are:
ACUR Management, Anveshan, Auroville Consulting, Auroville Outreach Media, Auroville Radio, AVI Germany, AVI USA, brainfever media productions, Budget Coordination Committee, Centre d’Art, Green Move, Marc’s Café Store, Miniature, Moveable Sound, Naturellement, Right Path Café, SAIIER, Sharnga Guesthouse, Solitude Farm, Tanto, Tube Thambi Auroville

African Film Festival New York, Cineuropa, Dharamshala International Film Festival, European Film Festival, Goethe Institut Max Mueller Bhavan, Kriti Film Club, New York Indian Film Festival, Shift72, South Asian Short Film Festival, Tamilnadu Film Festival

The people behind are:
Aashay, Alex, Amando, Aneeta, Anne, Anushka, Aparna, Aurolice, Binu Kumar, Christoph, Christophe, Clemens, Daljeet, Daniel, Dhani, Edo, Era, Gali, Gerhard, Henrik, Hubert, Jeanluc, Jill, Jurriaan, Kavita, Kirtana, Krishna, Kshitij, Laxmanan, Lijun, Luca, Mahatma, Malcolm, Marco F, Marco S, Marie-Pierre, Masha, Matilde, Matt, Mehul, Moghan, Philippe, Pooja, Rakhal, Rando, Raul, Ray, Rena, Riju, Rolf, Sacha, Sasikant, Shakti, Silvia, Stefania, Stefano, Suresh, Surya, Susana, Suzie, Swaha, Tom, Valentina

The bands are:
Bulletproof Funk, Last Minute, NoizeGate, Swaha Blues Band, The Dream

The judges are:
Aanchal, Francis, Premendra, Radhika, Richa, Simona

THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU!
From:
MMC/Cinema Paradiso team
AVFF team

Dear Cinestaan editors, thank you very much for this feature on your platform!

https://www.cinestaan.com/articles/2022/jan/21/32965/auroville-film-festival-showcasing-over-70-films-online

Thank you! to our 972 viewers after the first three days of our festival.

This is an overwhelming response. You can still “buy” films for free on https://auroville.shift72.com until Sunday, January 23. Once “bought”, you have time until February 8 to watch them.

Keep checking back as more recordings will be added as they become available!

Daljeet Wadhwa, co-director of this year’s Auroville Film Festival officially opens the festival!

Watch the films for free on https://auroville.shift72.com

This year the accompanying live concerts by Aurovilian musicians took place as live streams on this page. Recordings of each stream are still available below.

The program:

Tuesday, January 18, 18.30 – 20.00 IST: NoizeGate

Wednesday, January 19, 18.30 – 20.00 IST: (Dusha cancelled) Last Minute

Thursday, January 20, 18.30 – 20.00 IST: Bulletproof Funk

Friday, January 21, 18.30 – 20.00 IST: (H&M Duo / DJS Trio cancelled) The Dream

Saturday, January 22, 18.30 – 20.00 IST: Swaha Blues Band (/ ADR Trio cancelled)

Marco, the artistic director of the festival, introduces the award trophies, this year made by Aurovilian ceramic artist Rakhee Kane.

And, as in all the previous editions, we have the MongBra challenge trophy, a brass sculpture made by Johnny depicting a Mongoose and a Cobra, which is being return to us in every next edition.

January 18-23, 2022

The 2022 Auroville Film Festival will be an online edition. This allows us to continue enjoying great movies, while reaching the many people who cannot travel to Auroville during the pandemic.

This year we feature films in two categories. The international category of films that develop the theme of human unity contains 35 films from 18 different countries. The Aurovilians category has 36 films from 14 Aurovilians and residents of the bioregion, including one student. These give a taste of the creative life in the Auroville area.

As of January 2022, the world has been living with the new Covid reality for nearly two years. At times it seemed like we could still hold a physical event at Town Hall as in previous years, but the new Omicron wave, and resulting lockdown restrictions, have made a physical event impossible.

Thanks to the financial support of AVI-USA we have partnered with Shift72, a major online film festival platform, to bring the event online at auroville.shift72.com. As in previous years, all films are completely free. Most films in the human unity category, and all those made by Aurovilians and bioregion residents, can be accessed from around the world. The works of those creators who have not given worldwide streaming permission, are only available within India.

How to use the Shift72 platform:

1. Go to https://auroville.shift72.com

2. Click “Create Account” on top right and enter email and password (only need to do this once, subsequently click “Log In“))

3. Choose the film(s) you want to watch and click “Buy $0.00” for each film

4. All “bought” films appear in your Library (top right, under your account symbol)

5. All films will only be available to watch from January 18 onwards.

6. You can “buy” films until January 23.

7. Once you “bought” films and they appear in your library you have time until February 8 to watch them.

Music Events

The Auroville musicians have always supported the Auroville Film Festival, creating the vibrant ambience that our audiences loved in every edition. This year, respecting lockdown protocols, live music will be streamed online from Auroville every day of the festival from 18.30 to 20.00 IST.

Look for us on FB and Instagram for the latest information about the films, interviews with the filmmakers, the daily line-up of musicians and live concert streaming links.

For further information, contact:

aurovillefilmfestival [at] auroville.org.in

c/o MMC/Cinema Paradiso (A City Service of Auroville), Town Hall, Auroville, TN 605010, India

At the same time, our online streaming on Shift72 will still happen as planned. Viewers around the world will have free access to most of the films at: https://auroville.shift72.com/

We are now focusing on making it the best possible online event.

Stay tuned for announcements of special online events during the festival week January 18 – 23, 2022.

Notes regarding the online platform:

All films will be available to watch from January 18, 2022 onwards. All films are available for free (click “Buy $0.00”). There are two categories:

1. international category of films that develop the theme of human unity

2. films by Aurovilians / bioregion residents / guests of Auroville

35 films of the Human Unity category are available online (5 films in this category will only be screened live in Auroville as the filmmakers did not give permission for online screening). Most films are available worldwide, a few are available in India only.

Francis Neemberry

In 2005, with my partner Doris, I started making videos under the name of Auroville Video Productions. For over thirteen years we made a number of documentaries on Auroville and large amount of interviews with Aurovilians about their experiences living in Auroville.

Richa Hushing

Alumna of Film and Television Institute of India, Richa Hushing is a documentary filmmaker. Her documentaries are often character portraits; and portraits of indigenous cultures and communities in liminal states. She is the co-director of Auroville Film Institute – Auroville Timelines.

Simona Savardi

I am Aurovilian since 2015 but I have been coming to Auroville since 2007 to visit my sister who had just moved here.
Over the years I have done multiple things in Auroville, in recent years I do therapeutic massages (Shiatsu and Ayurvedic). I like films of real stories, documentaries that testify the different realities that belong to our planet. I have been following the Auroville Film Festival for many years and I am honored to be part of the jury 2022.

Aanchal Kapur

Aanchal Kapur has over thirty years of work experience as a gender and development trainer, documentation & communication specialist. She is the founder of Kriti: a development praxis and communication team, Kriti Film Club and Gestures. Since March 2020, she has been curating & organizing issue-based film festivals on Doculive.

Premendra Mazumder

Premendra Mazumder is the Vice President of Federation of Film Societies of India, Asia-Pacific Secretary of the International Federation of Film Societies and General Secretary of the India Chapter of International Federation of Film Critics: FIPRESCI. He writes on cinema, edits the quarterly online film journal “E-CineIndia” and annual printed journal “CineIndia”. He works as the Advisor to many International Film Festivals and runs some Festivals as Chairman/ Program Director/ Coordinator. He has served as Juror in more than thirty International Film Festivals worldwide.

Radhika Khanna 

Dr. Radhika Khanna teaches in the School of Media and Communication, Pondicherry University and heads the Educational Multimedia Research Centre (EMRC), Puducherry.
An alumna of AJK MCRC, Jamia Millia Islamia with a specialisation in filmmaking and research in the pedagogy of cinema, she has been a Theatre-in-Education (TIE) facilitator and a freelance media professional since 1992. In academia since 2005, she has engaged learners with issues of gender, education and environment, especially through documentary films, journalism and theatre. She has recently developed a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on Photojournalism with 50 video lessons for GoI’s free e-learning portal, SWAYAM.

ARAMBH (THE BEGINNING)

2019, India, Hindi, 21min

Screening: Tuesday 18^th Jan, 21:37hrs – Cinema Paradiso

Aarambh (The Beginning) tells a universal story about one of humanity’s fundamental questions: What happens after death? The question is asked by many philosophers, theologians and the like, but in Aarambh the audience is following a child’s search for the answer.

Director, Writer: Sandeep Kumar Verma

Producer: distribucion [at] promofest.org

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cm0tAsWAHco

Project Website: http://www.promofest.org/films/aarambh

A LETTER FROM INDIA

2019, India, Documentary, English, 11min 55sec

Screening: Sunday 23^rd Jan, 20:00hrs – Cinema Paradiso

In Mattancherry, a place that is 5sq.km give or take and a stone’s throw away from Fort Kochi in Kerala, live 39 communities from all around the country and a few from across the high seas, who have resided together, side by side, for over 500 years. They came here for different reasons, in different times, but they all stayed for the collective reality that was far better than any dream could convey. This is the story of Mattancherry, a place where the idea of India comes alive like no place else. This is a story told through the eyes of a photographer who has been documenting these communities for the past two years.

Directors: Naveed Mulki, Shaktiraj Singh Jadeja

Writer: Naveed Mulki

Cast: Biju Ibrahim

Contact: naveed.mulki [at] gmail.com

AMUKA

2021, Congo, Documentary, Feature, French, Swahili, 1hr 11min

Screening: Friday 21^st Jan. 16:00hrs – SAIIER

The Democratic Republic of Congo could feed almost 1 in 2 people on Earth. Yet one in six Congolese people suffer from hunger. Yet one in two Congolese suffers from moderate acute malnutrition. Yet agriculture accounts for 70% of the population there. Faced with this paradox, the peasants regroup in agricultural cooperatives. A handful of them share their daily lives with us and that of all those they represent. Even if they don’t know each other, live thousands of hundreds of kilometers from each other, participate in different agricultural sectors, their voices resonate in this powerful, sensitive and sincere documentary.

La République Démocratique du Congo pourrait nourrir près d’1 personne sur 2 sur Terre. Pourtant un congolais sur 6 souffre de la faim. Pourtant un congolais sur 2 souffre de malnutrition aiguëmodérée. Pourtantl’agriculture y représente 70% de la population. Face à ceparadoxe, les paysans se regroup enten cooperatives agricoles. Une poignée d’entreeux nous partag entleur quotidien, celui de tous ceuxqu’ils représentent. Mêmesiils ne se connaissent pas, vivent à des milliers de centaines de kilomètres les uns des autres, participent à des filières agricoles différentes, leurs voix résonnent dansce documentaire puissant, sensible et sincère.

Screening / Awards: Le Grand Bivouac Film Festival Albertville, Golden Tree International Documentary Festival 21 Paris France, Mediterranean Film Festival Bosnian Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ekofilm International Film Festival are a few places where this movie was screened among many other International Festivals around the world.

Director: Antonio Spano

Writer: Virginie Messiaen

Producer: Benjamin Stienon

Cast: Biaba Aba Ramazani, Colette Lungu Bunga, Chantal Mbunba Badianga, Eugenie Bitsibu, Augustin Kaberuka Semunkima

Contact: spano.antonio [at] gmail.com

Link (trailer): https://vimeo.com/467385797

Project Website: http://popiul.be

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Amuka-101099734973040

AWAKENING OF THE GODDESS

2020, India, Animation, English, Hindi, 3min

Screening: Friday 21^st Jan, 16:49hrs – Cinema Paradiso

This animated documentary, titled ‘Awakening of the Goddess’, is a non-narrative based on documentary testimonials of survivors of gender-based violence (GBV) in India. The style is an experimental mixed media animation using stop motion, pixilation, body painting and morphing on high-contrast photographic images.

Director, Writer: Debjani Mukherjee

Producer: Shayok Banerjee

Cast: Bhumika Gopal Dube

Contact: debjani.animate [at] gmail.com

BALUJI

2020, India, United Kingdom, Documentary, English, 22min

Screening: Friday 21^st Jan, 17:18hrs – SAIIER

An award-winning Indian blind sitarist at the peak of his career reflects on how he overcame social stigma and transformed his relationship to music, forging his incredible path to love and success.

Director: Marie-Cécile Embleton

Producer: Seeemab Gul

Contact: marie.cecile.embleton [at] gmail.com

Website: http://coloursofsound.co.uk

BARRICADE

2021, Germany, Documentary, German, 1hr 23min 1sec

Screening: Tuesday 18^th Jan, 21:08hrs – Outdoor

Barricade is a documentary on the occupation of the Dannenrod Forest in Hessen, which was evicted in Dec 2020. It shows the life of the activists in the forest and the tree houses, they´ve build up to 30 meter high in the branches, but mainly their fight for a better climate in the future. With their hearts and guts.

Director, Writer, Producer: David Klammer

Email: info [at] davidklammer.com

Trailer: https://vimeo.com/538406591

Website: https://www.davidklammer.com

BODY AND SOUL

2020, France, Documentary, French, 1hr 14 min

Screening: Wednesday 19^th Jan, 16:58hrs – Cinema Paradiso

PE is the only school subject that has different grading scales for girls and boys. Zoé, 22, is a university student preparing to become a sports teacher. She realizes that she has a central role to play in combating gender inequality, which is often learned by default in childhood. She addresses her ideals directly on the sports fields, as her views are shaped by seeing the bodies of sportswomen in the heat of action, doing somersaults, tackles and scrums.

L’EPS est la seule matière à l’école, où le barème de notation est différent pour les filles et les garçons. Sur les bancs de l’université, Zoé 22 ans, se prépare à devenir professeure de sport. Elle réalise que sa place est centrale pour combattre les inégalités de sexe, qui souvents’ apprennent par corps dès l’enfance. Des idéaux qu’elle confronte directement sur les terrains de sport, se frayant un point de vue face aux corps en action des sportives dans la sueur des sauts périlleux, placages et mêlées.

Director, Writer: Magali Chapelan

Producer: Docks Films

Contact: magalichapelan [at] gmail.com

COLOMBIA IN MY ARMS

2020, Colombia, Documentary, English, Spanish, 1hr 31min

Screening: Thursday 20^th Jan, 16:00hrs – Cinema Paradiso

FARC guerrilla Ernesto, poverty-stricken coca farmers, a mysterious aristocrat and a passionate right-wing politician balance at the edge of their morals, while the much-celebrated peace tries to take its first steps in Colombia.

Screening / Awards: Göteborg Film Festival 2020 Gothenburg, World Dragon Award for Best Nordic Documentary 2020 Sweden, DocPoint Helsinki 2020 Helsinki Domestic Finland, Naples Human Rights Film Festival 2020 Naples, are a few places where this movie was screened among many other International Festivals and awarded, around the world.

Directors/ Writers: Jenni Kivistö, Jussi Rastas, Markku Tuurna

Cast: Andrew Maritta Norton

Contact: info [at] rainafilms.com

Link: https://vimeo.com/387420295

EYELASHES OF THE EXODUS

2021, France, Short, French, 10min 43sec

Screening: Wednesday 19^th Jan, 17:04hrs – SAIIER

One winter evening in Briancon (France), Cécile asks her sister and her sister’s partner to host a family of migrants for one night. When one says yes, the other says no.

Directors: Zoé Simpson, Victor Picard

Writers: Caroline Rochefort

Cast: Cécile Lasserre, Caroline Rochefort, Zoé Simpson

Contact: collectif.lesmillemains [at] gmail.com

Link (Trailer): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMaA5DoNPZU

EYES IN THE FOREST

2019-10-05 Colombia, United States, Documentary, English, Spanish, 18min 49sec

Screening: Saturday 22^nd Jan, 17:15hrs – Cinema Paradiso

The Amazon was the first victim of the peace process in Colombia. Since the demobilization of the FARC guerilla group in 2017, deforestation rates have spiked by more than 40% as illegal loggers exploit the power vacuum left behind by the rebels. Today the country is losing approximately 32 soccer fields of virgin forest every hour. “Eyes in the Forest” follows an expedition into these contested territories with Angélica Diaz-Pulido, a camera trap expert from Instituto Humboldt and Jorge Ahumada, Director of Wildlife Insights, a revolutionary new platform for analyzing camera trap data. Angélica and the Wildlife Insights team are racing against the dark forces behind Colombia’s deforestation to understand and protect the country’s incredible biodiversity— before it is too late.

Screening / Awards: World Premiere at Smithsonian Castle Washington DC October 7, 2019 World Premiere United States.

Director, Producer: Ryan Ffrench

Cast: Angélica Pulido-Diaz, Instituto Humboldt, Jorge Ahumada, Conservation International, Thomas Lovejoy, UN Foundation, Jose Manuel Ochoa, Instituto Humboldt

Contact: ryanffrenchwork [at] gmail.com

Trailer: https://vimeo.com/409983306

Website: https://soundcloud.com/version-nine/sets/eyes-in-the-forest-ost

FROM DURBAN TO TOMORROW

2020, Guinea, Hungary, India, South Africa, Spain, Documentary, English, French, Hindi, Hungarian, Marathi, Spanish, Xhosa, 39min 58sec

Screening: Friday 21^st Jan, 20:10hrs – Outdoor

Five frontline health advocates from different parts of the world work through victories and defeats forging a path toward a meaningful, universal human right to health.

With the inequities of global health more evident and stark today than at any point in history, “FROM DURBAN TO TOMORROW” recalls the mass protests led by people living with HIV in Durban, South Africa, which radically transformed the global landscape for human rights in health some two decades ago. These events in the year 2000 gave rise to a series of major advances in public health for marginalized people the world over, yet recent years have seen many of these hard-won gains severely eroded, putting tens of millions of lives at risk and compounding the threat posed by a deadly global pandemic. In “FROM DURBAN TO TOMORROW”, the stories of five frontline health advocates from different parts of the world underscore this rapidly worsening crisis and herald the impending battle for a meaningful, universal human right to health.

Screening / Awards: 2020 Mumbai International Film Festival Mumbai, World Premiere International Competition India, Social Justice Film Festival Seattle, United States, Global Health Film Days Copenhagen, Mannheim Arts and Film Festival Mannheim July 13, 2021 Best Documentary, Honourable Mention Germany, New York Independent Cinema Awards New York, are a few places where this movie was screened and awarded among many other International Festivals around the world.

Director, Writer: Dylan Mohan Gray

Producer: Dylan Mohan Gray, Brett Davidson (Executive Producer)

Contact: dylangprivate [at] gmail.com

Website: http://fdtt.page

FROM TRASH TO TREASURE: TURNING NEGATIVES INTO POSITIVES IN LESOTHO

2020, Lesotho, Documentary, English, 24 min 30secs

Screening: Friday 21^st Jan, 17:41hrs – SAIIER

From erosion to overgrazing to enduring poverty, the people of Lesotho—a highland country surrounded by South Africa—face a variety of difficult challenges. Yet grassroots communities in the country also exhibit tremendous resourcefulness and creativity. In particular, wealth of artists has mastered a talent for resurrection, developing the skill to creatively turn negatives into positives: Designers who turn discarded trash into beautiful jewelry, clothes and rugs. Film makers who turn tragedy into artistic expressions of resilience and compassion. And Musicians who write songs to save the environment. In this short, Cultures of Resistance Films profiles a variety of these inventive creators, introducing viewers to a fascinating cast of local residents who are using art as a means of communicating a communal desire for positive change.

Director, Writer, Producer: Iara Lee

Contact: info [at] culturesofresistancefilms.com

Project Website: https://culturesofresistancefilms.com/trash-to-treasure#trailer

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/trashtotreasurelesotho

HEARTS AND BONES

Australia, Feature, English, 1hr 51min

Screening: Wednesday 19^th Jan, 20:00hrs – Outdoor

Dan, a renowned war photographer struggling with PTSD, forms an unexpected bond with Sebastian, a Sudanese refugee, until one of his photographs unearths a dark secret from Sebastian’s past.

Screening / Awards: Toronto International Film Festival Toronto September 7, 2019 North American Premiere Canada

Director: Ben Lawrence

Writer: Matt Reeder

Cast: Hugo Weaving, Andrew Luri, Hayley McElhinney, Bolude Watson

Contact: ts [at] visitfilms.com

Link: https://visitfilms.com/hearts-and-bones/

IN YOUR EYES

2019, Israel, Documentary, Amharic, Arabic, English, Hebrew, 56min

Screening: Wednesday 19^th Jan, 16:00hrs – Cinema Paradiso

The film follows the less-known aspects of the lives of four “web stars” – Israeli YouTubers: Moti Taka, one of the busiest singers in Israel today, who visits Ethiopia for the first time with his mother Dalia. Suzi Boum, aka LiorIsraelov, a successful, well-known drag queen, who was born and raised in a religious family in southern Tel Aviv. Chen Halfon, a 25-year old mother of three, who is one of the few orthodox YouTubers in Israel. And Hannah Ziad, an Arab YouTuber with about half a million followers, who reveals a complex family story about her father’s death.

Screenings / Awards: Festival Internacional de Cine Invisible “Film Sozialak” Bilbao Bilbao “Best Human Rights Award” Spain Israeli Documentary Award Israeli Documentary Award Israel

Director, Producer: Barak Heymann

Contact: festivals [at] heymannfilms.com

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcfV-QW6QgQ

Project website: http://www.heymannfilms.com

KANYA

2020, Czech Republic, India, Drama, Tamil, 15min 42sec

Screening: Thursday 20^th Jan, 17:43hrs – Cinema Paradiso

A coming-of-age drama about an adolescent girl growing up between the values of occidental and traditional culture, whose aspirations of becoming a competitive swimmer takes an unexpected turn when she gets her first period.

Screening /Awards: Student Academy Awards Los Angeles, United States, Magnesia Award for Best Student Film Prague Official Shortlist Czech Republic, Busan International Film Festival Busan, World Premiere Nomination – Sonje Award / Asian Short Film Competition Korea, International Short Film Festival Berlin November 10, 2020 German Premiere Best Sound Design are a few places where this movie was screened and awarded among many other International Festivals around the world.

Director: Apoorva Satish

Writers: Apoorva Satish, Vidhya Iyer

Produers: Apoorva Satish, FAMU International – Prague, Michal Sikora

Cast: Tarunya Satish, Harish Kumar, Mona Kakkade, Balaji Rajashekar

Contact: apoorvasatish [at] hotmail.com

Link: http://lonelypro.cz/projekty/kanya

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Kanyashortfilm

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kanya__shortfilm/

LISTEN TO HER

2020, India, Drama, English, Hindi, 7min 3sec

Screening: Friday 21^st Jan, 20:30hrs – Cinema Paradiso

“Whisper… Speak… Shout. Your Voice Will Be Heard! ” The film is a spontaneous response to the irony of “STAY HOME, STAY SAFE” for millions of women in India and around the world. The film is adding its voice to a conversation that is much needed in the public space. It reminds us that speaking up is only possible when women know that there is someone listening. This pandemic has taught us that our lives are deeply intertwined, and so we must respond to the realities beyond ours.

Director Writer: Nandita Das

Producers: Nandita Das Initiatives

Cast: Ali Fazal, AmrutaSubhash, Sandesh Kulkarni, Swanand Kirkire, Nandita Das, Vihaan Das Maskara

Contact: nanditadasinitiatives [at] gmail.com

LIVING WITH VOLCANOES – SACRED VOLCANOES

2019, Ecuador, France, Guatemala, Iceland, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Tanzania, United Kingdom, Documentary, English, French, 51min 32sec

Screening: Tuesday 18^th Jan, 20:15hrs – Outdoor

“LIVING WITH VOLCANOES” explores the world of volcanoes and their interaction with the people.

Vivre avec les volcans explore le monde des volcans et leur interaction avec les populations.

Screenings / Awards: International Nature Film Festival Gödöllő, European Premiere Hungary WCFF – Wildlife Conservation Film Festival New-York City North-America United States, International Documentary Festival (EIDF) Seoul August 17, 2020 Korea, European Cinematography Awards Warsaw Best Nature Film Poland, are a few places where this movie was screened and awarded among many other International Festivals around the world.

Directors: David Perrier, Eden Shavit

Writers: Arnaud Guerin, Thibaut Camurat

Producer: Thibaut Camurat

Cast: Geoffrey Bateman, Pierre-Alain de Garrigues

Contact:  adv [at] golemandlinea.com

MBAS MI

2020-07-16 Senegal, Experimental, English, Wolof, 8min

Screening: Saturday 23^rd Jan, 16:00hrs – Cinema Paradiso

In times of social distance and the barrier gesture to protect one’s neighbor, expression becomes an invaluable act to preserve our humanities. In Mbas Mi, the director invites Goo Mamadou Ba to lend his voice to revive an essential text by Albert Camus. In the twilight of memory island, an incantatory voice rises. Carried by the surf, it changes according to a memory. From the alleys dotted with man-lanterns to the tops of sentinel baobabs, the words of “La Peste” resonate.

Producer: Yanis Gaye

Contact: production [at] goreecinema.com

MOTI BAGH

2019, India, Documentary, Hindi, 1hr

Screening: Saturday 22^nd Jan, 16:00hrs – Cinema Paradiso

83 year old Vidyadutt Sharma holds the record for growing the heaviest radish in India, weighing 23 kgs. He now aims to beat the world record of 31kgs. Over the last five decades, he has built up Moti Bagh, his 5 acre farm, in a small Himalayan village in northern India. Around him lie 7000 ghost villages, left to die, with no one to till the land – a chilling testimony to large scale migration by locals in search of employment in the cities. With no manpower at their disposal, the few locals employ Nepali labor. But there is unease because of this dependence and the growing influence of the Nepalis. As market forces exert pressure, family dynamics also change. Vidyadutt’s journalist son, Tribhuvan, lives and works in Pauri, a large town 35kms from Moti Bagh. His two children wish to chase their own dreams in the metros. Vidyadutt Sharma, farmer, activist and poet, chronicles the changing landscape in verses of resistance. As he and Ram Singh, his Nepali farmhand, plough the fields to keep a dream called Moti Bagh alive, we wonder if it will ever return to its old glory. 

Screenings/ Awards: Oscar Entry 2019, India Best Long Doc, Idsffk, Kerala 2019 Special Jury Mention, Cms Vatavaran 2019.

Director, Writer: Nirmal Chander Dandriyal

Producer: Psbt / Doordarshan

Cast: Vidyadutt Sharma

Contact: chander.nirmal [at] gmail.com

Trailer: https://vimeo.com/341175326

MRS. F.

2019, Nigeria, Documentary, English, 1hr 17min

Screening: Thursday 20^th Jan, 16:45hrs – SAIIER

In the fishing village of Makoko, the largest slum on water in Nigeria, Mrs. F wants to unite women and perform the play called “Hear Word”; a women empowerment project about gender inequality based on true stories to get women out of their oppressed position, to convince them to speak up and encourage them to connect. But even before she can start, she must overcome the unruly gatekeepers of patriarchy and religion.

Director: Chris van der Vorm

Contact: contact [at] andanafilms.com

Link: https://vimeo.com/368289940

NAZARBAND (CAPTIVE)

2020, India, Feature, Hindi, 1hr 25min

Screening: Tuesday 18^th Jan, 20:11hrs – Cinema Paradiso

Vasanti comes out into the megalopolis of Kolkata from the prison after serving a five-year prison term only to realize that her husband has not come to receive her. She waits in anxiety and despair. Chandu, who has also been released on the same day as her, offers her help in finding her husband. Chandu is a seasoned fraudster and has an ulterior motive as well. Although not very comfortable with this stranger, Vasanti takes his support to find her way to where she used to live, in the slums of Calcutta. But when they reach the place, she finds that a dazzling mall and few multi-storied buildings have replaced the slums. Without any clue about the whereabouts of his husband or her seven-year-old son, Vasanti is in deep anguish, but does not give up. Chandu sticks with this stubborn woman in a journey that goes through the labyrinth of the city in search of her family. Political goons, flesh traders, police, real estate mafia get entangled in the narrative. It reveals the past of these two, who were unknown to each other until today morning. And they delve into the deeper crevices of their emotions and insecurities as they move erratically. It is a strange journey entwined in a plethora of emotions: anxiety, distrust, dependence, hatred, care, greed, frustration, and necessity. They run amok through the city of Kolkata, disappear into the religious carnival, and finally reach the coalfields of Bihar. After fanatical, sometimes fatalistic, turn of events they reach the climactic moment that opens up multiple possibilities in Chandu and Vasanti’s lives.

Director: Suman Mukhopadhyay

Writers: Suman Mukhopadhyay, Asad Hussain, Anustup Basu

Producer: Pawan Kanodia

Cast: Indira Tiwari, Tanmay, Dhanania

Contact: sumanmukhopadhyay [at] gmail.com

OPHIR

2020, 1997, France/United Kingdom/Papua New Guinea, Documentary, English,(with English subtitles) French, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Greek, Catalan, Chinese, Italian, Hungarian, Armenian, 1hr 37min 6sec

Screening: Friday 21^st Jan, 21:00hrs – Outdoor

Ophir tells the story of an extraordinary indigenous revolution for life, land and culture, opening up the path for the creation of the world’s newest nation in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea. A poetic yet dramatic ode to the indelible thirst for freedom, culture and sovereignty; the film sheds light on the biggest conflict of the Pacific since WWII, revealing the visible and invisible chains of colonization and its enduring cycles of physical and psychological warfare.

Screenings/Awards : Fifo – International Documentary Film Festival Of Oceania Papeete February 4, 2020 World Premiere Winner – Grand Prix French Polynesia 2020 Spanish Premiere Winner Grand Prix + Festival Opening Film Spain Guam International Film Festival Pbs Virtual Screening November 8, 2020 Us Premiere Winner – Grand Jury Prize – Best Documentary Award .Royal Anthropological Institute Biennal London, Winner – Grand Prix (Rigoberta Menchú) 2021 Belgium Premiere Winner Silver Award – Best Film On Sustainable Development Belgium, Winner – Special Jury Prize Martinique 2021 Portuguese Premiere Winner Audience Award + Special Jury Mention Portugal July 30, 2021 Montenegro Premiere Winner – Special Jury Prize Montenegro Fincali Cali, Bolivian Premiere Winner – Best International Feature Award Bolivia, are a few places where this movie was screened and awarded among many other international festivals around the world.

Directors, Writers: Alexandre Berman, Olivier Pollet

Producer: Ilann Girard, Arsam International (France)- Olivier Pollet, Fourth World Films (UK)- Kristian Lasslett

Contact: pollet.olivier [at] protonmail.com

Website: http://ophir-film.com

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fH-NbfOYH3s

Facebook: https://facebook.com/OphirDocumentary/

REPORT ON A TERMINATION

2021, Iran, Persian, 15min

Screening: Saturday 23^rd Jan, 16:09hrs – Cinema Paradiso

A young journalist, who tries to cover a report about the dismissal of laborers, faces a dead end and an obstacle, and is fired.

Contact: reportmovie2021 [at] gmail.com

SCHOOL OF HOPE

Morocco, Documentary, Arabic, 1hr 18min

Screening: Thursday 20^th Jan, 20:00hrs – Outdoor

Education in our fast-changing world is essential, especially when climate change is threatening the future of the humanity. School of Hope follows the nomadic Oulad Boukais Tribe, whose children walk miles to a tiny schoolhouse, built by their parents, in the hope that education can prepare the next generation for new ways of life when nomadic lifestyle is becoming impossible.

Screenings / Awards: FIPADOC Tampere Film Festival Tampere Special Prize Finland, Human rights Festival Berlin SILBERSALZ Festival Nordisk Panorama Film Festival Magnificent7 Umundu -Festival Dresden, are a few places where this movie was screened and awarded among many other International Festivals around the world.

Director, Writer: Mohamed El Aboudi

Producers: Pertti Veijalainen, Illume Ltd/Delegate Producer, Hind Saïh, Dominique Barneaud, Bellota films, Aimee Link, Vulcan productions, Lamia Chraibi, La prod

Contact: oona.saari [at] illume.fi

Link: https://vimeo.com/475364354

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SchoolOfHopeDocumentary

SENZA NOME (NAMELESS)

2021, Italy, Italian, 10min

Screening: Thursday 20^th Jan, 17:32hrs – Cinema Paradiso

Nameless – An ordinary school day told through the eyes of a seven-year-old boy: made up of games, fun classes, happy meals, and going home. An ordinary day, that vanishes into the blue like the denied dream of the young protagonist.

Ungiorno di scuolavistoattraversogliocchi di un bimbo di setteanni. Ungiorno di scuolanormale, fatto di giochi, di studio, di pasticonsumati in allegria e poi ilritorno a casa.Ungiornonormale. Ma è ungiornochesvaniscenelblu, come ilsognonegato del piccolo protagonista.

Director, Writer: Gisella Gobbi

Producer: Oz Film

Cast: Luca Salami Bolaki

Contact: premierefilmdistribution [at] gmail.com

SHEER QORMA

2021, India, Drama, LGBTQ, Queer, English, Hindi, Urdu, 30min

Screening: Friday 21^st Jan, 20:00hrs – Cinema Paradiso

Sheer Qorma is a story of belonging and acceptance, identity and family, and how it comes together under one roof, as resilient, queer Muslim women and non-binary characters of color, chooses to embrace love that exists beyond their personal beliefs and social moralities.

Director, Writer: Faraz Arif Ansari

Producer: Marijke de Souza

Cast: Shabana Azmi, Divya Dutta, Swara Bhasker, Kalyanee Mulay, Priya Malik, Jitin Gulati

Contact: farazarifansari [at] gmail.com

Link: https://youtu.be/2yA8NXwL7Ac

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sheerqorma.thefilm/

Instagram: https://instagram.com/sheerqorma.thefilm

SHUT UP SONA

2019, India, Documentary, English, Hindi, 1hr 25min

Screening: Saturday 22^nd Jan, 21:28hrs – Outdoor

This is a film about a feisty female artist’s unrelenting fight for an equal space in modern day India, a country, deeply uncomfortable with her emancipation.

लालपरीमस्तानीएकऐसीकलाकाराकीकहानीहै, जिसकाआत्मसम्मान, औरबराबरीकीलड़ाईउसकेअपनेदेशकीबर्दाश्तसेपरेहैǀ

Screenings/Awards: MAMI Film Festival Mumbai November 21, 2019 World Film Critics Guild Award, Jury Special Mention India IFFR Rotterdam Rotterdam January 29, 2020 Europe Scopitone Netherlands.

Director, Writer: Deepti Gupta

Producer: Sona Mohapatra

Cast: Sona Mohapatra

Contact: deeptigupta [at] mac.com

SONGS OF THE WATER SPIRITS

2020, India, Documentary, English, Tibetan, 1hr 40min

Screening: Thursday 20^th Jan, 21:19hrs – Outdoor

The challenge of a society set in the breathtaking mountains of the Himalaya’s against environmental degradation. Can the quest for a “glocal” way of living projected towards an “ancient future” inspire the Western economies of our planet?

Screenings / Awards: Visioni dal Mondo International Film Festival Milan Premiere Jury Prize Italy, Kendal Mountain Festival, European Premiere Official Selection United Kingdom, Terraviva Film Festival Casalecchio di Winner Best Film Italy, Climate Award Germany, Torellò Mountain Film Festival Torellò Best Cinematography Award Spain, are a few places where this movie was screened and awarded among many other International Festivals around the world.

Director, Writer, Producer: Nicolò Bongiorno

Cast: Sonam Wangchuck, Nicolas Tournadre, Stanzin DorjayGya, Deskit Angmo

Contact: nico [at] bongiorno.it

Link: https://vimeo.com/454390935

Project Website: https://allegriafilms.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/songsofthewaterspirits

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicolobongiorno_allegria_films/

STREETS OF LAGOS

2020, Nigeria, Documentary, 11min 50sec

Screening: Wednesday 19^th Jan, 16:52hrs – SAIIER

Shot on location in West Africa, ‘Streets of Lagos’ provides a rare insight into the lives of Nigeria’s first generation of rollerblades. What was once a niche sport that saw widespread participation across the globe in the late 90’s has emerged in 2020 as a fringe subculture in the streets of Lagos. Originally used as a way to navigate the city’s dense traffic, today, a select few use their skates as a form of self-expression, something which can be hard to find in one of the toughest cities in the world.

Director: Dom West

Cast: Daniel Ogbogu, Brian Freeman.

Contact: dominicwest [at] gmail.com

SURVIVING SEX TRAFFICKING

2021, Ethiopia, Hungary, India, Philippines, United States, Documentary, English, 1hr 12min

Screening: Friday 21^st Jan, 16:52hrs – Cinema Paradiso, Adults Only

Brave and resilient sex trafficking survivors around the world share their struggles to break free from their past and find hope for the future. With 45 million sex trafficking victims worldwide, only 1% manage to escape. SURVIVING SEX TRAFFICKING examines the ongoing struggles of survivors as they fight to break free of their past, heal their bodies and minds and find hope for the future. It’s a travel across US, India and Ethiopia to hear these powerful stories and shine a light on this horrific epidemic.

Director: Sadhvi Siddhali Shree

Producers: Alyssa Milano, Jeannie Mai and Jeezy

Contact: siddhali [at] stoppingtraffic.org

Project Website: https://survivingsextraffickingfilm.com

Facebook: https://facebook.com/stoppingtrafficfilm

Instagram: https://instagram.com/stoppingtrafficfilm

THE CHURCH FORESTS OF ETHIOPIA

2019, Ethiopia, Documentary, 9min 23sec

Screening: Tuesday 18^th Jan, 20:00hrs – Cinema Paradiso

Over the past century, nearly all of Ethiopia’s native forests have been cleared for farming and grazing. Now it is up to the Orthodox Churches—who for centuries have safeguarded pockets of primary forest that grow around them—to preserve Ethiopia’s quick shrinking biodiversity and to teach people how to live with forests.

Director: Jeremy Seifert

Writer: Jeremy Seifert, Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee

Contact: devin [at] globalonenessproject.org

Link: http://www.globalonenessproject.org

THE FORUM

2019, Germany, Ghana, Indonesia, Netherlands, Rwanda, Switzerland, United States, Vietnam, Documentary, English, German, Portuguese, Swiss German, 1hr 32min

Screening: Saturday 22^nd Jan, 20:00hrs – Cinema Paradiso

In times of rampant populism and growing mistrust of the elite, director Marcus Vetter accompanies the 81-year-old founder of the controversial World Economic Forum over a period of two years, as he works to achieve his mission: to improve the state of the world. When Klaus Schwab writes a letter to climate activist Greta Thunberg after her appearance at the WEF 2019, a dialogue begins between the generations that give hope. Can Klaus Schwab‘s vision bear fruit and can the WEF contribute to solving global problems? Or is it just another part of the problem and does it ultimately serve the interests of the global elite alone?

Screenings / Awards- DOK Leipzig, Leipzig World Premiere Germany IDFA Amsterdam November 24, 2019 International Premiere Netherlands Hotdocs Canada arte Strasbourg January 14, 2020 TV Premiere France.

Director: Marcus Vetter

Writer: Christian Beetz, Georg Tschurtschenthaler

Producer: Georg Tschurtschenthaler, Caroline Schaper, Karin Koch (Co-Producer)

Contact: festival [at] gebrueder-beetz.de

Link: https://vimeo.com/367205894

Project Website: https://theforum-movie.com/

THE INVISIBLE MONSTER

2020, Spain, Short, Tagalog, 29min

Screening: Sunday 23^rd Jan, 16:24hrs – Cinema Paradiso

Aminodin’s father always smiles because he says “happy people live longer”. That’s why, at eight years old, Aminodin puts his best smile while working at the Papandayan dump, where he lives with his family. Her cousin Aliman, on the other hand, lost his family when bombs started falling from the sky in the city of Marawi.

Directors: Guillermo Fesser Perez de Petinto, Javier Fesser Perez de Petinto

Writers: Javier Fesser, Guillermo Fesser

Producer: Luis Manso

Contact: info [at] ismaelmartin.com

Project Website: https://selectedfilms.com/

THE PATH – PARVATHI BAUL IN JAPAN 2018

2019, Japan, Documentary, Japanese, 1hr 16min 9sec

Screening: Wednesday 19^th Jan, 20:07hrs – Cinema Paradiso

Inscrutable People live in West Bengal, to the east of India. They are called “Baul”. Caste and religions count for nothing. Baul travel, singing and dancing in June 2018, with the world renowned Parvathy Baul, arrived in Japan. What is Baul? What path has brought Parvathy to her soul stirring vocal?

Director, Writer, Producer: Sakurako Abe

Cast: Parvathy Das Baul, Toshiyuki Tsuchitori

Contact: zeewee3618 [at] gmail.com

Link: https://sakhipro.jimdofree.com/watch-movies/

THE PEOPLE OF WASTE. LIVING PLASTIC

2020, India, Documentary, English, Hindi, 18min 3sec

Screening: Sunday 23^rd Jan, 20:20hrs – Cinema Paradiso

What happens to our garbage after it is dumped? Through the example of Delhi, the film explores the transformation of a piece of plastic waste into a resource, through filmed interviews with diverse “people of waste” living in the shadow of consumer society. It aims at making visible the myriad of professions that specialize in the collection, sorting, reselling, cleaning, shredding and transformation of waste, from the stigmatized garbage picker at the bottom of the chain until the industrialist at the top of the pyramid who re-injects the recovered materials into the formal economy. Beyond the Indian case, it reminds the spectators of their responsibility as a producer of waste and their relation with this waste recovery system, putting into question the ambivalent discourses on recycling which tend to legitimize an endless mass consumption. This short documentary film (20min), has been co-directed by Rémi de Bercegol (CNRS), together with Grant Davis and Shankare Gowda; it has been shot in February 2019 in and around Delhi. It relies on a scientific understanding of the on-going scenario and aims at opening the debate to a broader non-academic audience about the relationship between societies and waste. It has received financial support from Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD) and Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS).

Director: De Bercegol Rémi, Gowda, Sankare, Davis, Grant

Contact: remi.debercegol [at] gmail.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thecityofwaste

THE UNDEFEATED

2021, France, India, Animation, English, 12min 34sec

Screening: Saturday 22^nd Jan, 17:00hrs – Cinema Paradiso

“THE UNDEFEATED” narrates the hurdles and joys of five vulnerable children in contemporary India. Each story is fictional but heavily inspired by the real life of the children sheltered and protected by the NGO TARA in New Delhi.

Directors: Dorothée Adam, Arnaud Chichery, Pauline Fuchs, Sébastien Huertas, Filipe Oudot Choy, Bettina Drumond, Hortense Brassart, Laurelyne Leneutre, Emilie Leboucq, Charlotte Jean-William, Haemin Kim

Writer: Dorothée Adam

Producer: TARA Child Protection & Empowerment, Inua Prod, Gobelins, école de l’image

Contact: axel [at] taraindia.org

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QbQkbUHOik&t=6s

Project Website: https://www.taraindia.org/en/the-undefeated

THE WISDOM OF TRAUMA

2021, Canada, United States, Documentary, English, 1hr 28min

Screening: Sunday 23^rd Jan, 20:55hrs – Outdoor

Trauma is the invisible force that shapes our lives. It shapes the way we live, the way we love and the way we make sense of the world. It is the root of our deepest wounds. Dr. Maté gives us a new vision: a trauma-informed society in which parents, teachers, physicians, policy-makers and legal personnel are not concerned with fixing behaviors, making diagnoses, suppressing symptoms and judging, but seek instead to understand the sources from which troubling behaviors and diseases spring in the wounded human soul.

Directors: Maurizio Benazzo, Zaya Benazzo

Producers: Zaya Benazzo, Maurizio Benazzo

Cast: Dr. Gabor Mate, Russell Brand, Tim Ferriss, James Doty, Fritzi Hostman

Contact: maurizio [at] scienceandnonduality.com

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70HNmSsJvVU

Project Website: https://www.thewisdomoftrauma.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ScienceAndNonduality/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scienceandnonduality_/

TUÃ INGUGU (WATER EYES )

2019, Brazil, Documentary, Portuguese, 11min

Screening: Wednesday 19^th Jan, 16:40hrs – SAIIER

In the Kalapalo cosmogony (an ethnic group that lives in the Xingú Indigenous Park), water is as old as humans and is the source of life. That is where all their sustenance comes from, their food, their drink and their joy. The idea of using water as a dumpster, of poisoning water is a dystopia. In TuãIngugu (Water Eyes) Chief Faremá – from Caramujo village on the banks of the Kuluene River – tells us about the birth of water and warns us about the consequences of disrespecting it.

Screenings / Awards: Festival Curta Cinema – Rio de Janeiro International Short Film Festival Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Rome Film Festival Roma Italy, are a few places where this movie was screened among other International Festivals around the world.

Director, Writer: Daniela Thomas

Producer: Daniel van Hoogstraten

Cast: Faremá Kalapalo, Kanho Matipu

Contact: daniel [at] syndromefilms.com

Link: https://m.imdb.com/title/tt11048212/

Instagram: https://instagram.com/syndromefilms

WANDERING, A ROHINGYA STORY

2020, Bangladesh, Documentary, 1hr 27min 52sec

Screening: Thursday 20^th Jan, 20:05hrs – Cinema Paradiso

Within a few months, the Kutupalong refugee camp has become the biggest in the world. Out of sight, 700,000 people of the Rohingya Muslim minority fled Myanmar in 2017 to escape genocide and seek asylum in Bangladesh. Prisoners of a major yet little publicized humanitarian crisis, Kalam, Mohammad, Montas and other exiles want to make their voice heard. Between poetry and nightmares, food distribution and soccer games, they testify to their daily realities and the ghosts of their past memories. Around them, the specter of wandering, waiting, disappearing, in this place almost out of space and time, is it still possible to exist?

En quelques mois, le camp de réfugiés de Kutupalongest devenu le plus peuplé au monde, abritant plus de 700 000 réfugiés Rohingya senexilluttant pour leur survie. Dansce labyrinth d’abris de fortune, presque hors du temps et de l’espace, est-il encore possible d’exister ?

Writer, Director, Producer: Mélanie Carrier, Olivier Higgins

Cast: Kala Miya (Kalam), Mohammed Haras and his family, Montas

Contact: projets [at] spira.quebec

Link: https://vimeo.com/440673964

Project Website: https://www.wandering-themovie.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ErranceSansRetour.WanderingARohingyaStory

WHITE EYE

Israel, Hebrew, 21min

Screening: Wednesday 19^th Jan, 17:16hrs – SAIIER

A man finds his stolen bicycle and it now belongs to a stranger. In his attempts to retrieve the bicycle, he struggles to remain a human.

Director, Writer: Tomer Shushan

Producer: SHIRA Hochman, Kobi Mizrahi

Contact: distribucion [at] promofest.org

Link: http://www.promofest.org/films/white-eye

A JOURNEY OF RESTORATION

2018, Documentary, 21min 49sec, English

Screening on: Saturday 22^nd January, 16:40hrs – SAIIER

This film is a documentation of a project between RAMCO and Auroville Botanical Garden.

See how a limestone quarry can be regenerated into a national park.

Director, Editor: Serena Aurora, Paul Blanchflower

Producer: Aurora’s Eye Films, RAMCO, Auroville Botanical Gardens

Cinematographer: Aurovenkatesh, Serena Aurora

Music: Mathew Littlewood, Sankarshan Kini

Drone Footage: Drone Zone, Anbu Prabhu

Script: Paul Blanchflower

Production Company: Aurora’s Eye Films

Graphic and Colour: Aurovenkatesh

Cast: Ahilya

E-mail: serena_aurora [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://youtu.be/FBzaSLlPfB4

ANIMA

2019, Documentary, 3min 41secs, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Wednesday 19th January, 17:58hrs – SAIIER

Jyoti Naoki Eri, a Japanese artist held an art exhibition at Centre d’Art in Auroville. This exhibition consisted of his Vessel series, Window series and Lotus series paintings which he worked on extensively for the past 5 years. This exhibition is an attempt to integrate his life experiences and spiritual understanding with life in Auroville through different colors and shapes.

Director, Producer, Cinematographer, Editor, Script: Jyoti Naoki Eri

Music: Yoko Komatsu (Piano), Jatinder Singh Durhailay (Dilruba)

Production Company: Studio Eri, Auroville

Video: Sasi Somu, Jyoti Naoki Eri

Photography: Monna Eri, Jyoti Naoki Eri

Email: jyoti [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://vimeo.com/601605970

Website: https://jyotinaokieri.com

ANOTHER SEA IN THE SKY

2018, Experimental, 10min 15sec, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Sunday 23rd January, 16:00hrs – SAIIER

This is a poetic visual journey combining a poem, video and music to share Jyoti Eri’s perspective of yoga in an artistic manner. The spectators are free to interpret this film, giving it a new life.

Director, Script, Cinematographer, Producer, Editor: Jyoti Naoki Eri

Script Assistant: Monna Eri

Sound: Atomic Phantom

Visuals: Kyoto Aquarium, Japan

E-mail: jyoti [at] auroville.org.in

Website: https://jyotinaokieri.com

Link: https://vimeo.com/548531918

ART, PEOPLE AND CRISIS

2019, Documentary, 7min 14sec, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Wednesday 19th January, 17:44hrs – SAIIER

This is an interview with Birgitta Volz about art, crisis and the meaning of death. Birgitta explains her artistic journey through 5 questions.

Director, Script, Producer: Birgitta Volz

Cinematographer, Editor, Sound: Ocean Bekker

E-mail: birgittavolz [at] hotmail.com

Website:  http://www.birgittavolz.de

ARTRYST- A FLUID AFFAIR

2014, Documentary, 58min 2sec, English

Screening on: Wednesday 19^th January, 21:52hrs – Outdoor

Danny Brandt, a serene & spiritual artist, has an interesting and unique relationship with Art. He has a fluid affair with Drag Queen Calexus Carrington where he breathes life into her to manifest the art form that he loves so much and is passionate about. He alternates between his two universes of Danny’s and Calexus’ while retaining the striking contrast in each of their personalities.

Director, Script, Producer, Sound: Earthling Koushalya

Production Company: Accessible Horizon Films

Creative Production: Tami L Most

Music Arrangement: Maverick Dass

Cinematographer: Maverick Dass, Earthling Koushalya

Editor: Maverick Dass, Earthling Koushalya, Iyarkaiyar Ramesh

Created by: Maverick Dass, Iyarkaiyar Ramesh, Stanzin Raghu

Production Assistance: Mark Enslin, Tami L Most, Dr. Carol Huang, Anja McClain

Cast: Danny Brandt, Fawaz Ameer Hamsa, Vengatesh B, Thara, Ezhilarasan

E-mail: acchorfilms [at] gmail.com

Link: https://vimeo.com/387242616

Website: https://www.accessiblehorizonfilms.com

AUROVILLE WATER VISION

2021, Documentary, 7min 29sec, English

Screening on: Friday 21^st January, 16:05hrs – Cinema Paradiso

Enjoy this animated meditation, listening and dreaming of the Auroville water vision for the next years to come….

Director, Producer, Editor: Serena Aurora

Design, Animation: Mayank Gajbhiye, Aditya Hegde, Neela Tayade

Script: Aditi, Helen

Voice Over: Aditi

Production Company: Aurora’s Eye Films

E-mail: serena_aurora [at] auroville.org.in

BEFORE THE STORM

2018, Experimental, 4min 8sec, English

Screening on: Thursday 20^th January, 20:00hrs – Cinema Paradiso

The 22nd episode of the famous column explains how humans utilised objects before the storm of 2022. Before the Storm, is a Kino Movie made in Auroville for a Kino Kabaret held from 4th to 8th April 2020 that relooks at the purpose of objects differently.

Director, Producer, Cinematographer, Editor: Marco Saroldi

Sound: Audionautix

Script: Marco Saroldi, Dominique Jacques

E-mail: marcos [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://vimeo.com/405330870

Website: https://vimeo.com/user59565451

BLACK AMERICA

2019, Documentary, 44 min, English

Screening on: Sunday 23^rd January, 20:00hrs – Outdoor

What is it like to be Black in America? And how did it come to this?

This is a dialogue with Malcolm, who explains the history and facts about the American system and how it led up to the riots and protests of today.

This film is a broad stroke description of the racial climate in the United States through the eyes and voice of a black native. Accompanied by archival footage of historical atrocities and public outcry, this film seeks to connect the dots while illustrating the kind of environment which has led to such an explosive present state following the murder of George Floyd.

Director, Script, Producer, Cinematographer, Sound, Editor: Serena Aurora

Production Company: Aurora’s Eye Films

E-mail: serena_aurora [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jc4NJqRBlrM

CHERISH A THATCHED ROOF IN AUROVILLE

2019, Documentary, 8min 8sec

Screening on: Friday 21^st January, 16:18hrs – Cinema Paradiso

It’s an observation of men working on a roof, who don’t seem to be thinking of it as ‘business’. The film maker captures the meditative concentration and love for the many movements involved.

Director, Script, Producer, Cinematographer, Editor, Sound: Rena Kienberger

Coordinator: Mohan, Auroyali

Cast: Boominathan & his team

E-mail: rena [at] auroville.org.in

CONVERSATION ON DEATH WITH AUROVILIANS

2018, Documentary, 58min 4sec, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Sunday 23^rd January, 20:55hrs – Cinema Paradiso

After realising she has a 50% chance of dying in Auroville, Danielle De Diesbach interviews 18 Aurovilians about their views on death.

Director, Editor: Serena Aurora

Producer: Serena Aurora, Auroville Outreach Media

Cinematographer: Aurovenkatesh, Serena Aurora

Script: Danielle De Diesbach

Sound Design: Kardash

Production Company: Aurora’s Eye Films

Featuring: Danielle, Elaine, Frederick, Liliana, Dr. Uma, Serena, Barbara, Bagha, Manoj, Jonah, Anwar, Henrike, Michael, Renu, Raman, Christiane, Kalsang

Voice Over: Aditi, Mathias

E-mail: serena_aurora [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://youtu.be/bNnKqnkzzSY

Website: https://auroraseye.wordpress.com/

CORONA LOCKDOWN

2018, Short, 11min 3sec, Tamil (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Sunday 23^rd January, 16:30hrs – SAIIER

This film is about the Corona virus and the impact of the lockdown on people and on Mother Earth. The protagonist invites the virus to his room and in a conversation with it, expresses his thoughts on the difficulties and sufferings of people affected by it.

Director, Editor, Script: Yatra Srinivassan

Producer: S. Adhilakshmi

Production Company: Yatra Arts Media

Assistant Director: Haribasker Jayaraman

Camera – J. Jayabharathi

Music: V.R. Suresh Sabapathi

Visual effects: Hariharan Anbazhaghan

Art Work: S. Priyadarshini

Lightening: S. Yuvasri

Boom Mike: V. Priyadarshini

Shooting Asst.: K Krishnamoorthy

English Subtitles: Louise Robinson

Cast: Yatra Srinivassan

E-mail: yatrasrinivassan [at] gmail.com

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuO13kRQXPQ

EN UDAMBU (MY BODY)

2018, Fiction, 17min 41sec, Tamil (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Saturday 22^nd January, 17:35hrs – Cinema Paradiso

A young lady does something unpredictable when 2 perverted men challenge her very existence!

Director, Script, Editor: Earthling Koushalya

Production Company: Accessible Horizon Films

Producer: Mohandass Radhakrishnan

Cinematography: Maverick Dass, Auro Venkatesh

Sound: Mithran

Art Direction: Mithran, Earthling Koushalya

Music: Varun Rao, Maverick Dass, Earthling Koushalya

Vocals: Anushka Gunputh

Mixing, Mastering: Varun Rao, Maverick Dass

Art Director: Mithran, Earthling Koushalya

Location/Production Design: Mithran, Ramesh Mourthy

Production Sound: Mithran

Still Photography: Stanzin Raghu, Aurovenkatesh

DI Colour: Bardo Studio

Drone Team: Gopinathram, Karthik

Production Support: Dr. Arunagiri, Kalaivaanan, Mithran, Gopinathram, Thara, Kalaivanan, Jaganathan S, Nithyanandamurthy, Parijatham, Rajashegar, Madhu India, Aashay Singh

Casting Assistance: Dr. P Arunagiri, Kalaivaanan, Kirumaambakkam artists

Production: Stanzin Raghu, Ramesh Mourthy

Cast: Semmalar Annam K, Dhinesh Kumar, Manoj Chandar, Anandhi Jayaraman, Ramamurthy, Kalaivaanan

E-mail: acchorfilms [at] gmail.com

Website: https://www.accessiblehorizonfilms.com

Link: https://vimeo.com/530328138

GOD BLESS YOU

2019, Comedy, 7min 44sec, Tamil (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Saturday 22^nd January, 20:00hrs – Outdoor

What is the meaning of birthday celebration? Each character of this comedy film express his/her own observation on birthdays.

Director, Editor, Script: Yatra Srinivassan

Producer: Yatra Talkies

Production Company: Yatra Arts Media

Cinematographer: Aurovenkatesh

Art Direction: S. Priyadharshini, V. Priya, S. Yuvasri

Music: Gajadhanu

Title, VFX: Hariharan Anbazhagan

Assistant Director: Prasad Vimal Raj, J. Jayabharathi, Prabhu

Assistant Cinematographer: Arunkumar

Produced by: S. Adhilakshmi

English Subtitles: Louise Robinson

Cast : Yatra Srinivassan, Paarvathi Venkat, Krishna, Krishnamoorthy, Prabhu, J. Jayabharathi, V. Priya, S. Priyadharshini, Prasad Vimal Raj, Shanmugam, S. Yuvasri, Gokul, Monish, Nimthika, Harish

E-mail: yatrasrinivassan [at] gmail.com

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8j5p_nkOOi4

I AM AN INTUITION

2019, Drama, 4min 22sec, Tamil (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Tuesday 18^th January, 20:00hrs – Outdoor

This film is about an assistant director who has a passion for cinema. His intuition encourages him and creates many opportunities for him to achieve his goal. But he is not focused on his goal to become a film director. He is not utilizing his time and energy properly. He is lazy, postponing his work and wasting time every day. Finally his intuition gets upset with his behavior and is leaving him. At the last moment he starts writing a screen play and his intuition decides to stay.

Producer: Yatra Talkies

Production Company: Yatra Arts Media

Director, Script: Yatra Srinivassan

Cinematographer, DI: Thiruvamudhan

Editor: Hariharan Anbazhagan

Art Direction: Danasu

Music: Gajadhanu

Co-Directors: Danasu, Hariharan Anbazhagan

Cast: Yatra Srinivassan

Costume, Makeup: S. Adhilakshmi

Camera Asst.: Arun Kumar

Production Assistants: S. Adhilakshmi, J Jayabharathi, S. Priyadarshini, V. Priya, S. Yuvasri, Prasad Vimalraj

English Subtitles: Louise Robinson

E-mail: yatrasrinivassan [at] gmail.com

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3vVabe7jWo

INFINITE POTENTIAL

2019, Short, 3min 33sec

Screening on: Friday 21^st January, 16:00hrs – Cinema Paradiso

The ever-hastening evolution of consciousness and life on Earth continues. For what purpose? That is the existential quest we have all been living and co-experiencing for ages. And where do we go from here? This world of Infinite Potential is for each individual to unravel.

Director, Script, Producer, Cinematographer, Editor: Zech Joya Panganiban

Sound: Richard Strauss

E-mail: zechjoya [at] gmail.com

Website: www.sopanam.org

Link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KpyVGyvjVxBHTZVpR2CNip6213ZLacaK/view?usp=sharing

INSPIRATION TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE WATER: UN, SDGS & AUROVILLE WATER PRACTICES

2019, Documentary, 29min 47sec, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Saturday 22^nd January, 16:09hrs – SAIIER

We are in a serious crisis and change is needed to avoid a catastrophe. In 2015, the UN compiled 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets as a utopian vision of a world where humanity can live sustainably. The SDGs were signed by 193 countries and aimed to be achieved by 2030, with more work to be done!

The movie presents 8 universal aspects of today’s global water crisis, and some of the good practices used in Auroville which also contribute to the aims of SDG6.

Director, Producer, Sound Design, Narration, Camera: Serena Aurora

Research: Bogi, Bogalrka, Rita Nagi

Script: Bogi, Allan, Marianna, Aditi, Felix, Jingyi

Cinematographer and Editing: Aurovenkatesh

Sound: Kardash

Production Company: Aurora’s Eye Films

E-mail: serena_aurora [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://youtu.be/8cVg1vxrOBw

Website: https://auroraseye.wordpress.com/

JAPANESE GARDEN PROJECT

2019, Documentary, 3min 44sec, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Wednesday 19^th January, 17:37hrs – SAIIER

This is a short introduction to the Japanese Garden project in Auroville Botanical Gardens. Noel and Jyoti started this project in 2018 as an effort to create a Japanese style garden by using locally sourced plants and material. They also used many recycled materials which are commonly used in Japanese master piece gardens. The work is not yet complete however we feel it is ready to welcome visitors to experience the garden.

Director, Script: Jyoti Naoki Eri

Producer: Jyoti Naoki Eri, Noel Parent

Cinematographer: Jyoti Naoki Eri

Coordinator: Noel Parent

Sound: Atomic Phantom (Jyoti Naoki Eri)

Editor: Jyoti Naoki Eri

Production Company: Studio Eri, Auroville

E-mail: jyoti [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://vimeo.com/600963680

JOI OF HUMAN UNITY

2018, Documentary, 28min 35sec, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Saturday 22^nd January, 17:02hrs – SAIIER

Anitya is the first project under the Joy Of Impermanence project. In this film we learn how they have been working on living together in human unity.

Director, Producer, Script: Serena Aurora

Production Company: Aurora’s Eye Films

Cinematographer, Editor: Aurovenkatesh, Serena Aurora

Sound Engineering, Sound Remixes: Kardash

Featuring: Residents of Joy of Impermanence Anitya community

E-mail: serena_aurora [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://youtu.be/AFft4iUltLM

Website: https://auroraseye.wordpress.com/

KAMALA HARI KRIDA

2018, Experimental, 13min 5sec

Screening on: Sunday 23^rd January, 16:12hrs – SAIIER

This is a beautiful flower meditation sequence for Satyagraha, the stronghold of truth for Auroville. The visual content of the film features one water lily pond in Karnataka’s Belgaum mountain district and features one water lily from Auroville.

Rudra & Vichitra veena track was provided with trust and love by maestro Gianni of the Saraswati Music House, Assisi, Italy. The music comes from the album ‘Deep Relaxations’ (1996). At the end, there is a vocal embellishment by Srimati Prema which invokes the spirit of Saraswati Devi completely.

Director, Producer, Cinematographer, Editor: Param Tomanec

Music: Gianni Rizzichi, Prema Rangarajan

Production Company: Darkblue Pictures

Co-Producer: Nagesh Chhabria, Neeraj Kapoor.

Associate Producer: Alessandra Argenti

Production Supervision: Godfrey Reggio

Cast: Param Tomanec

E-mail: darkbluepictures [at] gmx.com

Link: https://youtu.be/CnahjLxt6vc

LEARNING FROM THE INTANGIBLE

2021, Documentary, 85 minutes, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Friday 21^st January, 20:45hrs – Cinema Paradiso

The world is crying out for change, in every area of human development.
How to redesign education with this specific evolutionary purpose?
This is a journey into Integral Education and the challenges between this dream of tomorrow and the reality: TLC unveils as a living experiment.

Director, Cinematographer, Editor: Alessandra Silver

Screenwriter: Alessandra Silver, Omid Hashimi

Producer: TLC

Sound: Sankarsan Kini

Music: Svaram

Featuring: TLC students, parents and facilitators

Production Company: InLight

E-mail: alessandra [at] auroville.org.in

Link (Trailer): https://youtu.be/uwozdKYycpY

Website: https://www.media4change.tv/

LOCKDOWN – 48 ATHISAYAM

2018, Comedy, 5min 14sec, Tamil (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Wednesday 19^th January, 17:53hrs – SAIIER

This is a Tamil short film, of a comic genre, about the success story of an alcoholic person. His wife celebrates, worships and respects him because he stopped consuming alcohol from TASMAC for 48 days of lockdown.

Director, Editor, Script: Yatra Srinivassan

Producer: Yatra Talkies

Production Company: Yatra Arts Media

Music: V.R. Suresh Sabapathy

Cinematographer: J. Jayabharathi, S. Yuvasri

Production Assistance: S. Adhilakshmi, S. Priyadharshini, R. Vasantha

Cast: YatraSrinivassan, Krishnamoorthy, V. Priya, J. Jayabharathi, S. Yuvasri

English Subtitles: Louise Robinson

E-mail: yatrasrinivassan [at] gmail.com

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpqVmPEMZag

MASQUERADE

2021, Student Short, 5min 12sec, English

Screening on: Saturday 22^nd January, 20:09hrs – Outdoor.

A short film that captures the equivocation of friendship and human behavior in the modern world, characterized by teenagers.

This is the only film made by a school student in this film festival.

Director, Editor, Producer, Script: Nitheesh Varma

Cinematography: Barath

Cast: Dev Selyan, Raghul, Neha, Tenzin Jangchup, Aravind, Kathiravan, Taijus

Email: 12rrnitheesh [at] gmail.com

MATHUPRIYAN

2018, Drama, 7min 35sec, Tamil (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Sunday 23^rd January, 16:42hrs – SAIIER

This film is about an alcoholic, who buys liquor from the TASMAC during Corona lockdown. and his family’s situation in the lock down with the reopening of TASMAC shops.

His wife worries about his alcoholism, the present family situation of the lock down and reopening of TASMAC shops. His daughter, a tailor and her friend who’s a nurse treating Covid patients, share their feelings with each other.

Director, Script, Editor: Yatra Srinivassan

Production Company: Yatra Talkies

Cinematographer: J. Jayabharathi, S. Yuvasri

Sound: V.R. Suresh Sabapathy

Production Assistance: S. Adhilakshmi, K. Krishnamoorthy, S. Priyadharshini, R. Vasantha

English Subtitles: Louise Robinson

Cast: YatraSrinivassan, UvathyPriya, V. Priya, J. Jayabharathi, S. Yuvasri

Email: adinivass [at] gmail.com

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3jgi85jKj0

NINE BIRTHS – MUDRA

2019, Experimental, 3min 57sec, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Wednesday 19^th January, 18:03hrs – SAIIER

This is Jyoti’s ongoing project about geometry and the human body. It is an attempt to see the sacred aspect of numbers and geometry manifested in human body. This piece (not yet completed) features a respected Odissi dancer Rekha Tandon, who studied Odissi and tantra from eminent teachers.

Director, Script, Producer, Cinematographer, Editor, Painting: Jyoti Naoki Eri

Sound: Atomic Phantom

Production Company: Studio Eri

Email: jyoti [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://vimeo.com/602698503

Website: https://jyotinaokieri.com

OUR CASHEW STORY

2018, Documentary, 41min 8sec, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Saturday, 22^nd January, 17:32hrs – SAIIER

In a world where we are increasingly disconnected from our food, this short film explores the cashew industry – the growing, harvesting and processing of cashews, the seasonal pesticide spraying and its environmental and health effects, and the alternatives to pesticides using Auroville and its bio region in India as a case study. In this documentary we would like to reconnect people with cashews and help them understand our cashew story. The film aims to raise awareness and increase consciousness about the cashew industries asking the viewer to participate in helping where they can to change the story. This is a comprehensive film about the range of complexities of the cashew industry and the many stories in the food chain from growing to consumption.

Director, Producer, Editor, Sound effect: Serena Aurora

Script: Serena Aurora, Nikethana

Producer: Outreach Media, Stichting de Zaiier

Cinematographer: Aurovenkatesh, Serena Aurora

Music: Will Golledge

Drone: Prabuddha, Om Patra, Fred, Francis, Nick

Graphics: Aurovenkatesh

Research: Nikethana Venkatesan, Serena Aurora

Title Animation: Aurovenkatesh, Jagan

Transcription: Nikethana

Translation: Nikethana, Aurovenkatesh

Soundmix: Nepsound

Colour Grade: Ivan

Production Company: Aurora’s Eye Films

Cast: Priya, Meenatchi, Chellamma, Steffen, Alok, Rita, Anandhan, Manivannan, Ezhumalai, Dr. Lucas, Jasmin, Dr. Kurien Thomas, Arumugam, Gauri

E-mail: serena_aurora [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://youtu.be/59osVIL-ebw

Website: https://auroraseye.wordpress.com/

PAASAM PATHUKAKUM

2017, Short, 5min 28sec, Tamil (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Wednesday 19^th January, 20:00hrs – Cinema Paradiso

This short film is about taking care of pet animals, with a special emphasis on dogs. The film expresses the gratitude that dogs show towards people and the way dogs protect our living space.

Director: S.Yuvasri

Script: S. Yuvasri

Producer: S. Adhilakshmi

Cinematographer: Rajaram

Editor: Rajaram, J. Jayabharathi

Music: Gajadhanu

Produced by: S. Adhilakshmi, S. Priyadharshini

Cast: Yatra Srinivassaan, Sweety (the pet dog), S. Adhilakshmi, S. Yuvasri, Prasad Vima Raj, J. Jayabharathi, V. Priya

Production Company: Yatra Arts Media

E-mail: yatrasrinivassan [at] gmail.com

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=go5yHJE5X7U

PRE-MONSOON EPISODE 01 OF BARNABY JONES & MYSTERIES OF DR. ODDBALL

2020, Fiction, 1hr 2min 22sec, English

Screening on: Saturday January 22^nd, 20:14hrs – Outdoor

A scientist, a detective, and an experiment in an unsuspecting town.

Director, Script, Cinematography: Jonak Joey Chakrabarti

Producer: Manas, Jonak Chakrabarti

Production Company: Pickle Me Ginger

Edit: Manas Chakrabarti, Nefertiti Titli Chakrabarti, Arnav Kakar

Cast: Gijs Spoor, Ahilya Bamroo, Bhavyo Trivedi, Lili Dreikhausen, Lucas Simon Zbinden

E-mail: jonak.joey [at] gmail.com

Link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/h3uuxyo4l1l3f42/Pre-Monsoon-1080Web.m4v?dl=0

REVERIE

2018, Animation, 1min 47sec

Screening on: Wednesday 19^th January, 17:42hrs – SAIIER

A free diver waltz with the marine life.

Director, Cinematographer, Sound: Kadambari, Aravindan, Aparajita

Script: Kadambari, Aravindan

Producer: Shalini

Editor: Aravindan

E-mail: aravindan.g.p [at] gmail.com

Link: https://youtu.be/Sl_wYNrYjko

ROBBERY IN THE TIME OF CORONA

2018, Comedy, 10min 54sec, Tamil (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Friday 21^st January, 20:00hrs – Outdoor

This is a comedy about playing computer and mobile games and how young people are obsessed with playing games on their mobiles. In this short film, robbers enter into the house while the youngsters are distracted, playing games on their phones – not noticing them. The robbers end up stealing all the gold and jewels!

Director, Script, Editor: Yatra Srinivassan

Production Company: Yatra Talkies

Production Assistance: S. Adhilakshmi, S. Priyadharshini, R. Vasantha

Producer: S. Adhilakshmi

Title, VFX: Hariharan Anbazhagan

Assistant Director: Prasad Vimal Raj

Boom Mic: S. Adhilakshmi

Cinematographer: S. Velu

Music, Sound Effects: Gajadhanu, PRG Studios, Chennai

Cast: Yatra Srinivassan, Jean Paul, V. Priya, Prasad Vimal Raj, J. Jayabharathi, S. Yuvasri

E-mail: yatrasrinivassan [at] gmail.com

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnSfKpuRKFU

STILL DAYDREAMING

2018, Experimental, 2min 58sec, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Sunday 23^rd January, 16:26hrs – SAIIER

This is a soundtrack of Jyoti’s daily life in Auroville related to the Covid lockdown experience that forced him to question what is essential in life. He composed this music as Atomic Phantom, his alias since the beginning of 2021, when he pursued composing music as part of his artistic endeavor. In spite of the social anxiety caused by the situation, for him, family life and connection with nature grew deeper than ever before.

Director, Script, Producer, Cinematographer, Editor: Jyoti Naoki Eri

Sound: Atomic Phantom

Production Company: Studio Eri

Email: jyoti [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://vimeo.com/603947712

Website: https://jyotinaokieri.com

SURGICAL MASKS

2019, Documentary, 3min, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Friday 21^st January, 16:40hrs – Cinema Paradiso

At the beginning of the first lockdown, Miniature, a unit of Auroville used their infrastructure to make 40000 surgical masks that were distributed in the community.

Director, Script, Editor, Cinematographer, Sound: Jeanluc B

Producer: Buro studio

E-mail: deburaud75 [at] gmail.com

Link: https://vimeo.com/409470782

TEMPLE TREE

2018, Documentary, 13min 3sec, English

Screening on: Friday 21^st January, 16:13hrs – Cinema Paradiso

This film shows the magical bark printing work of the international artist Birgitta Volz, who is living in Auroville. It is a documentary about her last exhibition held at the Pavilion of Tibetan Culture which featured prints of the bark of the Temple tree located in the premises. All the prints were made in the Auroville Art Camp 2019.

Director, Producer, Editor, Cinematographer: Marko Bosko

Script: Marko Bosko, Birgitta Volz

Music: Ivan Avakian

Production Company: Aurofilm Productions Team: Surya, Susana

Photography: Marco Saroldi, Konny Von Schmettau, Birgitta Volz

E-mail: kalabhumi.marko [at] gmail.com

Link: https://youtu.be/EnW5OSW29YE

THE MAKING OF AUROVILLE CITIZENS’ ASSEMBLY

2019, Documentary, 38min 5sec, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Wednesday 19^th January, 16:00hrs – SAIIER

Enjoy this animated meditation, listening and manifesting of the Auroville Citizen’s assembly with vision for the forthcoming years.

Director, Editor, Cinematographer, Sound, Producer, Script: Serena Aurora

Camera: Aurovenkatesh

Soundmix: Kardhash

Production Company: Aurora’s Eye Films

E-mail: serena_aurora [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OCBMlfeBlU

TRIBUTE TO THE SOUL OF GRATITUDE

2017, Documentary, 4min 24sec, Tamil (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Friday 21^st January, 16:43hrs – Cinema Paradiso

This movie is a tribute to the author’s loyal and beloved pet dog called Sweety.

Director, Script: Yatra Srinivassan

Producer: S. Adhilakshmi

Cinematographer: S. Yuvasri

Sound, Editing: S. Yuvasri

Voice Over: Yatra Srinivassan

Production Company: Yatra Talkies

Cast: S. Adhilakshmi, R. Rajaram, S. Priyadharshini, J. Jayabharathi, V. Priya, K. Krishnamoorthy, P.Rajasergar, Prasad Vimal Raj, R. Tamizhselvi, E. Prabhu, Shanmugam, R. Vasantha

E-mail: yatrasrinivassan [at] gmail.com

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elJLP5ZGYuQ

WHAT’S GOING ON IN AUROVILLE?

2019, Documentary, 7min 4sec, English (with English subtitles)

Screening on: Saturday 22^nd January, 16:00hrs – SAIIER

Auroville, an international township in South India, has people from over 60 different nationalities and more than 3000 residents. With this comes a huge diversity of arts, theatre, workshops, food, technology and much more. This short video shows just a few things that are happening in Auroville.

Director, Editor, Cinematographer, Sound, Producer: Serena Aurora

Production Company: Aurora’s Eye Films

Camera: Aurovenkatesh, Serena Aurora

Script: Aurora, Nikethana

Color grade: Aurovenkatesh

Voice Over: Nikethana

E-mail: serena_aurora [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiUhi_kuglU

WHITE MOUNTAIN

2018, Experimental, 4min 11sec, English

Screening on: Friday 21^st January, 16:27hrs – Cinema Paradiso

This music and video edit, is inspired by the movies of back country snowboarding of Jyoti’s long-time friends in Nagano, Japan. Many of them are internationally respected snowboarders. Jyoti had an opportunity to be part of this community and this experience remained in him as an inspiration for over two decades. In this Covid lockdown he had a chance to reconnect with these experiences and realize this idea.

Snowboarding is a rather recently established and recognized sport but it is quite profound as it requires a deep connection with nature and body especially when one rides inside the snowy forests.

This sport connects the music and subculture of present time, almost as a spiritual exercise to some.

Director, Script, Editor: Jyoti Naoki Eri

Cinematographer: Yone Film

Sound: Atomic Phantom

Cast: ASA 3000 a.k.a. Masashi Nishina

Production Company: Studio Eri, Auroville

E-mail: jyoti [at] auroville.org.in

Link: https://vimeo.com/567119328

Website: https://jyotinaokieri.com