You
would find them in long queues – holding a pen
in one hand and juggling the festival schedule and
synopsis hand-book in the other – or else you’d
spot them sitting on the steps of the theatre entrances
in large groups strategizing how to catch as many
films possible – if not there you’d see
them at the tea-shop near the theatre discussing the
finer points of the films they’ve just seen.
These people are the life of any festival –
the visitors.
The
Kerala International Film Festival has close to 6,000
registered visitors out of which about a hundred are
international viewers. The diverse viewership is divided
in their opinions on everything – from the selection
of films at the festival to the facilities available.
Most
of them seem to agree that the selection of films
at the festival has improved as the years have gone
by. They enjoy the variety that has come to the festival.
Most visitors look forward to the foreign films and
were pleased to see that films from as far as Latin
America, Japan and Indonesia were up for grabs. But
altogether too many people are complaining that they
are yet to see an extraordinary film.
They
pick and choose their films in different ways. The
competition section is perhaps the most attractive
destination for most. “There is something more
thrilling about watching a competition film,”
feels Kripa, “And then there is always the fun
in casting your vote.”
Dr.
Nair on the other hand prefers to catch up on the
world cinema section or relies on recommendations
from friends and other cinema lovers. Arya finds the
festival hand-book insufficient and likes to do her
research on the Internet before she ventures to a
screening. Nostalgia is what attracts M. Harikumar
to the retrospective and contemporary masters’
section films. Melissa, a delegate from Canada, likes
to catch some of the good Indian films that are being
screened.
Till
6th day of the festival Blindness; everyone has either
already seen it or has been strongly recommended to
watch it. At its second screening on Wednesday, visitiors
had to be turned away as the theatre was full. Some
of the competition films including Postcards from
Leningrad, The Photograph and Refugee have also created
quite a buzz.
As
far as the organization of the festival is concerned,
the newly introduced reservation system is being hotly
debated and there is a clear divide between those
for it and against it. While some have learnt the
ropes and reserve their seats in advance, others find
fault with it. Dr Nair makes sure he books his daily
three shows. “You should have seen the long
queues and almost stampede situation at busy theatres
like Sree or Kairali last year,” he says.
K.
Gopalakrishanan on the other hand finds the reservation
system “foolish.” He thinks letting the
crowd half an hour before the screening instead of
just ten minutes before the beginning would take care
of the queues. S. Menon asks us to spare a thought
for the older generation who are not as familiar with
the computer and find it difficult to make bookings.
Arya
thinks that all this talk about reservations is much
ado about nothing, “It’s the new thing
at this festival so naturally everyone’s talking
about it.” Speaking of innovations at this year’s
festival, Aparna has complaints about the dedicated
auto-rickshaws that were introduced this year. “It’s
not working out, they’re difficult to find and
don’t always go where you want them to.”
The
turnout at the cinema houses has been incredible and
at times too much to manage for the organizers. Even
though most people are still waiting for an awe-inspiring
film that would define this festival, and despite
a few glitches with subtitles, projectors and blackouts
during screenings, everyone seems to be having fun.
Ananya
Dutta
© FIPRESCI 2008
