The International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) is not just about cinema. It is also about people behind the well-crafted films that the delegates get to see at the festival. The 16th edition of the festival plays host to a number of personae donning different avatars inside the world of cinema.
The 16th IFFK brings together filmmakers, producers, writers, and critics, either as jury members or as representatives of cinema from across the world. Some of the notable names in the long list of guests include Bruce Beresford, renowned Australian filmmaker and the jury chairman for the international competition section. Turkish director, playwright, and producer Semih Kaplanoglu, who has made a number of memorable documentaries, television series, and feature films, will also mark his presence at the festival. Four of his films will be screened under the Contemporary Master in Focus section.
Another personality is film journalist Aruna Vasudev, founder and president of the Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC), and editor-in-chief of Cinemaya , an Asian film magazine.
Veteran actor Madhu, who has also directed and produced a umber of films and who has been credited for many milestones in Malayalam cinema, will also be present. As many as seven of his most notable films will be screened in the retrospective section. Rahul Bose, in a new role as a jury member, will also grace the festival. His films, including I Am and Japanese Wife, have been screened at IFFK before. Dr. Biju, internationally acclaimed filmmaker from Kerala, is another person you would not want to miss at the festival. He also writes on cinema and media. His film Veettilekulla Vazhi was screened at the15th IFFK. Other filmmakers representing Indian films screened at the festival include Salini Usha Nair, director of Palas in Bloom , Ranjith, director of Pranchiyettan and the Saint , Samruoddhi Sanjay Porey, director of I Want to be a Mother , and Jayaraj, director of Pakarnattam .
