Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof to chair Kerala film festival jury
What's the story
The 30th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) has announced its opening film, jury chairperson, and lifetime achievement award recipient. Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof, who recently faced legal issues in Iran and was forced into exile, will be the jury chair for the international competition. He will be joined by Spanish actor Angela Molina, Vietnamese filmmaker Bui Thac Chuyen, Malaysian filmmaker Edmund Yeo, and British-Indian filmmaker Sandhya Suri on the jury panel.
Festival highlights
'Palestine 36' and Abderrahmane Sissako's honor
The festival will kick off with Palestinian filmmaker Annemarie Jacir's Palestine 36. Mauritanian director Abderrahmane Sissako will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the event. Five of his films, Life on Earth (1999), Waiting for Happiness (2002), Bamako (2006), Timbuktu (2014), and Black Tea (2024), will be screened during the festival.
Jury details
FIPRESCI and NETPAC jury members announced for IFFK
The FIPRESCI (International Federation of Film Critics) jury at IFFK includes writer, publisher, and film programmer Christopher Small; film, television, and pop-culture critic Ashanti Omkar; and film critic-poet-translator Aparajita Pujari. Meanwhile, the NETPAC (pan-Asian film cultural organization) jury comprises director-editor-sound engineer Upali Gamlath and filmmaker-producer Supriya Suri. The festival will be held from December 12 to 19 in Thiruvananthapuram. The Kerala Film Market will take place from December 13 to 16.
Festival features
Special section celebrating past Golden Crow Pheasant winners
IFFK will also feature a special section dedicated to 16 past Golden Crow Pheasant winners, which is the festival's highest honor for cinematic excellence. Some of the films that will be screened include Flowers of Shanghai by Hou Hsiao-hsien, Ali Zaoua: Prince of the Streets by Nabil Ayouch, About Elly by Asghar Farhadi, Wajib by Annemarie Jacir, Clash by Mohamed Diab, and Ottal by Jayaraj.