Following the debut edition’s raging success last year, Emami Art Experimental Film Festival (EAEFF) returned as a five-day event from November 22 to 26. Conceived by Ushmita Sahu, director and head curator of Emami Art, this year, the scope of the festival grew to encompass 22 films in the competitive section by a jury of Indian filmmaker Ashish Avikunthak, Canadian experiential filmmaker and Professor of Film Production at NSCAD University, Solomon Nagler and EAEFF 23 festival director, Raju Roychowdhury.
Additionally, the jury selected two films, HYPNAGOGIA by Tushar Nongthombam from Imphal, Manipur, in the short to mid-duration category along with I Wonder If Daylights Were White Nights or Something Childish But Very Natural by Sibi Sekar from Chennai, Tamil Nadu in the long duration category for two awards of excellence. The films selected by the jury for the competitive section included Ankai-Tankai by Mansingh Chandravanshi, Baauji by Vikram Singh, Bela by Prantik Basu, Dustbin of a Middle-Class Family and Dustbin of a Politician by Parashar Naik, Flesh in Flux by Prerit Jain, among many others.
Filmmakers and cinephiles at the inauguration of Emami Art Experimental Film Festival
In the curated session, Indonesian artist and filmmaker Riar Rizaldi, brought a selection of films from Southeast Asia, focusing on Indonesia, that investigate, interpret, and create myths, either directly or indirectly, with various approaches. Mumbai and Berlin-based Harkat, an international boutique arts studio, brought a lecture screening, presenting short films from the lab and speaking about the context of the works. Solomon Nagler, Canadian experiential filmmaker and professor of film production at NSCAD University, curated an anthology of Canadian experimental films. German artist/filmmaker Wolfgang Lehmann was the EAEFF 23 Filmmaker in Focus and he presented a selection of films and two masterclasses.
Stills of films showcased at Emami Art Experimental Film Festival
The festival also saw a special screening of Argentinian experimental filmmaker and musician Claudio Caldini’s 2022 short film Promesa as a tribute to the master filmmaker.
“Emami Art Experimental Film Festival is envisioned as a discursive space for understanding moving images as an art form. In a country where films are integral to culture and society, there is a lacuna of platforms that recognise and support experimental, alternative, independent films that defy categorisation. The experiences of this part of the world and its various visual representations need serious recognition and appreciation. As a curator, I firmly believe that it is vital to have interdisciplinary dialogues for expanding any form of artistic practice and to have exposure to the contemporary experimental practices happening in our time,” said Ushmita Sahu, director and head curator of Emami Art.