The third edition of Guwahati International Film Festival (GIFF) got under way on Thursday with the screening of Iranian film Komur (Charcoal) at Srimanta Sankaradeva International Auditorium here.

The seven-day festival, organised by the state government-owned Jyoti Chitraban in association with the Dr Bhupen Hazarika Regional Government Film and Television Institute, will screen more than 100 films from around 65 countries.

Inaugurating the festival, Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal said it had brought global integration. “This is how filmmaking efforts have brought the world closer. I’m proud that this particular assembly has brought together luminaries from different parts of the world. I’m sure our young generation will get motivated with this kind of assembly,” he said.

Sonowal urged filmmakers, especially those present at the inaugural session, to shoot films in Assam.

Legendary Polish filmmaker Krzysztof Zanussi, who was the chief guest, said film festivals promote high art rather than regular cinema.

“Working in this profession for so many years, I have seen that films, over the years, have achieved something surprising. In many of its manifestations, filmmaking has reached a level of art which is not only popular but also belongs to the higher self. Film festivals promote high art rather than regular cinema. Festivals bring to the local people global cinema, which otherwise is not available to them,” Zanussi, 80, said.

Starting his speech on a funny note, the octogenarian said he was as old as the Assamese film industry. “I’m very happy and honoured that you invited me here. I wish you all success,” Zanussi added.

Zanussi, who was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 43rd International Film Festival of India (IFFI) at Goa in 2012, said he has visited India several times and was extremely proud that he had won the award in Goa.

Zanussi is one of the most important Polish auteurs of his generation. His erudite dramas chronicle the challenges of a post-war, educated class in Poland, grappling with the country’s radical change to communism, the burden of their forebearers and the development of society through the 20th century. Zanussi is a professor at the Silesian University in Katowice, Poland.

Manipuri filmmaker Aribam Syam Sharma, director Madhur Bhandarkar, actor Adil Hussain, Grammy award winner Ricky Kej, South Korean ambassador Shin Bong-kil, Taiwanese ambassador Chung-Kwang Tien and Hungarian ambassador Gyula Petho were present at the inaugural session.

The films to be screened at the festival have been divided in eight categories — World Cinema, Indian Showcase, Competition section, North-East Kaleidoscope, Tribute to playwright Girish Karnad and auteur Mrinal Sen, Retrospective section of Krzysztof Zanussi and 150 years of celebrating the Mahatma.