Travelling Film South Asia 2010

Southasia and the World

The diverse and unifying package of Travelling Film South Asia 2010

The 12 touring documentaries of Travelling Film South Asia 2010 (TFSA ’10) are outstanding examples of non-fiction productions of the last two years from this part of Asia. They have been selected from the 35 documentaries screened in the competitive section of Film South Asia ’09, the ‘mother festival’, held in Kathmandu in September 2009. The selection has been carried out in consultation with FSA ’09’s three-member jury, chaired by Chennai-based cultural critic Sadanand Menon.

TFSA is a tradition which started with the first Film South Asia festival, held in September 1997. After each FSA festival, about a dozen films are selected to tour regionally and globally. There have been six TFSA tours thus far, each time going to an average 50 venues all over. Because of the high quality of the films selected for TFSA ’10, we are confident that this travelling festival will help further consolidate the audience as well as market for the Southasian non-fiction film. The TFSA ’10 package includes three of the award winners at FSA ’09, as well as other films selected to showcase the variety, treatment and intensity that today mark the world of Southasian non-fiction film.

Because of the drawing power of the present package, we expect TFSA ’10 to travel to many more cities and venues than in the past within the countries of Southasia, helping generate understanding and empathy among ourselves. At the same time, the travelling festival’s excursion overseas will provide the critical context required for others to understand ‘us’. As in the past, there is a charge for overseas screenings, while TFSA ’10 is available to organisers in Southasia at absolutely no charge.

The TFSA ’10 package travels with the willing authorisation of the individual filmmakers on the understanding that the screenings are ‘non-commercial’ (see next page for definition of the term). The FSA Secretariat encourages organisers, educators, academics and film enthusiasts in towns and cities large and small—all over—to consider hosting TFSA and bringing a taste of this at-once diverse and unifying package of documentaries to audiences in Southasia and in the world. The TFSA ’10 package is ideally screened together as a complete film festival. We have found that the package is also useful academically. Please note that one city can have more than one TFSA festival.

Film South Asia ’09
The seventh edition of the festival of Southasian documentaries, Film South Asia ’09, was held in Kathmandu from 17-20 September 2009. Veteran actor and social activist Shabana Azmi opened FSA ’09 together with Nepal’s Minister of Information and Communications Shankar Pokharel. Thirty-five films were screened, selected from 320 submitted. “Give me non-fiction” was the slogan of FSA ’09.

As with the previous two editions of the festival, FSA ’09 was held at a commercial duplex because of the ever-growing popularity of the festival. The response of the Kathmandu audience met the organisers’ expectations, with most of the screenings running to full houses. The success of FSA ’09 also confirmed our belief that the popularity of the Southasian documentary is registering a continuous upward swing and what is essential is the continuity in putting up festivals.

Hosting TFSA ’10
The TFSA ’10 package comes with the 12 films in professional-quality DVDs, TFSA posters and the touring festival catalogues. The festival package can be hosted by any organisation with the ability to organise a venue, do effective publicity and bring an audience of size and quality to do justice to the film package. The FSA secretariat insists that the TFSA package be shown through high-quality video projection systems. The 12 films, which vary significantly in length, are ideally screened over three consecutive afternoons-evenings, though a more flexible schedule may be considered. Together, the documentaries in the TFSA ’10 package add up to approximately 13 hours of viewing time.

Please note that the festival will only travel to cities where host organisations are willing to take full responsibility for publicity, screenings and all associated logistics. As per FSA’s agreement with the individual filmmakers and production houses, the screenings may only be non-commercial. This means that entry fees at TFSA can at best be used to offset screening costs, and no profits are to be generated for the host organisation. The host acknowledges that the films can be used for one-time public screening only. They may not be duplicated, broadcast, transmitted by cable or otherwise and be used strictly for educational purposes.

Costs
There is no charge levied on hosts and venues within Southasia. In order to defray all TFSA-related costs, an all-inclusive charge of USD 800 per venue is levied by the FSA Secretariat to all organisers overseas. (Any amount left over from the fee collection will go to the organisation of FSA ’11, slated for October 2011). The FSA Secretariat allows the package to remain with one host for a maximum of three weekends. The levy for academic institutions interested in keeping the package beyond the three-week period is USD 1200 all inclusive. The local host (whether in Southasia or overseas) takes the responsibility, at its own cost, of dispatching the package to the next venue as directed by the FSA Secretariat.

We encourage the TFSA hosts to raise the required funds to invite selected individual filmmakers to attend their festival. The contact details are available in the catalogue, or you can take help from the FSA Secretariat. Especially within Southasia, the host may also consider inviting an FSA official from Kathmandu, who will be able to introduce the festival before the local audience and also help promote the agenda of ‘more and better’ non-fiction film in our region.

The twelve films of TFSA ’10

Afghan Girls Can Kick (50’)
Afghanistan, 2007, dir - Bahareh Hosseini
The girls do kick well.

The Battle for Pakistan (40’)
Pakistan, 2009, dir – Maheen Zia
Do extremism and madrassas converge?

Come to My Country: Journeys with Kabir and Friends (98’)
India, 2008, dir – Shabnam Virmani
Unlikely bonds in quest for Kabir’s ‘country’.

Children of God (89’)
Nepal, 2008, dir – Yi Seung-jun
The kids of the Aryaghat cremation grounds.

In Search of the Riyal (86’)
Nepal, 2009, dir – Kesang Tseten
Deep study of Nepali migrants in the Gulf.

The Last Rites (17’)
Bangladesh, 2008, dir – Yasmine Kabir
Where the ships go to die.
Winner of the Ram Bahadur Trophy for Best Film at FSA ’09

Mayomi (50’)
Sri Lanka, 2008, dir – Carol Salter
Post-tsunami, she struggles for her family.

Out of Thin Air (50’)
India, 2009, dir – Samreen Farooqui & Shabani Hassanwalia
The high energy of Ladaki cinema.

The Promised Land (90’)
Bangladesh, 2008, dir – Tanvir Mokammel
Stigma still haunts Biharis in Dhaka.
Joint Winner of the Second Best Film Award at FSA ’09

Saamam (The Music) (42’)
India, 2009, dir – Ramachandran K
Homage to Carnatic music and M D Ramanathan.

The Salt Stories (84’)
India, 2008, dir – Lalit Vachani
Following Gandhi’s salt march in our time.
Joint Winner of the Second Best Film Award at FSA ’09

The Way of the Road (60’)
Nepal, 2009, dir – Ben Campbell & Cosmo Campbell
The new Nepal-Tibet road and the locals.

Contact
For booking, please contact TFSA Co-ordinator, Mallika Aryal at
+ 977-1-5552141 or email fsa@filmsouthasia.org.