Bengaluru: Despite their brief duration, short films can move the audience when made well. A one-minute film, screened at an edition of the Bengaluru International Short Film Festival (BISFF), poignantly spoke about the problem of privacy between a husband and wife in lower-middle class families.
Most filmmakers begin their journey with short films. Girish Kasaravalli’s first film Avashesh was a short. It was a student project from FTII. Martin Scorsese too made three shorts before his debut feature Who’s That Knocking at My Door.
Even today, many indie filmmakers start with short films to understand and experiment with the art of filmmaking, before going on to make full-fledged features.
Sujay Ghosh’s Ahalya, Jyothi Kapur Das’s Chutney, Naseeruddin Shah-starrer Int. Café: Night, Devashish Makhija’s Tandav, the seven Kannada short films in Kathasangama, and Shailaja Patindale’s Memories of a Machine are among some of the finest shorts made in India in recent times. However, short films have largely remained independent works with very less commercial value.
Anand Varadaraj is the founder and artistic director of BISFF, the only Oscar Academy qualifying festival for live-action fiction in India. He has been trying to find ways to improve the quality of filmmaking for about 14 years now.
Excerpts from an interview with Varadaraj:
How did the idea of a short film festival come to you?
At Suchitra Film Society, many filmmakers would screen their films. I was part of the committee of the Film Society and so would get invited to watch all the films being screened. While watching them, I and other committee members always felt these filmmakers had a lot to learn. Although they were good stories and ideas, the execution was below par and we could not point out the flaws in front of their family and friends. Once while talking to Prakash Belawadi, I told him how these kids need to be given proper feedback. So he suggested we invite filmmakers and give them feedback in a group. That’s how it started. We started in 2010 with about 30 films. They were very open to feedback and were also happy about it. Soon people started enquiring when we would host the next edition. That wasn’t something we were expecting. We told them we would have one the following year.
Then people started following up with us regularly saying they wanted to submit their film. It got bigger and then people started volunteering with us.
How did the festival get an Oscar accreditation?
In 2019, we got a call from Shorts TV. They are from the UK and wanted to cover the festival. We thought they were generally covering film festivals in India. But we realised they had done their research. Carter Pilcher, who heads Short TV, came down to attend the festival. He told me, ‘it’s very interesting that you’re the only ones in India hosting a film festival dedicated to short films for such a long time.’ He then said he wants to recommend us for the Oscar accreditation. We then applied and thought we would have to wait a couple of years. Interestingly, we got it the very next year. As of now, we are the only Oscar qualifying film festival in the fiction category in India.
The accreditation added a lot to the festival. We started with 30 films and one section, we’re now heading towards 3,000 plus submissions and eight sections. Post pandemic, we started a new model, the hybrid model — online and at the venues.
What are the challenges?
The biggest challenge is the submissions. The numbers are huge. We have a good number of people watching the films as primary jury members. Each film gets watched by at least two or three people. Also as the festival grows, the quality of the films are getting better every year. The filmmakers are improving their craft. Their editing skills, the cinematography, and the storytelling have been bolstered tremendously. So the selection is becoming challenging day by day. Having said that, it is heartening to see the competition.
Another challenge is bringing people to watch the films. We also struggle to get a good audience because we are a small festival and we need more support. We are also a self-funded festival and that in itself is a challenge.
Have you noticed a pattern in the kind of films you get every year? Do you find responses to the current socio-politics?
Yes, during Covid-19, we saw a lot of Covid stories. Some years ago, when there were LGBTQ discourses everywhere, it was the same. This year as well, we have received a lot of queer content. That is why we have started a new queer section this year called Queer Qorner.
What kind of a role has Prakash Belawadi played?
He’s been a mentor throughout and has given us some creative ideas. As he is a skilled actor and director, he offers accurate observations on emerging trends and what aspects of filmmaking need to be enhanced. For example, he insisted on doing a workshop about sync sound so people can learn its importance in cinema. When we started people were still shooting on reels. At the time, Prakash suggested filmmakers consider moving to digital. He explained why digital filmmaking is important and how editing plays a part. For most of the creative work on workshops and masterclasses, the advice comes from him.
With audiences having a very short attention span today, do you think short films can become the future of cinema viewing?
With more handheld devices coming in, I think short films have become more prominent today. The popularity of short videos and reels means we are watching more content on our phones or tabs. Short films are a great way to tell stories in a succinct way. Earlier, the runtime of most films used to be between 20 and 25 minutes. It has now come down to 12 to 15 minutes. Even the way the films are shot has changed. They have more close up shots, focussing on the character’s facial expressions because they know people are watching on handheld devices and can miss out on the details in a wide shot.
Short films act as a portfolio with which filmmakers can go and pitch for features or even web series.
I wouldn’t say shorts are the future but filmmaking started with short films. The way we consume short films is something that has to be discussed. Is there a way to monetise it, can someone make a career out of only short films? There is absolutely no monetary gain from what I see.
Must watch films at BISFF 2024
Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know
Dir: Chidananda S Naik
Time for Milking
Dir: Amit Kumar
Next, Please
Dir: Rishav Kapoor
Behrupiya - The Impersonator
Dir: Bhasker Vishwanathan
Lovely & Tip Top
Dir: Yuki Ellias
Dancing Girl
Dir : Ananthu S
Kodagana Koli Nungitta!
Dir: Thakshak
KGB (Kadamba Geleyara Balaga)
Dir: Mahishaa
Love and let love
Dir: Shailaja Padindala
Kannada Elri
Nishanth A
Distant
Dir: Nagbhushan Deshpandey
(The 14th edition of BISFF began online on August 8. Films will be screened at four different venues from August 16. Details on bisff.in)