Jerusalem: All We Imagine as Light, the Grand Prix-winning Cannes title from Payal Kapadia, drew a packed house during its screening at the 2024 Jerusalem Film Festival (JFF).
The festival, which commenced from July 18, Sandhya Suri’s Santosh, which was screened under the Un Certain Regard section of 2024 Cannes Film Festival.
"I am proud to say that both the Indian entries - 'All We Imagine as Light' and 'Santosh' - are completely sold out. It is also great to see that both the films have been directed by women", a JFF official said at an event organised jointly with the Indian embassy.
Written and directed by Kapadia, All We Imagine as Light is an Indo-French co-production between petit chaos from France and Chalk and Cheese Films from India. It features an ensemble cast of Kani Kusruti, Divya Prabha, Chhaya Kadam, Hridhu Haroon and Azees Nedumangad.
The story is about Prabha, a nurse, and her roommate, Anu, who go on a road trip to a beach town where the mystical forest becomes a space for their dreams to manifest.
Ahead of the film's screening at the JFF, the Indian embassy also hosted a session on Incentives for Filming in India to lure storytellers from Israel to shoot their films and documentaries in the country, and to strengthen collaboration between the two nations.
Over 100 film enthusiasts, many among them filmmakers, attended the event to understand the various incentives available for co-productions or for filmmaking in India.
A short video, detailing the strengths of the Indian film industry -- one of the oldest and largest with a huge pool of resources, exceptional filming talent, 900 plus animation, visual effects, gaming and other facilities and over 1.8 lakhs professionals -- was showcased at the event.
Deputy Chief of Mission Rajiv Bodwade said the Indian government has significantly enhanced the cash incentives offered to foreign production companies to boost international content collaborations.
He outlined the cashback incentives offered by the Indian and various state governments, including possible tax rebates.
"There is a readily available ecosystem, and you can easily find a talent pool of technicians, crew members, audio-visual facilities, and various locations ready for filming," he added.
Under the scheme for foreign productions, up to 40 per cent of the expenses incurred in India, subject to a cap of USD 3.6 million, can be reimbursed to the producers.
India has co-production agreements with 16 countries, including Israel, and Bodwade announced that the first such collaboration involving renowned Israeli filmmaker Dan Wolman is completed and will be released soon.
Wolman's film, The Murderer with the Purple hair, is co-directed by Indian filmmaker Manju Bora and was shot in Assam.
It stars Shamin Mannan and Siddhart Goswami with Seema Biswas and Adil Hussain in guest roles.
Sharing his experience with the audience, Wolman said that "all the papers were prepared very swiftly by the Film Facilitation Office (FFO) and the Israeli ministry of culture".
"Guwahati sounds peripheral but we came there and found out that the equipment -- cameras, lighting, recording-- were top notch. Not in any way less than the kind of equipment that you find in New York, Paris or Tel Aviv," the Israeli filmmaker said.
"And the crew, Assamese photographers and all the other professionals, even the creative intellectual discussions I would say were a fantastic experience. The crew in India made us feel at home. They made us feel like a family," he added.
Yaron Kastori, another Israeli filmmaker present at the event, told PTI that he is looking to collaborate with Indian producers on a project.