Los Angeles, Feb 25 (Ians) Netflix, reports ‘Variety’, has acquired Nisha Pahuja’s Oscar-nominated documentary feature ‘To Kill a Tiger’, which tells the story of the father of a 13-year-old rape victim in Jharkhand and his long and lonely fight for justice.
The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2022 and was awarded best documentary at Palm Springs.
The 127-minute film charts the emotional journey of Ranjit, a farmer in Jharkhand, whose determined effort forces a social reckoning after his 13-year-old daughter is the victim of a gang rape, adds ‘Variety’.
Pahuja, who spent eight months making the film, is a New Delhi-born Canadian director who was previously in the news about her Emmy nomination for the documentary feature ‘The World Before Her’, which is about the complex and conflicting environment in which young girls grow up in India.
For the last six months, ‘To Kill a Tiger’ executive...
The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2022 and was awarded best documentary at Palm Springs.
The 127-minute film charts the emotional journey of Ranjit, a farmer in Jharkhand, whose determined effort forces a social reckoning after his 13-year-old daughter is the victim of a gang rape, adds ‘Variety’.
Pahuja, who spent eight months making the film, is a New Delhi-born Canadian director who was previously in the news about her Emmy nomination for the documentary feature ‘The World Before Her’, which is about the complex and conflicting environment in which young girls grow up in India.
For the last six months, ‘To Kill a Tiger’ executive...
- 2/25/2024
- by Agency News Desk
- GlamSham
Major news today for Oscar-nominee To Kill a Tiger. Actress Priyanka Chopra Jonas is joining the award-winning feature documentary as an executive producer, alongside Dev Patel, Mindy Kaling, and other bold-faced names. The news comes as Netflix inks a deal to launch the film globally on its platform soon.
“Priyanka has stood as an unwavering advocate for the film since debuting at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2022,” a release noted, “captivated by its poignant narrative depicting a father’s valiant struggle within the judicial system to secure justice for his daughter.”
Ranjit’s daughter in ‘To Kill a Tiger’
To Kill a Tiger, directed by Nisha Pahuja, has earned two dozen awards around the world, including Best Documentary at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, the Amplify Voices Award at TIFF, and Best Feature Documentary at the Canadian Screen Awards. Pahuja earned the 2023 Excellence in Documentary Award from the Directors Guild of Canada.
“Priyanka has stood as an unwavering advocate for the film since debuting at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2022,” a release noted, “captivated by its poignant narrative depicting a father’s valiant struggle within the judicial system to secure justice for his daughter.”
Ranjit’s daughter in ‘To Kill a Tiger’
To Kill a Tiger, directed by Nisha Pahuja, has earned two dozen awards around the world, including Best Documentary at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, the Amplify Voices Award at TIFF, and Best Feature Documentary at the Canadian Screen Awards. Pahuja earned the 2023 Excellence in Documentary Award from the Directors Guild of Canada.
- 2/24/2024
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
Netflix has acquired the Oscar-nominated documentary feature “To Kill a Tiger.”
The film, about a father’s pursuit of justice in rural India, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2022 and was awarded best documentary at the 2023 Palm Springs International Film Festival. “To Kill a Tiger” was, up until now, the only film this year to be nominated for the best feature doc Oscar without distribution.
Directed and written by New Delhi-born director Nisha Pahuja (“The World Before Her”), the 127-minute film charts the emotional journey of Ranjit, a farmer in Jharkhand, who forces a social reckoning after his 13-year-old daughter is the victim of a gang rape.
Variety‘s film critic Siddhant Adlakha wrote in his “To Kill a Tiger” review that the docu “is a powerful and risky example of the vitality of modern nonfiction filmed in South Asia. It joins recent films like “All That Breathes,...
The film, about a father’s pursuit of justice in rural India, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2022 and was awarded best documentary at the 2023 Palm Springs International Film Festival. “To Kill a Tiger” was, up until now, the only film this year to be nominated for the best feature doc Oscar without distribution.
Directed and written by New Delhi-born director Nisha Pahuja (“The World Before Her”), the 127-minute film charts the emotional journey of Ranjit, a farmer in Jharkhand, who forces a social reckoning after his 13-year-old daughter is the victim of a gang rape.
Variety‘s film critic Siddhant Adlakha wrote in his “To Kill a Tiger” review that the docu “is a powerful and risky example of the vitality of modern nonfiction filmed in South Asia. It joins recent films like “All That Breathes,...
- 2/24/2024
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
“Where is the hope?”
That was the question was posed last week at one of the world’s most prominent launch pads for nonfiction films in development — Hot Docs Pitch Forum — and it reflected the general mood in the room.
As 20 filmmaking teams pitched their projects to dozens of top decision-makers, funders, and broadcasters sitting around the long wooden table in the Gothic-designed Hart House at the University of Toronto, there was a particular excitement for new documentaries that were “fresh,” “optimistic” and “fun”—to use some of the words spoken publically over the two-day pitch-a-thon.
See MoreHow Hot Docs, North America’s Smartest Festival, Could Anoint an Oscar Winner
On the opposite end of the spectrum, you could see those same powerbrokers struggling over what to do with still essential, but tough issue-driven films having to do with post-revolutionary countries in the Middle East or the global refugee crisis.
That was the question was posed last week at one of the world’s most prominent launch pads for nonfiction films in development — Hot Docs Pitch Forum — and it reflected the general mood in the room.
As 20 filmmaking teams pitched their projects to dozens of top decision-makers, funders, and broadcasters sitting around the long wooden table in the Gothic-designed Hart House at the University of Toronto, there was a particular excitement for new documentaries that were “fresh,” “optimistic” and “fun”—to use some of the words spoken publically over the two-day pitch-a-thon.
See MoreHow Hot Docs, North America’s Smartest Festival, Could Anoint an Oscar Winner
On the opposite end of the spectrum, you could see those same powerbrokers struggling over what to do with still essential, but tough issue-driven films having to do with post-revolutionary countries in the Middle East or the global refugee crisis.
- 5/10/2017
- by Anthony Kaufman
- Indiewire
The St. Louis International Film Festival has announced the films nominated for the Awfj Eda Awards.
Awfj will partner once again with Sliff to recognize the Best Female-Directed Narrative Feature and Best Female-Directed Documentary. The 24th Annual Whitaker St. Louis International Film Festival will be held Nov. 5-15, 2015. Check out the full lineup here.
Here’s a glimpse of the films that have been selected:
Narratives
Fidelio: Alice’S Odyssey – Lucie Borleteau (France)
A rare woman in the man’s world of seafaring, 30-year-old Alice signs on as a replacement engineer on the freighter Fidélio. Although she loves her job and does it well, Alice remains a woman even when wearing greasy blue overalls, and there’s some doubt that the all-male crew will remain totally insensitive to her charms. The situation has further complications: Alice has a fiancé back on shore, but when she discovers that the Fidélio is captained by Gaël,...
Awfj will partner once again with Sliff to recognize the Best Female-Directed Narrative Feature and Best Female-Directed Documentary. The 24th Annual Whitaker St. Louis International Film Festival will be held Nov. 5-15, 2015. Check out the full lineup here.
Here’s a glimpse of the films that have been selected:
Narratives
Fidelio: Alice’S Odyssey – Lucie Borleteau (France)
A rare woman in the man’s world of seafaring, 30-year-old Alice signs on as a replacement engineer on the freighter Fidélio. Although she loves her job and does it well, Alice remains a woman even when wearing greasy blue overalls, and there’s some doubt that the all-male crew will remain totally insensitive to her charms. The situation has further complications: Alice has a fiancé back on shore, but when she discovers that the Fidélio is captained by Gaël,...
- 10/27/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Apart from being a world class filmmaker, Anurag Kashyap has supported a few films as a presenter, latest being the write-actor turned director-producer Zeishan Quadri’s upcoming film Meeruthiya Gangsters. Not only that Anurag has edited the film as well.
Zeishan had written Gangs Of Wasseypur (Gow), assisted Anurag on it and then acted in the same film where he played the popular character “Definite”.
When asked, Anurag informed that when he was invited by Zeishan to see the first cut of the film, he “kind of made an excuse because he was scared that he might not like it”.
“Then Vasan Bala (director of 2012 film, Peddlers) called me up, and said that he was blown by it. I saw it, and was not just surprised, but completely taken in. Vasan and I then sat with him, and gave him feedback. The film is funny, edgy, and contemporary,” added Anurag.
Zeishan had written Gangs Of Wasseypur (Gow), assisted Anurag on it and then acted in the same film where he played the popular character “Definite”.
When asked, Anurag informed that when he was invited by Zeishan to see the first cut of the film, he “kind of made an excuse because he was scared that he might not like it”.
“Then Vasan Bala (director of 2012 film, Peddlers) called me up, and said that he was blown by it. I saw it, and was not just surprised, but completely taken in. Vasan and I then sat with him, and gave him feedback. The film is funny, edgy, and contemporary,” added Anurag.
- 8/10/2015
- by Press Releases
- Bollyspice
Dukhtar, Margarita With A Straw and Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain among outstanding schedule of independent South Asian films to be screened as part of 17th annual Laff.
Organizers have announced the full roster of films and special events for this year’s London Asian Film Festival (Laff) – Europe’s oldest showcase for South Asian cinema.
The Festival takes place across London from 19 March to 28 March and features a string of exciting and acclaimed independent feature films, master classes, special screenings, debates and the Festival’s celebrated short films competition.
This year’s Festival highlights include critically acclaimed films such as Margarita With A Straw, Bhopal – A Prayer for Rain, Dukhtar, Rang Rasiya, The World Before Her and Haider.
The 17th edition London Asian Film Festival is once again organized by Tongues on Fire, which has built an unparalleled reputation for promoting independent cinema as well as providing a showcase for female filmmakers.
Organizers have announced the full roster of films and special events for this year’s London Asian Film Festival (Laff) – Europe’s oldest showcase for South Asian cinema.
The Festival takes place across London from 19 March to 28 March and features a string of exciting and acclaimed independent feature films, master classes, special screenings, debates and the Festival’s celebrated short films competition.
This year’s Festival highlights include critically acclaimed films such as Margarita With A Straw, Bhopal – A Prayer for Rain, Dukhtar, Rang Rasiya, The World Before Her and Haider.
The 17th edition London Asian Film Festival is once again organized by Tongues on Fire, which has built an unparalleled reputation for promoting independent cinema as well as providing a showcase for female filmmakers.
- 3/18/2015
- by Press Releases
- Bollyspice
Mumbai-based filmmaker Chaitanya Tamhane’s debut feature film Court recently had a world premiere at the coveted Venice Film Festival. The film, that follows a court case in which a folk singer is tried for abetting the suicide of a manhole worker with his inflammatory song, has been acquired by Artscope, the art film label of Paris-based Memento Films.
Tamhane earlier made a short film Six Strands which screened at several film festivals including Clermont-Ferrand, Slamdance, Edinburgh and Rotterdam.
Bikas Mishra talks to Chaitanya Tamhane about the journey of Court.
How did the journey of Court begin?
I had just finished my short film Six Strands and it was doing the festival rounds. That’s when the idea of Court came to me, in 2011. I’m not a big fan of genre films. But it struck me that I have seen these courtroom dramas which are so articulate and smooth.
Tamhane earlier made a short film Six Strands which screened at several film festivals including Clermont-Ferrand, Slamdance, Edinburgh and Rotterdam.
Bikas Mishra talks to Chaitanya Tamhane about the journey of Court.
How did the journey of Court begin?
I had just finished my short film Six Strands and it was doing the festival rounds. That’s when the idea of Court came to me, in 2011. I’m not a big fan of genre films. But it struck me that I have seen these courtroom dramas which are so articulate and smooth.
- 9/6/2014
- by Bikas Mishra
- DearCinema.com
Indian producer-distributor Phantom Films has picked up local award-winning documentary Powerless (Katiyabaaz) and will release the film this weekend on 30 screens.
Directed by Deepti Kakkar and Fahad Mustafa, the film explores issues such as power supply and bureaucracy through the story of a charismatic electricity thief who supplies his neighbours with illegal power lines. Over the course of a sweltering summer, he takes on local officials including the first female managing director of the Kanpur Electricity Supply Company.
After premiering at the Berlin film festival in 2013, the film travelled to more than 50 festivals and won an Indian National Award for best investigative film. It also won the top award in the India Gold competition at the Mumbai Film Festival last October.
Powerless opens on August 22 on 30 screens across India’s major cities. Several Indian documentaries have recently managed to secure a theatrical release, including The World Before Her, Gulabi Gang, Supermen Of Malegoan...
Directed by Deepti Kakkar and Fahad Mustafa, the film explores issues such as power supply and bureaucracy through the story of a charismatic electricity thief who supplies his neighbours with illegal power lines. Over the course of a sweltering summer, he takes on local officials including the first female managing director of the Kanpur Electricity Supply Company.
After premiering at the Berlin film festival in 2013, the film travelled to more than 50 festivals and won an Indian National Award for best investigative film. It also won the top award in the India Gold competition at the Mumbai Film Festival last October.
Powerless opens on August 22 on 30 screens across India’s major cities. Several Indian documentaries have recently managed to secure a theatrical release, including The World Before Her, Gulabi Gang, Supermen Of Malegoan...
- 8/12/2014
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
Known for some unconventional cinema, Phantom recently celebrated success with films like Queen and Hasee Toh Phasee. And now the production house will soon be presenting the documentary Katiyabaaz. Though in an individual capacity, Anurag Kashyap has been involved with acclaimed documentaries like The World Before Her and Superman of Malegaon, but, for the production house it's a maiden attempt. Vikramaditya Motwane will be spearheading the project. Katiyabaaz is the story of electricity theft in Kanpur. It has been showcased at various film festivals and has won a lot of awards. After garnering all the appreciation and critical acclaim overseas, the makers Deepti Kakkar and Fahad Mustafa will be releasing it in India on August 22. The trailer launch of Katiyabaaz will be held on July 22 in Mumbai.
- 7/21/2014
- by Bollywood Hungama News Network
- BollywoodHungama
Nisha Pahuja
A few days ago, on my way back to the suburbs from South Mumbai, I witnessed the worst pollution I’ve seen in India. Just below the Bandra flyover some work had shrouded the area in a dense, chemical fog. Shadowy people emerged ghost-like, cars were swallowed whole and the moment was as beautiful as it was haunting.
I asked my driver to let me out. I wasn’t sure what I was looking for, all I had was my iphone and not much in the way of skill — but there was something about that scene I wanted to capture and so I sat on a ledge and waited.
The fumes were oppressive and the heat stifling; but both my mind and body were alert and filled with the hope of witnessing and capturing some kind of a transcendent moment. That moment never came. Or if it did,...
A few days ago, on my way back to the suburbs from South Mumbai, I witnessed the worst pollution I’ve seen in India. Just below the Bandra flyover some work had shrouded the area in a dense, chemical fog. Shadowy people emerged ghost-like, cars were swallowed whole and the moment was as beautiful as it was haunting.
I asked my driver to let me out. I wasn’t sure what I was looking for, all I had was my iphone and not much in the way of skill — but there was something about that scene I wanted to capture and so I sat on a ledge and waited.
The fumes were oppressive and the heat stifling; but both my mind and body were alert and filled with the hope of witnessing and capturing some kind of a transcendent moment. That moment never came. Or if it did,...
- 7/21/2014
- by Nisha Pahuja
- DearCinema.com
Documentary The World Before Her, directed by Nisha Pahuja, earned the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) an Emmy nomination in Outstanding Coverage of a Current News Story category.
The nominations for the 35th annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards, known as the Academy awards of American television, were announced on Tuesday. The awards will be presented on September 30, 2014.
The World Before Her, which had a successful run in major cities of India starting June 6, is scheduled for release in Chandigarh on July 18.
The documentary shifts between the worlds of the Miss India pageant and a Hindu fundamentalist camp for girls. In one, Ruhi Singh is a small-town girl competing in Bombay to win the Miss India pageant—her ticket to stardom. In the other India, Prachi Trivedi is a young, militant leader at a camp for girls run by the Durga Vahini, the women’s wing of the Vhp. Here she...
The nominations for the 35th annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards, known as the Academy awards of American television, were announced on Tuesday. The awards will be presented on September 30, 2014.
The World Before Her, which had a successful run in major cities of India starting June 6, is scheduled for release in Chandigarh on July 18.
The documentary shifts between the worlds of the Miss India pageant and a Hindu fundamentalist camp for girls. In one, Ruhi Singh is a small-town girl competing in Bombay to win the Miss India pageant—her ticket to stardom. In the other India, Prachi Trivedi is a young, militant leader at a camp for girls run by the Durga Vahini, the women’s wing of the Vhp. Here she...
- 7/16/2014
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Documentary film, more than any other film form, is beset with social responsibility. Once it was a tool of power, but it has long spoken truth to that power. For the films that do rise to the task, there is a burden on the viewers to ignite the conversation. At least. Without that, a documentary film is a tree falling in the forest.
Nisha Pahuja’s film, The World Before Her, is that rare intervention in the contemporary moment that does not end when the credits roll. It leaves much on your shoulders. As a simple juxtaposition of two narratives of India, it is a fine technical, formal achievement. There is Prachi Trivedi, a leader in the camp organized by Durga Vahini, the women’s wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad. She has been spending a week a year as a trainer for most of her grown up life. Entirely...
Nisha Pahuja’s film, The World Before Her, is that rare intervention in the contemporary moment that does not end when the credits roll. It leaves much on your shoulders. As a simple juxtaposition of two narratives of India, it is a fine technical, formal achievement. There is Prachi Trivedi, a leader in the camp organized by Durga Vahini, the women’s wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad. She has been spending a week a year as a trainer for most of her grown up life. Entirely...
- 6/6/2014
- by Shekhar Deshpande
- DearCinema.com
The World Before Her, which is slated for a June 6 release in India, has not only won accolades at major film festivals but also had a successful run in theatres in North-America. Being touted as “the most important film of the year” in India, it brings us the story of Miss India pageant contestants on one hand, and participants of Hindu right wing women’s organization, Durga Vahini Camps, on the other.
Shazia Javed does an in-depth interview with the film’s director Nisha Pahuja:
It is still rare for a documentary film to get a theatrical release in India. Was it challenging to bring your film to Indian theatres?
It has taken me well over a year to create enough interest and momentum for a theatrical release, to get it organized, and to ensure that it’s successful. A lot of documentaries that are released in India just come and go.
Shazia Javed does an in-depth interview with the film’s director Nisha Pahuja:
It is still rare for a documentary film to get a theatrical release in India. Was it challenging to bring your film to Indian theatres?
It has taken me well over a year to create enough interest and momentum for a theatrical release, to get it organized, and to ensure that it’s successful. A lot of documentaries that are released in India just come and go.
- 6/5/2014
- by Shazia Javed
- DearCinema.com
Nisha Pahuja’s award-winning documentary The World Before Her is releasing in India on June 6 through PVR Director’s Rare in eight cities: Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Pune, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Chennai and Hyderabad. The film is being presented by Anurag Kashyap.
The film received its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2012 where it won the Best Documentary Award. Since then, the film has screened at more than 125 International film festivals and won 19 awards.
The filmmaker recently ran a successful crowdfunding campaign to bring the film to the Indian audiences. The campaign raised Rs. 31 lakhs on crowdfunding website Kickstarter.
The World Before Her shifts between the worlds of the Miss India pageant and a Hindu fundamentalist camp for girls. In one, Ruhi Singh is a small-town girl competing in Bombay to win the Miss India pageant—her ticket to stardom. In the other India, Prachi Trivedi is a young, militant...
The film received its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2012 where it won the Best Documentary Award. Since then, the film has screened at more than 125 International film festivals and won 19 awards.
The filmmaker recently ran a successful crowdfunding campaign to bring the film to the Indian audiences. The campaign raised Rs. 31 lakhs on crowdfunding website Kickstarter.
The World Before Her shifts between the worlds of the Miss India pageant and a Hindu fundamentalist camp for girls. In one, Ruhi Singh is a small-town girl competing in Bombay to win the Miss India pageant—her ticket to stardom. In the other India, Prachi Trivedi is a young, militant...
- 5/15/2014
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
New Delhi, April 23: Anurag Kashyap recently presented the first look of award-winning documentary 'The World before Her' to raise funds for the movie's nationwide campaign.
On the occasion Kashyap said, "When I saw this, it impacted me immensely and makes you think of what are we doing. We have come to that point where we make the women believe that for her to be someone or empower herself, she either needs to get into the general idea of being beautiful or using violence as a mean.
The film is based on former Miss India Pooja Chopra, who said, "It's a heavily emotional moment for me as it's my story, and more than.
On the occasion Kashyap said, "When I saw this, it impacted me immensely and makes you think of what are we doing. We have come to that point where we make the women believe that for her to be someone or empower herself, she either needs to get into the general idea of being beautiful or using violence as a mean.
The film is based on former Miss India Pooja Chopra, who said, "It's a heavily emotional moment for me as it's my story, and more than.
- 4/23/2014
- by Machan Kumar
- RealBollywood.com
The Kickstarter campaign for Nisha Pahuja’s award-winning documentary, The World Before Her, ended successfully on Sunday, surpassing its goal of 50,000 Canadian dollars. The documentary raised a total of 57,290 Canadian dollars (approx. Inr 31 lakhs) with the support of 382 backers from all over the world.
The money will be used for the India campaign to screen the film across the country and raise awareness on women’s rights issues. Being presented by Anurag Kashyap, the film will be screened in schools, universities, villages, NGOs and online.
Pahuja said, “I am thrilled that we reached our target. Only 44% of Kickstarter projects are successful and most of those are under the 10k level. Our success is a testament to people’s belief in what we are doing and a desire to stand up for women’s rights.”
“What was fascinating about our campaign is that a lot of support for our page came...
The money will be used for the India campaign to screen the film across the country and raise awareness on women’s rights issues. Being presented by Anurag Kashyap, the film will be screened in schools, universities, villages, NGOs and online.
Pahuja said, “I am thrilled that we reached our target. Only 44% of Kickstarter projects are successful and most of those are under the 10k level. Our success is a testament to people’s belief in what we are doing and a desire to stand up for women’s rights.”
“What was fascinating about our campaign is that a lot of support for our page came...
- 4/14/2014
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Mumbai, March 22: Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap has come on board to present award-winning documentary "The World Before Her", joining others like Shimit Amin, Nandita Das, Deepa Mehta and Lisa Ray to raise funds for the movie's nationwide campaign ahead of its April 25 release.
"I love this film and had heard about it a long time back. I want to make sure it gets to as wide an audience as possible. That is why I decided to get behind it. It is the first documentary I have launched and it feels like a narrative film," said the acclaimed director, who supports offbeat projects.
A six-month nationwide campaign for the movie.
"I love this film and had heard about it a long time back. I want to make sure it gets to as wide an audience as possible. That is why I decided to get behind it. It is the first documentary I have launched and it feels like a narrative film," said the acclaimed director, who supports offbeat projects.
A six-month nationwide campaign for the movie.
- 3/22/2014
- by Leon David
- RealBollywood.com
Nisha Pahuja’s award-winning documentary The World Before Her will release in India on April 25, 2014. The film will hit the screens in 6 cities – Bombay, Delhi, Kolkata, Pune, Ahmedabad and Bangalore – through PVR Director’s Rare.
Prior to the release, the filmmaker has launched a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter to be able to screen the film across India through other channels besides theatrical release. Starting March, Pahuja intends to screen the documentary in schools, universities, villages, NGOs and online in the next six months.
With 38 days to go, the campaign has already raised Cad $ 4873 from 23 supporters. To contribute to The World Before Her, click here.
The award winning documentary which premiered at Tribeca Film Festival in 2012 has been screened in more than 125 film festivals across the world. Read our interview with Nisha Pahuja here.
It won over 19 awards including best documentary feature at Tribeca Film Festival 2012, best Canadian Feature at Hot...
Prior to the release, the filmmaker has launched a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter to be able to screen the film across India through other channels besides theatrical release. Starting March, Pahuja intends to screen the documentary in schools, universities, villages, NGOs and online in the next six months.
With 38 days to go, the campaign has already raised Cad $ 4873 from 23 supporters. To contribute to The World Before Her, click here.
The award winning documentary which premiered at Tribeca Film Festival in 2012 has been screened in more than 125 film festivals across the world. Read our interview with Nisha Pahuja here.
It won over 19 awards including best documentary feature at Tribeca Film Festival 2012, best Canadian Feature at Hot...
- 3/6/2014
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
India and Canada have signed a co-production agreement, wrapping up talks that have been on-going since 2010.
The agreement was signed in New Delhi by India’s Information & Broadcasting Secretary Bimal Julka, and Canada’s High Commissioner to India, Stuart Beck, during the visit of Canada’s Governor General David Johnston to India.
Co-productions made under the agreement will have access to Canadian subsidies and tax breaks and also be eligible for India’s National Film Awards and the Indian Panorama section of the International Film Festival of India (Iffi). India also has some government assistance available to filmmakers.
India’s Ministry of Information & Broadcasting also said that the treaty could lead to more Canadian films shooting in India. “The agreement will also lead to the transparent funding of film production and will boost export of Indian films into the Canadian market,” the I&B Ministry said in a statement.
India already has co-production treaties with the UK...
The agreement was signed in New Delhi by India’s Information & Broadcasting Secretary Bimal Julka, and Canada’s High Commissioner to India, Stuart Beck, during the visit of Canada’s Governor General David Johnston to India.
Co-productions made under the agreement will have access to Canadian subsidies and tax breaks and also be eligible for India’s National Film Awards and the Indian Panorama section of the International Film Festival of India (Iffi). India also has some government assistance available to filmmakers.
India’s Ministry of Information & Broadcasting also said that the treaty could lead to more Canadian films shooting in India. “The agreement will also lead to the transparent funding of film production and will boost export of Indian films into the Canadian market,” the I&B Ministry said in a statement.
India already has co-production treaties with the UK...
- 2/25/2014
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
India and Canada have signed a co-production agreement, wrapping up talks that have been on-going since 2010.
The agreement was signed in New Delhi by India’s Information & Broadcasting Secretary Bimal Julka, and Canada’s High Commissioner to India, Stuart Beck, during the visit of Canada’s Governor General David Johnston to India.
Co-productions made under the agreement will have access to Canadian subsidies and tax breaks and also be eligible for India’s National Film Awards and the Indian Panorama section of the International Film Festival of India (Iffi). India also has some government assistance available to filmmakers.
India’s Ministry of Information & Broadcasting also said that the treaty could lead to more Canadian films shooting in India. “The agreement will also lead to the transparent funding of film production and will boost export of Indian films into the Canadian market,” the I&B Ministry said in a statement.
India already has co-production treaties with the UK...
The agreement was signed in New Delhi by India’s Information & Broadcasting Secretary Bimal Julka, and Canada’s High Commissioner to India, Stuart Beck, during the visit of Canada’s Governor General David Johnston to India.
Co-productions made under the agreement will have access to Canadian subsidies and tax breaks and also be eligible for India’s National Film Awards and the Indian Panorama section of the International Film Festival of India (Iffi). India also has some government assistance available to filmmakers.
India’s Ministry of Information & Broadcasting also said that the treaty could lead to more Canadian films shooting in India. “The agreement will also lead to the transparent funding of film production and will boost export of Indian films into the Canadian market,” the I&B Ministry said in a statement.
India already has co-production treaties with the UK...
- 2/25/2014
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
Last night, when Nina Davuluri became the first Indian-American to be crowned Miss America, Twitter erupted in hateful commentary. Hideous monikers -- “Miss Arab,” “Miss Al-Qaeda,” “Miss 7-11” -- and ugly rhetoric proliferated. “This is America,” some wrote, as if by way of explanation. But in Nisha Pahuja’s brilliant documentary “The World Before Her,” airing September 16 on PBS, the controversial politics of pageantry transcend borders, including those of India itself. The film is, at first glance, a tale of two roads diverged in the uncertain woods of the modern subcontinent. Twenty young women arrive in Mumbai to compete for the lucrative title of Miss India, submitting to a rigorous, month-long beauty boot camp. Pahuja depicts Botox injections and skin whitening procedures, material obsessions and Bollywood dreams: a discomfiting portrait of the “independence” and “respect” the camp’s diction coach claims the pageant ensures. “It’s a manufacturing unit,” she says.
- 9/16/2013
- by Matt Brennan
- Thompson on Hollywood
The 13th edition of the Open Frame festival organised by the Public Service Broadcasting Trust (Psbt) will be held from September 11 – 21, 2013. The event focuses on the documentaries made by women, on women. The festival aims to inspire, encourage and bring about awareness on women’s issues through discussions and conversations between the audiences and the filmmakers. The festival will be held at the India International Centre, New Delhi.
For more details see here.
The festival is divided in two parts: a) Film screening and discussions, b) Workshops
Workshops:
Film Appreciation Workshops: Film Appreciation by Prof. Suresh and Documentary Film Appreciation by Prof. Ajit Duara
Intensive Filmmaking Workshops: Aesthetics For Non-Fiction Filmmaking by Prof. Ajit Duara, Essentials Of Documentary Filmmaking by Rajiv Mehrotra and Aspects Of Documentary – Facts And Fictions by Sameera Jain
List of films:
13 September, Friday
10:00 Am – Beyond Women’s Stereotypes
Director: Bindu Nair / India / 2004
10:45 Am – The Grey Area...
For more details see here.
The festival is divided in two parts: a) Film screening and discussions, b) Workshops
Workshops:
Film Appreciation Workshops: Film Appreciation by Prof. Suresh and Documentary Film Appreciation by Prof. Ajit Duara
Intensive Filmmaking Workshops: Aesthetics For Non-Fiction Filmmaking by Prof. Ajit Duara, Essentials Of Documentary Filmmaking by Rajiv Mehrotra and Aspects Of Documentary – Facts And Fictions by Sameera Jain
List of films:
13 September, Friday
10:00 Am – Beyond Women’s Stereotypes
Director: Bindu Nair / India / 2004
10:45 Am – The Grey Area...
- 9/7/2013
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
10th Indian film festival Stuttgart has announced its selection. The festival will take place from July 17 to 21 in the German city of Stuttgart.
Here is the complete list of films to be screened at the festival:-
Ashok Rane’s doucmentay Being with Apu
Blood Brothers by Steve Hoover
Dancing Colours by Stuttgart Media University students
Liv & Ingmar by Dheeraj Akolkar
Much Ado about Knotting by Geetika Narang Abbasi and Anandana Kapur
No Problem! 6 Months with the Barefoot Grandmamas by Yasmin Kidwai
Powerless by Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar
Resonance of Mother’s Melody by Dip Bhuyan
Salma by Kim Longinotto
The Human Factor by Rudradeep Bhattacharjee
The World Before her by Nisha Pahuja
Bombay Talkies by Anurag Kashyap, Dibakar Banerjee, Karan Johar and Zoya Akhtar
Shahid by Hansal Mehta
Chokher Bali by Rituparno Ghosh
Bawdi – The Well by Viver Soni
Paroksh by Kuldip Patel
Thaambadhyam by Yugandhara Muthukrishnan
Umbartha by...
Here is the complete list of films to be screened at the festival:-
Ashok Rane’s doucmentay Being with Apu
Blood Brothers by Steve Hoover
Dancing Colours by Stuttgart Media University students
Liv & Ingmar by Dheeraj Akolkar
Much Ado about Knotting by Geetika Narang Abbasi and Anandana Kapur
No Problem! 6 Months with the Barefoot Grandmamas by Yasmin Kidwai
Powerless by Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar
Resonance of Mother’s Melody by Dip Bhuyan
Salma by Kim Longinotto
The Human Factor by Rudradeep Bhattacharjee
The World Before her by Nisha Pahuja
Bombay Talkies by Anurag Kashyap, Dibakar Banerjee, Karan Johar and Zoya Akhtar
Shahid by Hansal Mehta
Chokher Bali by Rituparno Ghosh
Bawdi – The Well by Viver Soni
Paroksh by Kuldip Patel
Thaambadhyam by Yugandhara Muthukrishnan
Umbartha by...
- 6/19/2013
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
You might assume that the "her" in the title of Nisha Pahuja's documentary refers to the female subjects, but it could also refer to the country of India. The World Before Her presents us with an Indian nation that is at a crossroads, stuck with the decision to either follow the path of the ever-expanding western world and modernize or remain firmly grounded in its traditional ways. It is the classic dilemma of choosing between the old world and the new world. Most of the world had presumably already chosen their path before India got to this point, but now the young people of India are trying to force their country to make a decision. Pahuja's film looks at two opposing extremes of this debate: Miss India contestants and Durga Vahini students. The Miss India contestants crave a modernized India in which women can achieve financial independence from the male-dominated society.
- 5/12/2013
- by Don Simpson
- SmellsLikeScreenSpirit
After watching the young beauties competing for the title of Miss India suffer Botox injections, skin-whitening cleanses, and the shouts of a choreographer who demands they "now try not to sound like elephants," Western viewers of Nisha Pahuja's vital, unsettling doc The World Before Her aren't likely to be ready to see pageant queens as progressive idealists. But Pahuja contrasts these fussed-over ingenues with the education other young women face in a camp run by Hindu nationalists: "Is it really necessary to leave your homes just for your egos and go chasing a career?" they're asked. "Can you really hide your natural weakness of character?" That makes the pageant stuff easier to take—especially later, when a contestant is asked on a TV broadcast what she would do if she ...
- 5/10/2013
- Village Voice
Still from Powerless
Powerless directed by Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar will compete in the World Documentary Competition at Tribeca Film Festival 2013. The festival will run from April 17 – 28, 2013.
The 12 competing films will vie for the Heineken Audience Award, Best New Director, Best Documentary Feature, Best Documentary Short and the Best Editing awards in ‘World Documentary Competition’ section.
Powerless traces the city of Kanpur that has 15-hour power cuts. Hundreds of people steal electricity, amidst high risks, to meet their needs. The real trouble starts with the entry of the first female chief of the electricity company who vows to wipe out all illegal connections. The film received a grant from Sundance Institute’s Documentary Film Program and Fund in 2012 and was screened in Berlinale Forum 2013.
Last year, Nisha Pahuja’s The World Before Her won the Best Documentary Feature at Tribeca.
Besides, Mira Nair’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist (India, Pakistan,...
Powerless directed by Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar will compete in the World Documentary Competition at Tribeca Film Festival 2013. The festival will run from April 17 – 28, 2013.
The 12 competing films will vie for the Heineken Audience Award, Best New Director, Best Documentary Feature, Best Documentary Short and the Best Editing awards in ‘World Documentary Competition’ section.
Powerless traces the city of Kanpur that has 15-hour power cuts. Hundreds of people steal electricity, amidst high risks, to meet their needs. The real trouble starts with the entry of the first female chief of the electricity company who vows to wipe out all illegal connections. The film received a grant from Sundance Institute’s Documentary Film Program and Fund in 2012 and was screened in Berlinale Forum 2013.
Last year, Nisha Pahuja’s The World Before Her won the Best Documentary Feature at Tribeca.
Besides, Mira Nair’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist (India, Pakistan,...
- 3/7/2013
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Cinereach is an innovative new force for good works in the independent film community. This not-for-profit film production company and foundation that champions vital stories, artfully told, was created and led by young philanthropists, entrepreneurs and filmmakers, Cinereach supports fiction and nonfiction filmmakers from all over the world through its Productions, Grants & Awards and Fellowships initiatives, and through partnerships with Sundance Institute’s programs. Cinereach has supported over 100 films in the Us and internationally, including Circumstance, Pariah, The World Before Her, Planet of Snail, Girl Model, Code of the West and many more. Cinereach Production Beasts of the Southern Wild was released in the Us in 2012 by Fox Searchlight Pictures, and is nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
After collaborating with Cinereach for many years on films including Benh Zeitlin’s four time Academy Award nominated film, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Joshua Marston’s The Forgiveness of Blood, and Tom Gilroy’s The Cold Lands (premiering at the 2013 Berlin Film Festival), Paul Mezey has signed on as Producer in Residence at the not-for-profit production company and foundation. Mezey will support development, production and distribution of Cinereach’s productions, as well as being involved in the organization’s grant-making activities and other key initiatives.
Mezey is the founder of Journeyman Pictures, through which he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and award winning films including Maria Full of Grace (2005 Academy Award Nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role) and Half Nelson (2007 Academy Award Nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role).
Cinereach offers each of its productions a custom support framework adapted to its unique needs. This flexible continuum of financing, guidance and infrastructure encourages filmmakers like Beasts of the Southern Wild’s Benh Zeitlin to take essential creative risks. Mezey has been a key architect of this producing approach and, as Producer in Residence, will guide the organization as it continues to evolve.
“Paul has influenced so much of how we approach our work at Cinereach already,” said Cinereach’s founder and Executive Director Philipp Engelhorn. “We look forward to a more holistic collaboration with Paul, and further benefiting from his tremendous experience and courageous independent spirit.”
“Working with Cinereach has been a transformative experience,“ states Mezey. “There is pure dedication to creating the conditions under which filmmakers can flourish and fulfill the full ambition of their work. As a creative producer, I know that our interests are aligned at every step and I am excited to continue to help build a model that can bring surprising and unexpected films to the screen.”...
After collaborating with Cinereach for many years on films including Benh Zeitlin’s four time Academy Award nominated film, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Joshua Marston’s The Forgiveness of Blood, and Tom Gilroy’s The Cold Lands (premiering at the 2013 Berlin Film Festival), Paul Mezey has signed on as Producer in Residence at the not-for-profit production company and foundation. Mezey will support development, production and distribution of Cinereach’s productions, as well as being involved in the organization’s grant-making activities and other key initiatives.
Mezey is the founder of Journeyman Pictures, through which he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and award winning films including Maria Full of Grace (2005 Academy Award Nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role) and Half Nelson (2007 Academy Award Nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role).
Cinereach offers each of its productions a custom support framework adapted to its unique needs. This flexible continuum of financing, guidance and infrastructure encourages filmmakers like Beasts of the Southern Wild’s Benh Zeitlin to take essential creative risks. Mezey has been a key architect of this producing approach and, as Producer in Residence, will guide the organization as it continues to evolve.
“Paul has influenced so much of how we approach our work at Cinereach already,” said Cinereach’s founder and Executive Director Philipp Engelhorn. “We look forward to a more holistic collaboration with Paul, and further benefiting from his tremendous experience and courageous independent spirit.”
“Working with Cinereach has been a transformative experience,“ states Mezey. “There is pure dedication to creating the conditions under which filmmakers can flourish and fulfill the full ambition of their work. As a creative producer, I know that our interests are aligned at every step and I am excited to continue to help build a model that can bring surprising and unexpected films to the screen.”...
- 1/25/2013
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
While funding and distribution in India still remain a herculean challenge, 2012 seems to have slightly bettered the prospects for Indian documentaries. At par with their fiction film cousins, they not only made waves at international film festivals but a few of them also achieved limited release in domestic theatres. DearCinema lists the top ten favourite documentaries of the year (based on festival participation, awards and reviews):
Celluloid Man
With Celluloid Man, India finally saw a documentary on the life and work of the man who built its National Film Archive reel by reel. The film was so insightful and evocative that it not only got P.K Nair due recognition at home, but also won hearts at numerous festivals abroad. Directed by Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, Celluloid Man was screened at International film festival of India (Iffi), International film festival of Kerala (Iffk), Mumbai, Telluride and Il Cinema Ritrovato film festivals.
Celluloid Man
With Celluloid Man, India finally saw a documentary on the life and work of the man who built its National Film Archive reel by reel. The film was so insightful and evocative that it not only got P.K Nair due recognition at home, but also won hearts at numerous festivals abroad. Directed by Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, Celluloid Man was screened at International film festival of India (Iffi), International film festival of Kerala (Iffk), Mumbai, Telluride and Il Cinema Ritrovato film festivals.
- 12/27/2012
- by Editorial Team
- DearCinema.com
Toronto – On December 4th, Tiff saluted the best of Canadian Cinema at the 12th Annual Canada’s Top Ten industry event, hosted by Sarah Gadon (Cosmopolis, A Dangerous Method) and Don McKellar (Blindness, Trigger). A panel of industry professionals selected the top 10 Canadian feature and short films. Tiff Senior Programmer Steve Gravestock said that this year’s lineup “champions the work of familiar faces as well as emerging talent – all of whose stellar filmmaking achievements shape the Canadian film community”.
To celebrate the best Canadian films of 2012, Tiff will be hosting a 10-day festival of the winners. Cameron Bailey, Artistic Director of the Toronto International Festival, says that the festival “offers homegrown talent a dedicated platform to showcase their success, and we couldn’t be more impressed by the calibre of films the industry has produced this year.”
The selected top ten are as follows, in no particular order:
Short Films
Bydlo dir.
To celebrate the best Canadian films of 2012, Tiff will be hosting a 10-day festival of the winners. Cameron Bailey, Artistic Director of the Toronto International Festival, says that the festival “offers homegrown talent a dedicated platform to showcase their success, and we couldn’t be more impressed by the calibre of films the industry has produced this year.”
The selected top ten are as follows, in no particular order:
Short Films
Bydlo dir.
- 12/13/2012
- by Justin Li
- SoundOnSight
As selected by a panel from the Toronto International Film Festival (in alphabetical order) Cosmopolis, David Cronenberg The End of Time, Peter Mettler Goon, Michael Dowse Laurence Anyways, Xavier Dolan Midnight’s Children,...
- 12/6/2012
- by Ryan Adams
- AwardsDaily.com
In a special program scheduled for the New Year, tiff has announced their top ten Canadian flicks of the year. Canada's Top Ten celebrates and promotes contemporary Canadian cinema and is intended to raise public awareness of Canadian achievements in film. From January 4th through 13th these ten films will be screened at Tiff Bell Lightbox with special guests in attendance. TIFFs Top Ten Canadian Films are...David Cronenberg's CosmopolisPeter Mettler's The End of TimeMichael Dowse's GoonXavier Dolan's Laurence AnywaysDeepha Mehta's Midnight's ChildrenSean Garrity's My Awkward Sexual AdventureKim Nguyen's RebelleMichael McGowan's StillSarah Polley's Stories We TellNisha Pahuja's The World Before Her...
- 12/5/2012
- Screen Anarchy
The interaction platform brings together Nicole Newnham, director of Revolutionary Optimists, Nisha Pahuja, director of The World Before Her along with Walter Steffen, director of Munich In India, to discuss their films and their outlook towards cinema. In an interaction session, the directors talked about their respective movies and informed the audience about the entities which make their movies special Read More...
- 11/29/2012
- Bollywood Trade
Adopt Films
After 11 days of glorious and galvanizing cinema-going, the 21st Annual St. Louis International Film Festival (Sliff) concluded on Sunday evening. At the closing ceremony the International Alliance of Women Film Journalists (Awfj) presented awards to four women filmmakers. Awfj President Jennifer Merin and myself were on hand to announce our winners – chosen by a panel of Awfj members.
Ursula Meier.s Sister received the Eda for Best Female-Directed Narrative Feature, while Debbie Lum.s Seeking Asian Female took the Eda for Best Female-Directed Documentary. The narrative feature Found Memories, directed by Julia Marat, and the documentary The World Before Her, directed by Nisha Pahuja, received Special Mentions from their respective juries.
Sliff Executive Director Cliff Froehlich said, .Dating back to the silent era, women have been vital contributors to film art, but they have long been underrepresented and underappreciated in the industry. Thankfully, that situation is changing, and...
After 11 days of glorious and galvanizing cinema-going, the 21st Annual St. Louis International Film Festival (Sliff) concluded on Sunday evening. At the closing ceremony the International Alliance of Women Film Journalists (Awfj) presented awards to four women filmmakers. Awfj President Jennifer Merin and myself were on hand to announce our winners – chosen by a panel of Awfj members.
Ursula Meier.s Sister received the Eda for Best Female-Directed Narrative Feature, while Debbie Lum.s Seeking Asian Female took the Eda for Best Female-Directed Documentary. The narrative feature Found Memories, directed by Julia Marat, and the documentary The World Before Her, directed by Nisha Pahuja, received Special Mentions from their respective juries.
Sliff Executive Director Cliff Froehlich said, .Dating back to the silent era, women have been vital contributors to film art, but they have long been underrepresented and underappreciated in the industry. Thankfully, that situation is changing, and...
- 11/19/2012
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Being a member of the Alliance of Women Film Journalists, I’m pleased to announce that at the 2012 St. Louis International Film Festival, five documentaries are in competition for our Eda Award for Best Documentary Directed by a Women.
The Eda Award will be presented at the St Louis International Film Festival’s closing ceremonies on November 18, 2012, along with the Eda Award for Best Narrative Feature Directed by A Woman. The Alliance of Women Film Journalists members on the documentary award jury are Monika Bartyzel (Movies.com), Jeanne Wolf (Parade Magazine), Karen Krizanovich (Radio Times), Jette Kernion (Slackerwood.com) and myself. For more on the awards: http://cinemastlouis.org/2012-sliff-awards
The films are:
Her Master’s Voice - Directed by Nina Conti, UK – All about truth in ventriloquism! The Perfect Victim - Directed by Elizabeth Rohrbaugh (Us) – A film about women who were convicted of murdering their husbands, without being...
The Eda Award will be presented at the St Louis International Film Festival’s closing ceremonies on November 18, 2012, along with the Eda Award for Best Narrative Feature Directed by A Woman. The Alliance of Women Film Journalists members on the documentary award jury are Monika Bartyzel (Movies.com), Jeanne Wolf (Parade Magazine), Karen Krizanovich (Radio Times), Jette Kernion (Slackerwood.com) and myself. For more on the awards: http://cinemastlouis.org/2012-sliff-awards
The films are:
Her Master’s Voice - Directed by Nina Conti, UK – All about truth in ventriloquism! The Perfect Victim - Directed by Elizabeth Rohrbaugh (Us) – A film about women who were convicted of murdering their husbands, without being...
- 10/22/2012
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Indian actor Shabana Azmi will head the main competition jury of 6th Abu Dhabi International Film Festival. She will be the first woman to chair the jury of the festival in its five year history.
Shabana will be accompanied by Iranian actress-director-screenwriter Niki Karimi, French filmmaker of Moroccan origin Ismael Ferroukhi, Czech producer Cedomir Kolar and Chilean director-producer-screenwriter-novelist Miguel Littin.
Shabana has earlier served on the jury of Montreal World Film Festival, Cairo Film Festival, Apsa Asia Pacific Screen Academy and Mannheim Film Festival.
Mumbai Cha Raja by Manjeet Singh and I.D by Kamal K.M are screening in the New Horizon section of the festival. (Read: Interview with Manjeet Singh)
Indo-Canadian Documentary “The World Before Her” by Nisha Pahuja has been selected in the documentary competition. (Interview: Nisha Pahuja)
Shlok Sharma’s short film “Sujata” will compete in the short film competition, while Gauri Shinde’s “English-Vinglish” will have a special screening.
Shabana will be accompanied by Iranian actress-director-screenwriter Niki Karimi, French filmmaker of Moroccan origin Ismael Ferroukhi, Czech producer Cedomir Kolar and Chilean director-producer-screenwriter-novelist Miguel Littin.
Shabana has earlier served on the jury of Montreal World Film Festival, Cairo Film Festival, Apsa Asia Pacific Screen Academy and Mannheim Film Festival.
Mumbai Cha Raja by Manjeet Singh and I.D by Kamal K.M are screening in the New Horizon section of the festival. (Read: Interview with Manjeet Singh)
Indo-Canadian Documentary “The World Before Her” by Nisha Pahuja has been selected in the documentary competition. (Interview: Nisha Pahuja)
Shlok Sharma’s short film “Sujata” will compete in the short film competition, while Gauri Shinde’s “English-Vinglish” will have a special screening.
- 9/26/2012
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
The World Before Her, Sujata, I.D. and Mumbai’s King (Mumbai Cha Raja) are selected for the Abu Dhabi Film Festival. The festival will be held from 11th – 20th October, 2012.
The World Before Her by Nisha Pahuja will make its Gulf premier under the Documentary Competition section of the festival. The film competes with noted documenatries like The House I Live In (Grand Jury Prize at Sundance Film Festival 2012 and the Honorable Mention Award at the Silverdocs Documentary Festival 2012), Meanwhile in Mamelodi ( 2nd place for the Golden Gate Award at San Francisco International Film Festival 2012) and Anton’s Right Here (Silver Mouse at Venice Film Festival 2012).
The foreign films from under this category will compete for Black Pearl Award, Special Jury Award and the Best New Director Award.
Sujata by Shlok Sharma will make its Gulf Premier under the Short Film Competition. The Centrifuge Brain Project that has won 10 awards so far,...
The World Before Her by Nisha Pahuja will make its Gulf premier under the Documentary Competition section of the festival. The film competes with noted documenatries like The House I Live In (Grand Jury Prize at Sundance Film Festival 2012 and the Honorable Mention Award at the Silverdocs Documentary Festival 2012), Meanwhile in Mamelodi ( 2nd place for the Golden Gate Award at San Francisco International Film Festival 2012) and Anton’s Right Here (Silver Mouse at Venice Film Festival 2012).
The foreign films from under this category will compete for Black Pearl Award, Special Jury Award and the Best New Director Award.
Sujata by Shlok Sharma will make its Gulf Premier under the Short Film Competition. The Centrifuge Brain Project that has won 10 awards so far,...
- 9/25/2012
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
This year’s Toronto was competing in my psyche with the recent loss of my mother. My focus was less on finding the greatest of films this year. I hear from others that the festival offered a good mix, if not the most outstanding, selection of films. Personally, I am discovering that a new community has opened its arms to me and the films that are standing out most for me are by women and about women. My community, those women who have lost their mothers, is sharing a unique and profound rite of passage whose meaning continuously unfolds.
In Toronto I was hyper aware of the women and their position in this corner of the world I inhabit. Canadian women, Helga Stephenson, Director Emerita of the Toronto Film Festival, predecessor to Piers Handling; Michele Maheux, Executive Director and COO of Tiff ever since I've known her which has been a long time; Linda Beath who headed United Artists when I was beginning my career and who has since moved to Europe where she teaches at Eave (European Audio Visual Entrepreneurs), Kay Armitrage, programmer of the festival for 24 years and professor at University of Toronto, are all women to helped me envisage myself as a professional in the film business, and they are still as vibrant and active as when we met more than 25 years ago. Carolle Brabant, Telefilm Canada’s Executive Director continues Canada’s female lineage as does Karen Thorne-Stone, the President and CEO of Ontario Media Development Corporation.
18 films currently are in a large part attributable to Omdc; they include Nisha Pahuja’s doc The World Before Her (contact Cinetic) (Best Doc Feature of 2012 Tribeca Ff), Sarah Polley’s Take This Waltz (Isa: TF1), Deepa Mehta’s Midnight’s Children (Isa: FilmNation), Anita Doron’s The Lesser Blessed, (Isa: EOne) Ruba Nadda’s Inescapable (Isa: Myriad), Alison Rose’s doc, Following the Wise Men.
Tiff’s new program for year-round support of mid-level Canadian filmmakers, Studio, under the directorship of Hayet Benkara is bringing industry mentorship to 16 filmmakers with experience, shorts in the festival circuit, features in development. Exactly half of these filmmakers are women. This was a conscious move on Hayet’s part. She said there is always such a predominance of males without thinking about it that she decided to bring balance.
Then a look at some more of the Canadian talent here brings me to the Birks Diamonds celebration of seven Canadian women: Anais Barbeau-Lavalette, Manon Briand, Anita Doron, Deepa Mehta (Midnight’s Children), Kate Melville, and Ruba Nadda which honored each with a Birks diamond pendant in a reception hosted by Shangri-La Hotel and Telefilm Canada where 300 guests mingled and caught up with each other. The pre-eminence of women was again made so apparent to me.
Talking to publicist Jim Dobson at Indie PR at the reception of Jordanian filmmaker Annemarie Jacir whose film When I Saw You was so evocative of the 60s, a time of worldwide freedom and even optimism among the fedayeem in Jordan looking to resist the Expulsion of the Palestinians from Palestine; he said that all five of his clients here are women directors, “I had When I Saw You, (Isa: The Match Factory), Satellite Boy (Isa: Celluloid Dreams/ Nightmare), Hannah Arendt (The Match Factory), Inch'allah (Isa: eOne), English Vinglish (Isa: Eros Int')."
Of the 289 features here at Tiff, Melissa Silverstein at Women and Hollywood is trying to zero in on the women directors, so watch her blogs More Women-Directed Films Nab Deals out of Tiff, Tiff Preview: Women Directors to Watch and Tiff Preview: The Female Directing Masters Playing at the 2012 Toronto Film Festival.
Add to this the upcoming Sundance initiative on women directors that Keri Putnam is heading up (more on that later!) and I am feeling heartened by the consciousness of women, directors and otherwise, out there. That is saying a lot since last season in Cannes with the pathetic number of women directors showing up in the festival and sidebars this past spring.
Here is the Female Factor for Tiff 12 which scores an A in my book:
Gala Presentations - 6 out of 20 = c. 30% which is way above the usual 13% which has been the average up until Cannes upended that with its paltry 2%..2 of these were opening night films.
Mira Nair The Reluctant Fundamentalist - Also showed in Venice. Isa: K5. Picked up for U.S. and Canada by IFC. Shola Lynch Free Angela & All Political Prisoners. Isa: Elle Driver Deepa Mehta Midnight’s Children. Isa: FilmNation already sold to Roadshow for Australia/ N.Z., Unikorea for So. Korea, DeaPlaneta for Spain. Ruba Nadda Inescapable. Isa: Myriad. Canada: Alliance. Liz Garbus Love, Marilyn. Isa: StudioCanal. HBO picked up No. American TV rights. Madman has Australia. Gauri Shinde English Vinglish. Isa: Eros International.
Masters – 0 – Could we say that women directors have not been around that long or shown such longevity as the men? Lina Wertmiller was a long time ago. I don’t even know if she is still alive. Ida Lupino was an anomaly. Who else was there in those early days? Alice Guy-Blaché ?
Special Presentations - 13 out of 70 = 19%
Everybody Has A Plan - Argentina/ Germany/ Spain - Ana Piterbarg - Isa: Twentieth Century Fox International - U.S.: Ld Entertainment, U.K.: Metrodome Lines Of Wellington - Also in Venice, San Sebastian Ff - Portugal - Valeria Sarmiento - Isa: Alfama Films. Germany: Ksm Cloud Atlas--Germany - Lana Wachowski, Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski - Isa: Focus Int'l. - U.S. and Canada: Warner Bros. , Brazil - Imagem, Finland - Future Film, Eastern Europe - Eeap, Germany X Verleih, Greece - Odeon, Iceland - Sensa, India - PVR, So. Korea - Bloomage, Benelux - Benelux Film Distributors, Inspire, Slovenia - Cenemania, Sweden - Noble, Switzerland - Ascot Elite, Taiwan - Long Shong, Turkey - Chantier Inch'allah – Canada - Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette - Isa and Canada: Entertainment One Films Hannah Arendt – Germany – Margarethe von Trotta – Isa: The Match Factory Imogine – U.S. – Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini - Isa: Voltage. U.S.: Lionsgate/ Roadside Attractions acquired from UTA, Netherlands: Independent Ginger and Rosa – U.K. – Sally Potter – Isa: The Match Factory. U.S. contact Cinetic Love is All You Need – Also played in Venice) Denmark – Susanne Bier – Isa: TrustNordisk - U.S. : Sony Pictures Classics, Canada: Mongrel, Australia - Madman, Brazil - Art Films, Bulgaria - Pro Films, Colombia - Babilla Cine, Czech Republic - Aerofilms, Finland - Matila Rohr Nordisk, Germany - Prokino, Hungary - Cirko, Italy - Teodora, Japan - Longride, Poland - Gutek, Portugal - Pepperview Lore – Australia/ Germany/ U.K. – Cate Shortland – Isa: Memento. U.S.: Music Box, France: Memento, Germany - Piffl, Hong Hong - Encore Inlight, So. Korea - Line Tree, Benelux - ABC/ Cinemien, U.K., Artificial Eye Dreams for Sale – Japan – Miwa Nishkawa – Isa: Asmik Ace Stories We Tell – Canada – Sarah Polley - Isa: Nfb. U.K.: Artificial Eye Liverpool – Canada – Marion Briand - Isa: Max Films. Canada: Remstar Venus and Serena – U.S./ U.K. – Michelle Major, Maikin Baird. Producer's Rep: Cinetic
Mavericks - 3 out of 7 “Conversations With” were with women (43%)
Discovery 11 out of 27 = 40% which includes The-Hottest-Public Ticket for the Israeli Film directly below (a Major Buzz Film Among its Public)
Fill the Void by Rama Burshtein, a first-time-ever Hasidic woman director Kate Melville’s Picture Day Alice Winocour Augustine - Isa: Kinology 7 Cajas by Tana Schembori from Paraguay - Isa: Shoreline Gabriela Pichler’s Eat Sleep Die from Sweden, Serbia and Croatia - Isa: Yellow Affair Oy Rola Nashef’s Detroit Unleaded France’s Sylive Michel’s Our Little Differences Contact producer Pallas Film Russian censored film Clip from Serbia by Maja Milos - Isa: Wide sold to Kmbo for France, Maywin for Sweden, Artspoitation for U.S. Satellite Boy by Australian Catriona McKenzie - Isa: Celluloid Dreams/ Nightmares Ramaa Mosley’s The Brass Teapot - Isa: TF1 sold to Magnolia for U.S., Intercontinental for Hong Kong, Cien for Mexico, Vendetta for New Zealand Veteran Korean-American Grace Lee’s Janeane from Des Moines.
Tiff Docs 7 out of 29 = 24% - Women traditionally have directed a greater portion of docs
Christine Cynn (codirector ) The Act of Killing - Isa: Cinephil Janet Tobias No Place on Earth - Isa: Global Screen Sarah Burns (codirector) The Central Park Five Isa: PBS sold to Sundance Select for U.S. Treva Wurmfeld Shepard & Dark - Contact Tangerine Entertainment Nina Davenport First Comes Love - Contact producer Marina Zenovich Roman Polanski: Odd Man Out - Isa: Films Distribution Halla Alabdalla As If We Were Catching a Cobra (Comme si nous attraptions un cobra) about the art of caricature in Egypt and Syria! Halla is Syrian herself, studied science and sociology in Syria and Paris - Isa: Wide
Contemporary World Cinema 11 out of 61 = 18%
Children of Sarajevo by Aida Begic, Sarajevo - Isa: Pyramide Baby Blues by Katarzyna Rostaniec, Poland. Contact producer The Cowards Who Looked to the Sky by Yuki Tanada, Japan - Isa: Toei Comrade Kim Goes Flying by Anja Daelemans (co-director), Belgium/ No. Korea. The first western financed film out of No. Korea Three Worlds by Catherine Corsini, France - Isa: Pyramide sold to Lumiere for Benelux, Pathe for Switzerland Middle of Nowhere by Ava DuVernay, U.S. - Contact Paradigm Talent Agency The Lesser Blessed by Anita Doron, Canada - Isa: eOne Watchtower by Pelin Esmer, Turkey/ France/ Germany- Isa: Visit Films Jackie by Antoinette Beumer, Netherlands - Isa: Media Luna When I Saw You by Annemarie Jacir, Palestine,/ Jordan/ Greece All that Matters is Past by Sara Johnsen, Norway- Isa: TrustNordisk
Tiff Kids 0 out of 5. Any meaning to this???
City To City – Mumbai 0 Out Of 10 Any meaning to this???
Vanguard 2 out of 15 = 13% (the average for most festivals)
90 Minutes– Norway – Eva Sorhaug - Isa: Level K Peaches Does Herself – Germany - Peaches. Contact producer. See Indiewire review.
Midnight Madness 0 out of 9 which is fine with me, thank you. This is a boy's genre or a date-night genre for girls and boys with a plan for the night.
In Toronto I was hyper aware of the women and their position in this corner of the world I inhabit. Canadian women, Helga Stephenson, Director Emerita of the Toronto Film Festival, predecessor to Piers Handling; Michele Maheux, Executive Director and COO of Tiff ever since I've known her which has been a long time; Linda Beath who headed United Artists when I was beginning my career and who has since moved to Europe where she teaches at Eave (European Audio Visual Entrepreneurs), Kay Armitrage, programmer of the festival for 24 years and professor at University of Toronto, are all women to helped me envisage myself as a professional in the film business, and they are still as vibrant and active as when we met more than 25 years ago. Carolle Brabant, Telefilm Canada’s Executive Director continues Canada’s female lineage as does Karen Thorne-Stone, the President and CEO of Ontario Media Development Corporation.
18 films currently are in a large part attributable to Omdc; they include Nisha Pahuja’s doc The World Before Her (contact Cinetic) (Best Doc Feature of 2012 Tribeca Ff), Sarah Polley’s Take This Waltz (Isa: TF1), Deepa Mehta’s Midnight’s Children (Isa: FilmNation), Anita Doron’s The Lesser Blessed, (Isa: EOne) Ruba Nadda’s Inescapable (Isa: Myriad), Alison Rose’s doc, Following the Wise Men.
Tiff’s new program for year-round support of mid-level Canadian filmmakers, Studio, under the directorship of Hayet Benkara is bringing industry mentorship to 16 filmmakers with experience, shorts in the festival circuit, features in development. Exactly half of these filmmakers are women. This was a conscious move on Hayet’s part. She said there is always such a predominance of males without thinking about it that she decided to bring balance.
Then a look at some more of the Canadian talent here brings me to the Birks Diamonds celebration of seven Canadian women: Anais Barbeau-Lavalette, Manon Briand, Anita Doron, Deepa Mehta (Midnight’s Children), Kate Melville, and Ruba Nadda which honored each with a Birks diamond pendant in a reception hosted by Shangri-La Hotel and Telefilm Canada where 300 guests mingled and caught up with each other. The pre-eminence of women was again made so apparent to me.
Talking to publicist Jim Dobson at Indie PR at the reception of Jordanian filmmaker Annemarie Jacir whose film When I Saw You was so evocative of the 60s, a time of worldwide freedom and even optimism among the fedayeem in Jordan looking to resist the Expulsion of the Palestinians from Palestine; he said that all five of his clients here are women directors, “I had When I Saw You, (Isa: The Match Factory), Satellite Boy (Isa: Celluloid Dreams/ Nightmare), Hannah Arendt (The Match Factory), Inch'allah (Isa: eOne), English Vinglish (Isa: Eros Int')."
Of the 289 features here at Tiff, Melissa Silverstein at Women and Hollywood is trying to zero in on the women directors, so watch her blogs More Women-Directed Films Nab Deals out of Tiff, Tiff Preview: Women Directors to Watch and Tiff Preview: The Female Directing Masters Playing at the 2012 Toronto Film Festival.
Add to this the upcoming Sundance initiative on women directors that Keri Putnam is heading up (more on that later!) and I am feeling heartened by the consciousness of women, directors and otherwise, out there. That is saying a lot since last season in Cannes with the pathetic number of women directors showing up in the festival and sidebars this past spring.
Here is the Female Factor for Tiff 12 which scores an A in my book:
Gala Presentations - 6 out of 20 = c. 30% which is way above the usual 13% which has been the average up until Cannes upended that with its paltry 2%..2 of these were opening night films.
Mira Nair The Reluctant Fundamentalist - Also showed in Venice. Isa: K5. Picked up for U.S. and Canada by IFC. Shola Lynch Free Angela & All Political Prisoners. Isa: Elle Driver Deepa Mehta Midnight’s Children. Isa: FilmNation already sold to Roadshow for Australia/ N.Z., Unikorea for So. Korea, DeaPlaneta for Spain. Ruba Nadda Inescapable. Isa: Myriad. Canada: Alliance. Liz Garbus Love, Marilyn. Isa: StudioCanal. HBO picked up No. American TV rights. Madman has Australia. Gauri Shinde English Vinglish. Isa: Eros International.
Masters – 0 – Could we say that women directors have not been around that long or shown such longevity as the men? Lina Wertmiller was a long time ago. I don’t even know if she is still alive. Ida Lupino was an anomaly. Who else was there in those early days? Alice Guy-Blaché ?
Special Presentations - 13 out of 70 = 19%
Everybody Has A Plan - Argentina/ Germany/ Spain - Ana Piterbarg - Isa: Twentieth Century Fox International - U.S.: Ld Entertainment, U.K.: Metrodome Lines Of Wellington - Also in Venice, San Sebastian Ff - Portugal - Valeria Sarmiento - Isa: Alfama Films. Germany: Ksm Cloud Atlas--Germany - Lana Wachowski, Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski - Isa: Focus Int'l. - U.S. and Canada: Warner Bros. , Brazil - Imagem, Finland - Future Film, Eastern Europe - Eeap, Germany X Verleih, Greece - Odeon, Iceland - Sensa, India - PVR, So. Korea - Bloomage, Benelux - Benelux Film Distributors, Inspire, Slovenia - Cenemania, Sweden - Noble, Switzerland - Ascot Elite, Taiwan - Long Shong, Turkey - Chantier Inch'allah – Canada - Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette - Isa and Canada: Entertainment One Films Hannah Arendt – Germany – Margarethe von Trotta – Isa: The Match Factory Imogine – U.S. – Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini - Isa: Voltage. U.S.: Lionsgate/ Roadside Attractions acquired from UTA, Netherlands: Independent Ginger and Rosa – U.K. – Sally Potter – Isa: The Match Factory. U.S. contact Cinetic Love is All You Need – Also played in Venice) Denmark – Susanne Bier – Isa: TrustNordisk - U.S. : Sony Pictures Classics, Canada: Mongrel, Australia - Madman, Brazil - Art Films, Bulgaria - Pro Films, Colombia - Babilla Cine, Czech Republic - Aerofilms, Finland - Matila Rohr Nordisk, Germany - Prokino, Hungary - Cirko, Italy - Teodora, Japan - Longride, Poland - Gutek, Portugal - Pepperview Lore – Australia/ Germany/ U.K. – Cate Shortland – Isa: Memento. U.S.: Music Box, France: Memento, Germany - Piffl, Hong Hong - Encore Inlight, So. Korea - Line Tree, Benelux - ABC/ Cinemien, U.K., Artificial Eye Dreams for Sale – Japan – Miwa Nishkawa – Isa: Asmik Ace Stories We Tell – Canada – Sarah Polley - Isa: Nfb. U.K.: Artificial Eye Liverpool – Canada – Marion Briand - Isa: Max Films. Canada: Remstar Venus and Serena – U.S./ U.K. – Michelle Major, Maikin Baird. Producer's Rep: Cinetic
Mavericks - 3 out of 7 “Conversations With” were with women (43%)
Discovery 11 out of 27 = 40% which includes The-Hottest-Public Ticket for the Israeli Film directly below (a Major Buzz Film Among its Public)
Fill the Void by Rama Burshtein, a first-time-ever Hasidic woman director Kate Melville’s Picture Day Alice Winocour Augustine - Isa: Kinology 7 Cajas by Tana Schembori from Paraguay - Isa: Shoreline Gabriela Pichler’s Eat Sleep Die from Sweden, Serbia and Croatia - Isa: Yellow Affair Oy Rola Nashef’s Detroit Unleaded France’s Sylive Michel’s Our Little Differences Contact producer Pallas Film Russian censored film Clip from Serbia by Maja Milos - Isa: Wide sold to Kmbo for France, Maywin for Sweden, Artspoitation for U.S. Satellite Boy by Australian Catriona McKenzie - Isa: Celluloid Dreams/ Nightmares Ramaa Mosley’s The Brass Teapot - Isa: TF1 sold to Magnolia for U.S., Intercontinental for Hong Kong, Cien for Mexico, Vendetta for New Zealand Veteran Korean-American Grace Lee’s Janeane from Des Moines.
Tiff Docs 7 out of 29 = 24% - Women traditionally have directed a greater portion of docs
Christine Cynn (codirector ) The Act of Killing - Isa: Cinephil Janet Tobias No Place on Earth - Isa: Global Screen Sarah Burns (codirector) The Central Park Five Isa: PBS sold to Sundance Select for U.S. Treva Wurmfeld Shepard & Dark - Contact Tangerine Entertainment Nina Davenport First Comes Love - Contact producer Marina Zenovich Roman Polanski: Odd Man Out - Isa: Films Distribution Halla Alabdalla As If We Were Catching a Cobra (Comme si nous attraptions un cobra) about the art of caricature in Egypt and Syria! Halla is Syrian herself, studied science and sociology in Syria and Paris - Isa: Wide
Contemporary World Cinema 11 out of 61 = 18%
Children of Sarajevo by Aida Begic, Sarajevo - Isa: Pyramide Baby Blues by Katarzyna Rostaniec, Poland. Contact producer The Cowards Who Looked to the Sky by Yuki Tanada, Japan - Isa: Toei Comrade Kim Goes Flying by Anja Daelemans (co-director), Belgium/ No. Korea. The first western financed film out of No. Korea Three Worlds by Catherine Corsini, France - Isa: Pyramide sold to Lumiere for Benelux, Pathe for Switzerland Middle of Nowhere by Ava DuVernay, U.S. - Contact Paradigm Talent Agency The Lesser Blessed by Anita Doron, Canada - Isa: eOne Watchtower by Pelin Esmer, Turkey/ France/ Germany- Isa: Visit Films Jackie by Antoinette Beumer, Netherlands - Isa: Media Luna When I Saw You by Annemarie Jacir, Palestine,/ Jordan/ Greece All that Matters is Past by Sara Johnsen, Norway- Isa: TrustNordisk
Tiff Kids 0 out of 5. Any meaning to this???
City To City – Mumbai 0 Out Of 10 Any meaning to this???
Vanguard 2 out of 15 = 13% (the average for most festivals)
90 Minutes– Norway – Eva Sorhaug - Isa: Level K Peaches Does Herself – Germany - Peaches. Contact producer. See Indiewire review.
Midnight Madness 0 out of 9 which is fine with me, thank you. This is a boy's genre or a date-night genre for girls and boys with a plan for the night.
- 9/21/2012
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
8th edition of the Zurich Film Festival, starting today, will screen two Indian films, The World Before Her by Nisha Pahuja and Gattu by Rajan Ghosa. The festival will last till 30th September, 2012.
The World Before Her is in competition under the International Documentary Film / Competition section. The film draws parallels between two factions of women. One is a group of twenty young women from India competing in a beauty pageant and the other a group belonging to the Hindu fundamentalist movement. The Indo-Canadian filmmaker Nisha Pahuja captures their similarities and their differences over coverage of several months. The film was also in competition at the 11th Tribeca Film Festival 2012 and won the Best Canadian Feature award at HotDocs 2012.
Gattu by Rajan Ghosa will be a part of the special screenings. The film narrates the story of Gattu, whose sole passion in life is flying kites. His goal in life...
The World Before Her is in competition under the International Documentary Film / Competition section. The film draws parallels between two factions of women. One is a group of twenty young women from India competing in a beauty pageant and the other a group belonging to the Hindu fundamentalist movement. The Indo-Canadian filmmaker Nisha Pahuja captures their similarities and their differences over coverage of several months. The film was also in competition at the 11th Tribeca Film Festival 2012 and won the Best Canadian Feature award at HotDocs 2012.
Gattu by Rajan Ghosa will be a part of the special screenings. The film narrates the story of Gattu, whose sole passion in life is flying kites. His goal in life...
- 9/20/2012
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
India-born, Toronto-bred Nisha Pahuja’s beautiful and poignant The World Before Her won the World Documentary Competition Award at Tribeca Film Festival, where it premiered a few weeks ago. And while Pahuja grew up and lives in Toronto, she still has a fascination for her homeland. The World Before Her is her third film, after Diamond Road and Bollywood Bound, and her second dealing with India. It presents two sides of the country. For one segment of the film, Pahuja’s crew follows 20 “Miss India” contestants as they endure the pageant’s controversial month-long training regimen. The audience accompanies the women on every step of this boot camp, from Botox injection sessions to photo shoots. Pahuja focuses on three pageant hopefuls who are living a dream but who are also pushed into a new world and taken away from the patriarchal society they know. Ruhi is one of the competitors...
- 6/14/2012
- by Leopoldine Huyghues Despointes
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Writer-director Nisha Pahuja's documentary The World Before Her offers a fascinating look at the lives of women living in India today. It juxtaposes two seemingly coexisting but separate worlds: an old and a new India. The world of the 'old India' is illustrated with a camp run by Durga Vahini, the women's wing of the largest Hindu nationalist group. Rare insight into the group is provided, as it is the first time filming of its training camp has been allowed. The lessons there are intense and range from fitness training, lessons on gun use and spiritual teaching, with the goal to "protect the Hindu religion". There is a specific focus on a young teacher at the camp named Prachi, who aspires to become the future leader...
- 6/11/2012
- Screen Anarchy
Writer-director Nisha Pahuja's documentary The World Before Her offers a fascinating look at the lives of women living in India today. It juxtaposes two seemingly coexisting but separate worlds: an old and a new India. The world of the 'old India' is illustrated with a camp run by Durga Vahini, the women's wing of the largest Hindu nationalist group. Rare insight into the group is provided, as it is the first time filming of its training camp has been allowed. The lessons there are intense and range from fitness training, lessons on gun use and spiritual teaching, with the goal to "protect the Hindu religion". There is a specific focus on a young teacher at the camp named Prachi, who aspires to become the future leader...
- 5/31/2012
- Screen Anarchy
The Hot Docs Festival wrapped late last week and a jury handed out awards on Friday.
Call Me Kuchu
I saw Call Me Kuchu after it won Best International Feature (each year they play three award winners during the festival's last evening). I had tried to avoid the movie because depression and anger aren't emotions I like feeling, especially with something that affects me on such a personal level. The anger is rooted in denial. I'd like to think that the struggle is over for Lgbt people but it isn't in so many communities and countries.
"Kuchu" is a pejorative umbrella term referring to homosexuals, male or female, for Uganda's homophobic government and majority opinion. Directors Malika Zouhali-Worrall and Katherine Fairfax Wright follow a small group of gay activists in this hostile environment and focus on David Kato in particular. His violent death took place during this documentary's production. His...
Call Me Kuchu
I saw Call Me Kuchu after it won Best International Feature (each year they play three award winners during the festival's last evening). I had tried to avoid the movie because depression and anger aren't emotions I like feeling, especially with something that affects me on such a personal level. The anger is rooted in denial. I'd like to think that the struggle is over for Lgbt people but it isn't in so many communities and countries.
"Kuchu" is a pejorative umbrella term referring to homosexuals, male or female, for Uganda's homophobic government and majority opinion. Directors Malika Zouhali-Worrall and Katherine Fairfax Wright follow a small group of gay activists in this hostile environment and focus on David Kato in particular. His violent death took place during this documentary's production. His...
- 5/8/2012
- by Paolo
- FilmExperience
Hot Docs has announced the winners of the festival's 2012 awards, with Nisha Pahuja's "The World Before Her" and Malika Zouhali-Worrall and Katherine Fairfax Wright's "Call Me Kuchu" taking top prizes in the Canadian and international categories, respectively. The ceremony took place at the Windsor Arms Hotel in Toronto last night. Ten awards and $71,000 in cash prizes were presented to filmmakers. The award for Best Canadian Feature was presented to The World Before Her (D: Nisha Pahuja; P: Cornelia Principe, Nisha Pahuja, Ed Barreveld), a look at the clash between modernity and tradition faced by young women in India. Sponsored by the Documentary Organization of Canada, the award includes a $10,000 prize courtesy of Hot Docs. “For its brave and provocative exploration of the role of women at its two extremes in contemporary Indian society, the jury recognizes the exceptional storytelling of The World Before Her," the...
- 5/5/2012
- by Peter Knegt
- Indiewire
The World Before Her wins at HotDocs
The World Before Her, a documentary by Indo-Canadian director Nisha Pahuja won the Best Canadian Feature award at HotDocs 2012.
Sponsored by the Documentary Organization of Canada, the award includes prize money of $10,000. HotDocs is one of the largest international documentary film festivals held in Canada.
The World Before Her recently won the World Documentary Competition at 11th Tribeca Film Festival. It weaves together the stories of the Miss India beauty pageant and a fundamentalist Hindu camp for girls portraying the situation of women across contemporary India.
For Nisha Pahuja’s Interview, click here.
The World Before Her, a documentary by Indo-Canadian director Nisha Pahuja won the Best Canadian Feature award at HotDocs 2012.
Sponsored by the Documentary Organization of Canada, the award includes prize money of $10,000. HotDocs is one of the largest international documentary film festivals held in Canada.
The World Before Her recently won the World Documentary Competition at 11th Tribeca Film Festival. It weaves together the stories of the Miss India beauty pageant and a fundamentalist Hindu camp for girls portraying the situation of women across contemporary India.
For Nisha Pahuja’s Interview, click here.
- 5/5/2012
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Toronto - Canadian filmmaker Nisha Pahuja’s The World Before Her, which won Tribeca’s best feature documentary prize, on Friday night grabbed the best Canadian feature prize at the Hot Docs Canadian International Film Festival. The documentary about a clash between modernity and tradition faced by young women in India also earned a $10,000 prize as the Canadian doc festival gets set to wrap on Sunday. And a special jury prize for Canadian features went to Charles Wilkinson’s Peace Out, a film about resource extraction in western Canada, and its impact on the local environment. Hot Docs’ best international feature prize
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- 5/5/2012
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
For the first time in Tribeca Film Festival history, both the World Narrative and World Documentary competition sections enjoyed gala openings, and the premiere of The World Before Her (which ultimately won the 2012 World Documentary Competition Award) was truly a night to remember. The evening began as Tff co-Founder Jane Rosenthal took the stage to introduce director Nisha Pahuja and her film, and to prepare the audience for the hard truth that the documentary so adeptly reveals - that, in Rosenthal's words, 'It's so hard to grow up female, no matter where you are in the world.' While The World Before Her intertwines seemingly opposing stories - one about contestants in the Miss India pageant and the other about a fundamentalist Hindu camp for girls - the documentary draws unexpected parallels between the two. The supposedly 'modern' contestants in the pageant are in many ways as constricted as the...
- 5/3/2012
- TribecaFilm.com
The 2012 Tribeca Film Festival came to a close on Sunday. Indiewire was on the scene for the 11th edition of the event. Below find all of Indiewire's coverage, in addition to that of our Blog Network. Winners 'War Witch' and 'The World Before Her' Take Top Prizes at 2012 Tribeca Film Festival Kim Nguyen's "War Witch" and Lucy Mulloy's "Una Noche" were the big winners of the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival narrative competition, while Nisha Pahuja's "The World Before Her" took the top documentary competition prize at the fest. Interviews Juliette Binoche Talks About Her Personal Connection to 'Elles,' Masturbating on Film, and What Scares Her "Habit would scare me. Of being sure of yourself would scare me. Not being frightened would scare me. Not working with intelligent people would scare me." 'Cheerful Weather' Star Elizabeth McGovern Talks 'Downton Abbey'...
- 4/30/2012
- by Nigel M Smith
- Indiewire
The young women competing for the title of Miss India in documentarian Nisha Pahuja's Tribeca award-winning "The World Before Her" may represent progress in the context of the country's religious history, but among each other they only want the crown. Often shot in the style of a reality show as competitors Ankita and Ruhi gear up for the pageant, "The World Before Her" complicates matters with a far more provocative look at the interior of a Hindu fundamentalist camp for women where a trenchant leader coaches young participants to take a radical stance against the male-dominated society. In the contrast between flashy pageantry and the extremist education, "The World Before Her" effectively conveys a culture working hard to exorcise its demons. However, the movie never makes a compelling case for its two-pronged approach. "We are becoming a more modern country," says one of the subjects in the opening minutes,...
- 4/30/2012
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Lucy Mulloy’s Una Noche: Javier Nuñez Florián, Anailín de la Rúa de la Torre World and national politics played an important role at the Tribeca Film Festival 2012, both on screen and off. Kim Nguyen’s War Witch, about a kidnapped African girl who is forced to become a child soldier, was chosen as the Best Narrative Feature at the festival, while Lucy Mulloy’s Una Noche, in which Cuban teenagers attempt to flee Havana for Miami, won awards for Best Director, Best Cinematography (Trevor Forrest and Shlomo Godder), and a shared award for Best Actor (Dariel Arrechada and Javier Nuñez Florián). Additionally, War Witch’s leading lady, 14-year-old Rachel Mwanza, was Tribeca’s Best Actress. The Congo-born Mwanza had previously won the Silver Bear for Best Actress at the Berlin Film Festival. [Full list of Tribeca 2012 winners.] Off screen, Una Noche caused a commotion after it was revealed that two of the film’s leads,...
- 4/29/2012
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
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