The sixth edition of Woodpecker International Film Festival (WIFF) will be held from November 23 to 25 at Siri Fort Auditorium in New Delhi. The festival will screen 58 films from 12 countries this year and teh entry is free.
The festival will be inaugurated on November 23 by veteran actor and theatre director Avijit Dutt and renowned child rights expert Razia Ismail.
This year, the festival will give special importance to women-oriented cinema. Some of the films to be showcased under this category include Jasoosni – Look Who’s Watching, Veil Done, Eye Test, Nakusha, Kiske Liye, I Remember, If You Dare Desire and Chori.
Other prominent Indian films to be screened at WIFF 2018 are Naach Bhikhari Naach, Lock And Key, Memoirs Of Salim And Saira, Shahjehanpur Ke Laatsahab, Vaikhari, Theatre Of The Earth, Say Cheese, among others.
Some international films to look forward to this year include, Bullies, Meet Peter, My Dad Matthew, Listening To A Smile, Abu Adnan – Adnan’s Father and Nigerian Film Agwaetiti Obiụtọ.
The audience will also get an opportunity to watch some natural history films including David Attenborough’s Ant Mountain, White Wolves – Ghosts of The Arctic, The Fight For The Arctic, Wild Uganda and The Lions Rule EP1 – Death in the Glade.
Rao Narender Yadav, founder and director of the festival said in an official statement, “WIFF believes in showcasing meaningful cinema. Over the years, WIFF has emerged as a popular and credible platform for independent filmmakers to showcase their work, and it continues to be one of the much awaited film festivals in New Delhi. The festival will bring the best of Indian and global cinema for film lovers and has an interesting line-up of films.”
Apart from film screenings, the festival will also have masterclass sessions by Avjit Dutt on storytelling on the first day and by the National Award winning filmmaker Akanksha Sood on wildlife filmmaking on the second day.
The festival will conclude with an awards ceremony. The awards will recognize Indian and international filmmakers who come up with alternative and experimental ways of filmmakimg. “Best award in each thematic category will be presented. In the ‘Student Film’ category two awards have been constituted, which includes a trophy and citation. Woodpecker awards will be presented in a gala award ceremony on the last day of the festival,” said an official statement by the organizers.
Woodpecker International Film Festival commenced in 2013. It focuses on issue based cinema and is a part of ‘Cinema For Change’ initiative launched by CMSR foundation, a not-for-profit Trust, based in New Delhi.