The teaser of the 2022 Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA), that runs from April 28-May 1, is a perfect example of how a festival trailer should be cut, it gives a sneak peak of this year’s line-up, a look that reveals IFFLA’s prime focus on independent and regional films. Films like Natesh Hegde’s Busan-premiered Pedro and Aditya Vikram Sengupta’s Venice-premiered Once Upon a Time in Calcutta find space, when their own state’s festivals choose to give them a go, at the Bengaluru International Film Festival and Kolkata International Film Festival, respectively.
In 2020, just three weeks prior to IFFLA, the pandemic had played party pooper, but a virtual showcase of 125 alumni films was a success at a time when festivals were yet to warm up to the idea of digital screenings. This year, the festival returns in person to celebrate 20 years of its existence, and of Indian indies, with no Hindi/Bollywood film in sight. “We know there’s much more out there and we strive to elevate our films to their rightful place alongside the best of world cinema,” says IFFLA founder and executive director Christina Marouda. For the selected filmmakers, the location of Los Angeles, the heart of the American entertainment industry, is a definitive plus.
Four-time alumnus Pan Nalin brings his Tribeca-premiered Last Film Show, to the Opening Night, a story about a nine-year-old boy in 1990s rural Gujarat, who falls in love with cinema as a medium, becomes BFF with a village theatre projectionist, and has to take matters into his own hands with the disruptive advent of digital technology. “Last Film Show is an ode to the power of cinema, of how dreams become stories, and stories become light,” says Ritesh Mehta, co-director of programming along with Thouly Dosios. The Closing Gala will give a first look into two upcoming projects of diaspora artistes. Kahlil Maskati’s Alim Uncle and Nimisha…