Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will present the Spirit of Cinema Award to Kurdish filmmaker Lisa Calan during the inaugural ceremony of the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK 2022) on Friday.
Calan, who lost both her legs in a bomb blast engineered by the ISIS in 2015, has worked to expose to the world the issues faced by Kurdish people. Her film Language of Mountains which portrays the survival story of Kurdish people against the backdrop of a school will premiere at the festival under the ‘Spirit of Cinema’ section. The first screening will be held on March 19 at Ariesplex Audi 6.
The constant conflicts in Iran and Turkey have left a deep scar in the minds of the Kurdish people. These and other incidents served to widen Calan’s perspectives. By honoring Calan, the IFFK aims to send a message of solidarity with the struggling Kurdish women in their fight for justice and freedom, an official statement said.
Green is the transport
The IFFK is turning eco-friendly by deciding to utilise electric cars for official purposes. The Kerala State Chalachitra Academy (KSCA), the organisers of the festival, has joined hands with the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) for the transformation. Electric cars will form part of IFFK official fleet for the duration of the festival. Ten e-cars will be available for IFFK officials round the clock. Through the partnership, the KSEB hopes to encourage the public to shift to eco-friendly means of transportation as well as propagate awareness of combating pollution.
KSEB chairman and managing director B. Ashok and KSCA chairman Ranjith jointly flagged off the newly introduced electric cars on the Tagore theatre premises on Thursday.
Art from tyres
Staying true to the State’s focus on reuse and recycling in the aftermath of natural calamities in the recent past, the festival office of the event has been designed with 140 used tyres that have been artistically arranged to create a visual spectacle. The design is the brain child of Hylesh, who has been the festival’s art designer for 22 years.
