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Upcoming famous Film Festivals going virtual in 2021

Upcoming famous film festivals going virtual in 2021


We recognize that the global impact of COVID-19 has greatly affected storytellers and their projects, from production halts to disrupted festival premiere plans.

The following major film festivals across the world have tentatively released their submission dates, platforms and event dates as well as the medium of screening. 

January 2021


Sundance Film Festival, USA

Dates : January 28 to February 3

Medium : Hybrid (virtual + physical screenings)


Ranging from feature films, short films, episodic projects, and New Frontier exhibition to performance projects, Sundance has different categories with respective eligibility criterias.

Celebrating independence, creativity and risk taking, the Sundance Film Festival plays a vital role in discovery of new films and new voices from around the world. The World Cinema competitions, for over 10 languages, are specifically dedicated to identifying emerging international talent and connecting them with audiences and industry in the United States.

Submit on FIlmFreeway or here.


Göteborg Film Festival, Sweden

Dates : January 29 to February 8

Medium : Virtual


The leading film festival in Scandinavia will be going digital in 2021 due to the increased pandemic concerns presenting an online cinematic experience.

Serving nearly 50 films with premier screenings every night, this festival promises some amazing contestants for the Nordic competition, Dragon Award Best Nordic Film, the winner’s prize being among the world’s largest : One Million Swediesh crowns.


Become a member here to get access to the digital pass.

February 2021


The Berlinale, Germany

Date : March 1 to March 5 | June 

Medium : Virtual (Phase I) | Physical (Phase II)


One of the largest public film festivals in the world, The Berlinale started in 1951 for the Berlin public at the start of the Cold War, as a “showcase of the free world”. The festival has, throughout years, developed into a place of intercultural exchange and a platform for the critical cinematic exploration of social issues. To this day it is considered the most political of all the major film festivals, bringing the big stars of international cinema and filmmakers of all disciplines.



Glasgow Film Festival, Scotland

Date : February 24 - March 7


Partnering with 22 cinemas around the UK and spread over 4 countries and 12 days, GFF’s 17th edition will also screen its films, in addition, on their new online platform Glasgow Film At Home to safely provide the GFF experience for film fans all across the country.

The full programme for GFF will be announced on 14 January. Tickets for the programme, including the Opening and Closing films, will go on sale on Monday 18 January.


Check the latest updates on the GFF website here.


March 2021


Unified Filmmakers Festival, Germany

Date : March 1 to July 31 | June 24 to July 4

Medium : Virtual | Physical at Filmfest Munchen 2021


Accepting submissions in 2 duration categories - under 2 minutes and between 2 and 15 minutes, till 31 March 2021, the online screening will be presented on the festival website here and on its own Youtube channel.


The voting for the best film in both the categories will take place over 5 months both by the audience and an international jury of filmmakers and presented on screen at the Filmfest Munchen.

Submit your films via FilmFreeway here. 


Manchester Film Festival, UK

Date : March 6 to March 14

Medium : Physical screening

Manchester Film Festival is a truly independent film festival, committed and dedicated to showcase the works of both new and established international and domestic filmmakers from the world of independent cinema.


Submissions are open via FilmFreeway for independent feature length and short films that are completed from January 1st, 2018 with all films competing for awards in numerous categories, 17 in total.


April 2021


Brussels Short Film Festival (BSFF) 2021, Belgium

Date : April 21 to May 1

Medium : Physical events


From competitions, comedies, boxing, Portugese, Korean, Iranian and Latin-American short films, and above all, a lot of Belgian, trash, fun and rock ‘n roll to also activities for young public and several professional workshops, the 24th edition of BSFF returns and celebrates 11 days of festival with more than 300 short films


Tickets can be booked here and submissions in different categories here.


Malhaar Virtual Video Festival, India

Date : April 2021 (Tentative)

Medium : Virtual 


Malhaar Global Virtual Video Festival seeks to bring the work of those rare filmmakers or content creators, who stitch together countless human emotions into one amazing tapestry for us to admire and reflect A Match My [Talent] initiative to connect with global content creators and bring their work to the audience and industry.

The first edition last year saw an impressive 400+ submissions from over 20 countries of the world in more than 12 languages. 


Stay tuned for more updates on our Malhaar page.

May 2021


Vienna Shorts 

Date : May 27 to June 1

Medium : Hybrid


The international short film festival Vienna Shorts in Vienna shows about 300 productions with a maximum length of up to 30 minutes every year.

Structured in four categories in the competitive section on national and international levels as well as the non competitive sections, this edition of Vienna Shorts is going to be hybrid with focus on the presentation of short film forms in the cinema of Vienna. Dates of the online screening will be informed later.

June 2021


Palm Springs International ShortFest, USA

Date : June 22 to June 28


For 31 years, the Palm Springs International Film Festival has been bringing together an international community of filmmakers and film lovers to celebrate the riches that cinema presented that year. While they have decided to skip this year’s edition, they are intact with going forward with the ShortFest on the dates mentioned.

One of the largest showcases of short-form cinema in North America, the seven-day competitive festival is Academy Award, BAFTA and Goya-qualifying, screening annually more than 330 shorts from approximately 60 countries. ShortFest accepts submissions up to 40 minutes in duration, in the form of both fiction and non-fiction shorts. Categories include Animation, Documentary, and Live Action.


Submit your entries here.

September 2021


Venice International Film Festival, Italy

Date : September 1 to September 


The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest film festival in the world and one of the most prestigious. The Festival was organised for the first time in 1932, and has hosted 77 editions till date.The Venice Film Festival is today a prestigious event that presents every year a selection of world-class films.

The aim of the Festival is to raise awareness and promote international cinema in all its forms as art, entertainment and as an industry, in a spirit of freedom and dialogue. The Festival also organises retrospectives and tributes to major figures as a contribution towards a better understanding of the history of cinema.

Tickets and subscriptions for the 78th Venice International Film Festival will be on sale in August 2021.

Please visit this page again for updates.


Helsinki International Film Festival, Finland

Date : September 16 to September 26


Each September the Finnish capital Helsinki is transformed into a moviegoers’ paradise. Also known as the coolest film festival in the Northern Hemisphere, the Helsinki International Film Festival – Love & Anarchy promotes the artistry of filmmaking with inventive, visually stunning and groundbreaking new films.

The submission for the National Competition of the L&A Shorts is open for fiction, documentary or animation films that are under 30 minutes long and belong to Finland. It opens in March 2021. The link to the registration form will be updated to this page by then.



Zurich Film Festival, Switzerland

Date : September 23 to October 3


The Zurich Film Festival provides a platform for the most promising filmmakers from around the globe. It aims to promote exchange between emerging directors, successful film workers, the film industry and the general public. Every autumn, the ZFF presents the year’s greatest discoveries and most anticipated films. 

Tickets are available 10 days before the festival and submissions open in September. Stay tuned for updates through their website here.

October 2021


Raindance Film Festival, UK

Date : October 27 to November 6

Medium : Physical screening


Raindance Film Festival is the largest independent film festival in the UK. The Raindance Film Festival aims to show the very best in new cinema from the UK and around the world and specialises in first-time directors and discovery.

The Raindance Film Festival is officially recognised by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences USA, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts and the British Independent Film Awards. Selected shorts will qualify for Oscar® and BAFTA considerations.


Submission details are available here.

November 2021


Stockholm International Film Festival, Sweden

Dates : November 11 to November 22


The Stockholm International Film Festival started in 1990 and is one of the leading film festivals in Europe. During twelve intense days in November the festival presents 150 film premieres from more than 60 countries.

The last edition in 2020 featured 75 films in cinemas as well as via their digital platform due to the pandemic. This year’s edition is also expected to be held virtually until further notice. 

You can stay updated on their website here.


This year promises to be an eventful both on virtual as well as on the physical front. Hopefully we as creators as well as the audience will get to relish and experience all events in their purest forms as intended. We can only cross our fingers for that!

References

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Celebrity Artists in India too are Earning Triple through Blockchain powered NFTs
Anish Parmarthi Added 2 years ago

- Written by Aparajita Dey


It is evident that Blockchain technology has a disruptive presence in global technology. The fact that the system of Blockchain, which was primarily used to enable Bitcoin transactions, is now being implemented in other domains of the digital ecosystem, is a testimony to the fact that Blockchain is going to be a force to reckon with.


In India alone, 56% of Indian businesses are moving towards blockchain technology, weaving it deep into the fabric of their transactions. Most of the adoption seems to be coming from the banking and financial sector, but the fact that the Indian Government itself is making use of this technology for land title registry, vehicle lifecycle management, farm insurance, and electronic health record management, spells out a golden future of blockchain technology, especially in the industry that needs it the most…. The Indian creative industry.  


Yes! Blockchain technology is applicable even in the creative industry. With its cryptographic hashing and use of NFTs, blockchain can be used by creators to leverage their creations to their full monetary value. In other words, with this technology, creators can get paid every time their content is used by some other creator, without worrying about platforms eating up part of the earnings.


What are NFTs?


In simplest terms, an NFT is a digital art that holds a certain amount of value, and can be owned and collected by a person. Think of a digital drawing, or a GIF perhaps, that is one of a kind, and only you own it. You may not be able to hang it on a wall, but only you will have the original piece on your hard drive.



The picture above is also an NFT, a one-of-a-kind digital art piece. In due time, it will become a valuable piece of art. When it increases in value, you shall be able to sell it for its price in value, just like any other sale and purchase of historic artwork.


How big is the NFT market going?


Answering this question is like answering the Bigfoot question- is it or is it not really there? No one can say.


Some people think that NFT is the future of art collection, and it is going to get bigger. While others say that NFT has had its big boom already and is now over. It depends on which expert you ask.


What we can say for sure, is that NFT sale and collection is completely legitimate and people are actually buying and selling, for sure, including famous people.


In 2021, Musician Grimes sold around $6 million worth of digital artworks in an auction on Nifty Gateway. One of the main pieces of her collection (out of ten), fetched around $389,000 alone.


In another instance, the Founder of Twitter, Jack dorsey, sold one of his tweets for just under 3 million.


William Shatner has sold Shatner-themed trading cards (one of it is an X-ray of his teeth).


Someone bought the digital artwork of a cat named Dragon, with chestnut coloured eyes, and body of the color of cottoncandy, for $172,000.


Are there examples of Indian celebrities who have dabbled in NFT?


Many Indian celebrities are buying and selling NFTs now, including Bollywood Actors. Here are some examples of Big-League Bollywood celebs who have traded in NFTs.



  •   1.  Amitabha Bachchan


Amitabha Bachchan sold his father Harivansh Rai Bachchan’s poem 'Madhushala' in his own recorded voice as NFT Collectibles in November 2021. Another part of that same collection was his signed poster of Sholay.


  •   2. Salman Khan

In October 2021, the Dabangg actor teamed up with Bollycoin, a Bollywood NFT marketplace, to launch his NFT collection.  Through Bollycoin, he launched 200 NFTs based on his hit film Dabangg, 42 out of which were scenes from the film.


  •  3. Rajnikanth


In July 2021, Rajinikanth launched NFTs based on his 2007 Tamil action blockbuster film ‘Shivaji The Boss’. For this he partnered with Singapore-based NFT Marketplace Diginoor.io

This NFT collection featured 17 NFTs, which were immediately sold out.


  •  4. Kamal Haasan


Influenced by Amitabha Bachchan, South superstar Kamal Haasan, too, launched his NFT collection.

Kamal Haasan launched his NFTs through celebrity NFT platform Fantico. His NFT collection features 100 to 1000 NFTs based on movie posters, souvenirs, avatars of his film and persona.


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A R Rahman is all set to join Team Le Musk on the Cannes Red Carpet as part of the Indian delegation.
Anish Parmarthi Added 2 years ago

23 May, 2022:


AR Rahman, the Indian Icon who has scored not only some 500-1000 movies like Slumdog Millionaire , 2.0, and Tamasha, but also captured the hearts of millions of people with his versatility in the regional musical traditions of India. 


The acclaimed music composer and recipient of several international awards is all set to walk the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival for his Directorial debut, Le Musk. Rahman joined the Indian delegation at Cannes alongside Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur.

 

The maestro’s directorial debut Le Musk, screened at Cannes XR, in convergence with Marché du Film, as part of the 75th Cannes Film Festival.

Rahman was accompanied by other cast and crew members, Guy Burnet, who plays a guitarist in Le Musk, and Ravindra Velhal, an executive producer and VR technology director for Le Musk.


Le Musk is all set to hit the screens soon. With cinematic surrealism, this film will be a showcase of the union of technology and cinema. Several other big artists like Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Mame Khan and Ricky Kej also joined the delegation.


After a long and incredibly successful journey as a musical maestro, A. R. Rahman has ventured into direction with Le Musk, a film of an enchanting essence and fresh perspective to it. 


Rahman walked the red carpet with British actor Burnet, who has carved a niche market for himself, with films such as Mortdecai and Pitch Perfect 3 and television shows such as The Feed and Ray Donavan. Velhal, who also walked the red carpet alongside Rahman, has the expertise of two decades in technology due to his stint with Intel. He has also mastered cinematography in Hollywood with films like Spider-Man: Far From Home, Dunkirk, Save Every Breath and FirstMan.


Le Musk is a tribute to the musical genius of and footprints in cinema left by A. R. Rahman. 

Through the eyes of Le Musk, a completely new angle of cinematography is being explored with VR and realistic narration. The film was screened at Cannes XR on the 20th of May, 2022. 



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11 year old Nishaad Shah's debut album wins Grammy
Anish Parmarthi Added 2 years ago

Wednesday, May 25, 2022: 


New York-based Indian singer Falguni Shah, known by her stage name Falu, won a Grammy Award for her soulful album 'A Colorful World' in the best children's album category. Her own son, Nishaad Shah, was a part of this album and was also present at the event. The eleven year old was very proud of his mother and himself for winning this award but at the same time he was nervous as well. 


While this Grammy is special for many reasons to the Shah family, it marks a beautiful milestone for various cultures within the US. The album has found an audience in everyone from an immigrant Gujarati household in Jersey City to a mixed-race Puerto Rican home in Harlem. The album and the family have received a lot of love from everywhere around the world, especially from proud Indians. 


Nishaad reveals that he was extremely anxious to go on the stage, even worrying about accidentally dropping the trophy. However, he was also very excited to receive the honour. He aims to become an astronaut when he grows up, while pursuing music as a hobby as well, just like his dad. The 11 year old Beatles fan also derives inspiration from Lady Gaga and Olivia Rodrigo. He revealed he was looking forward to both his mother’s and Lady Gaga's performance at the Grammys. He considers Music the food of his soul and never wants to give up on it, even amidst his space aspirations. 


Having worked hard to juggle both studies and his passion for music, one advice that Nishaad shared with his fellow kids is "Try your best and never give up on your dreams''. He says the balance is mostly fine but sometimes it can get hard to practice during weekdays due to school work. However, he makes sure he practises his music on the weekends. 


Nishaad’s mother encouraged him to do a mini chilla where he sat in one place and sang one raga (yaman) for four hours continuously for forty days during the previous summer. It was a very different experience for him as he had to learn how to concentrate on one scale and improve on it for four continuous hours. After doing chilla he realised that he was able to apply that level of focus in school too, motivating him to work harder. 




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Indian Composer Ricky Kej's latest album Divine Tides nominated for a Grammy
Anish Parmarthi Added 3 years ago

Thursday, December 9, 2021:


Former Grammy winner Ricky Kej has been nominated yet again for a Grammy, along with American Musician Stewart Copeland for their latest album ‘Divine Tides’.


Divine Tides was directed by Lahari Velu and produced by Lahari Music.’ The album contains nine songs and eight music videos.


Ricky’s music is mostly cross-cultural, but not without a strong hint of Indian music. He won a Grammy in 2015, for his album ‘Winds of Samsara’. Stewart Copeland, who has won the Grammy five times previously, is the founder and drummer of the legendary British rock group ‘The Police’.


Ricky is the youngest person from India to have won a Grammy honor. He is also the fourth Indian to do so.


To read Ricky Kej’s biography, click here


To read Stewart Copeland’s biography, click here


To know about or listen to the album DIVINE TIDES, click here


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