As in the previous edition of Dhaka International Film Festival, no Best Film Award was announced on the concluding ceremony of the 13th DIFF held yesterday at the auditorium of National Museum Auditorium. The juries of Competition, Australasian Film Section, explained that no film from the competition stood out as Best Film this year. Moreover, no Bangladeshi films have been awarded at this year’s DIFF which featured 20 awards in different categories.
As a solitary participant country in the festival, Iran dominated the award chart by winning a total of six awards: Best Director, Best Actor, Badal Rahman Award for the Best Children Film, Audience Award (film) and two Special Mention awards in Short and Independent films category.
As chief guest at the closing ceremony, information minister Hasanul Haque Inu said: “Filmmakers can mark their efforts to change society and contribute to our ongoing fight against religious fundamental groups, communal aggression, poverty and illiteracy.’’ Graceful presence of a number of local and international film makers, film enthusiastic and academics made the closing ceremony a colourful one. Among them Rasoul Sadrameli, a veteran Iranian filmmaker, Mofidul Haque, trustee of Liberation War Museum and Kim Ji-Seok, executive programmer of Busan Internation Film Festival were present.
However, most of the awardees were absent at the programme and the crests and certificates were received by others on behalf of them.
The official jury of competition section announced The Best Director as Parviz Shahbazi for his film Trapped. The Best Actor went to Levon Hafevan for his brilliant performance in Iranian film Parviz and the Best Actress went to Vilma Santos for her fabulous acting in Philippino film Ekstra. The Best Screenplay Award was grabbed by Japanese film Miss Zombie and The Best Cinematography Award by Australian film Satellite Boy.
Best Children Film Badal Rahman Award, a special include in the festival, was achieved by The Rooster Trademark Paper while the Audience Award went to the film Plastic. Sri Lankan film Siri Perakum by famous director Somaratne Dissanayake and Nepalese film Chokhaunee by Kamal Bhatta received Special Audience Mention awards.
In Spiritual section, Best Fiction Award went to an Indian film Adomya and Special Mention to Swedish film Between Two Worlds.
In Women Filmmakers section, another special include in the festival, Best Fiction Award went to Swedish film Eat Sleep Die by Gabriela Pilchler and Best Documentary Award to Afghan Women behind the Wheel by Afghan female film director Sahraa Karimi.
Turkish film Patika and South Korean film The Korean Dream were honoured with the Best Fiction Award and Best Documentary respectively in Short and Independent section.
With the slogan “Better Film, Better Audience, Better Society,” the 13th Dhaka International Film Festival began on January 10 and ran at four venues in Dhaka. Organised by Rainbow Film Society, which is dedicated to the promotion of a healthy cine culture in Bangladesh, and also celebrates global cinema, the festival featured screening of around 150 films from almost 50 countries.
