The Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) presents its 4th edition November 5–8, 2015. Twenty-one films are set to be screened so far, and Marathi indie filmmaker Umesh Kulkarni has curated a selection of Indian short films.
Highlights include Joshua Oppenheimer’s award-winning documentaries on the Indonesian genocide, Vietnamese director Nguyen Hoang Diep’s feature film Flapping in the Middle of Nowhere, The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz by Brian Knappenberger, Hope, by Boris Lojkine, Body by Małgorzata Szumowska, and Sundance award winning film The Wolfpack, among others. Attending filmmakers include Gurvinder Singh (Chauthi Koot), Ruchik Oberoi (Island City), Bhaskar Hazarika (Kothandodi), Kaoru Ikeya (Lung Ta), Abhay Kumar (Placebo), The Maw Naing (The Monk), Tetsuichiro Tsuta (The Tale of Iya), Dodo Hunziker (Tibetan Warrior), Neeraj Ghuywan (Masaan). Special guests include Losang Phuntsok, Kazuhiro Nakahara and Loten Namling.
In addition to screenings, the DIFF Film Fellows program provides an opportunity to five aspiring filmmakers from the Himalayan regions of India to attend the festival, participate in its various events, and have one-on-one mentorship sessions with established filmmakers. This initiative provides an opportunity to budding filmmakers who would not otherwise have access to these resources, building relationships between established and upcoming artists.
The nonprofit DIFF was founded by veteran filmmakers Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam, who continue to lead the organization in their hometown of Dharamshala, India. Recently they said, “Although Dharamshala is a very multicultural and multi-ethnic place, the opportunities for meaningful interaction between its diverse residents is scarce. We’ve tried very hard with DIFF to reach out to them all and one of our achievements has been to bring them all together to enjoy the festival.”
Buddhist Film Foundation is proud to serve as fiscal sponsor for DIFF.
