It’s a struggle that is inevitable for any film that comes without the label of a big banner or a poster face. It is no different for them too and a space to screen their movie is the biggest challenge for Anil Sign and Jayakrishnan, the makers of Aana Mayil Ottakam.
Such is the extent of their struggle that they had to launch a desperate plea to theatre owners for a slot. ‘Ana Mayil Ottakam’, an anthology of three stories, hit the theatres last week and has managed to garner good reviews.
“There is no crowd puller or big names. For small movies like us, getting a screen is a big deal. On the day before the release, I was running around meeting theatre owners. Initially, we had just two screens, but we managed to make it to 10 by the end of the day,” says Anil, who used to make short films and organise short film festivals.
However, the good word-of mouth response has made a difference. “Now the movie runs in 12 theares all over the state. We have got almost two extra shows in Saritha Theatre, Ernakulam. Our movie was moved to a prime slot. This itself is an encouraging move,” says Jayakrishnan.The film was also simultaneously released online. By doing this, they hope to reach out to a global audience and get an easy access to foreign distribution channels.
‘Ana Mayil Ottakam’ has three stories - Aa Aa Ee Ee, 12 out of 15 and Fill in the blanks...
The director duo, who began working on the movie almost an year ago says the movie was made on a shoe-string budget and credit their friends for the support extended to them.
The movie stars Balu Varghese, Mithun Murali, Indrans, Sharran, Sunil Sikhada and is produced under the banner of M J Movies. The music is composed by Saji Raam, Rakesh Keshavan, and Syam Ramesh.