THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The 21st International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) will have 15 movies, including Malayalam films Manhole and When the Woods Bloom, competing for the Golden Crown Pheasant Award.
A total of four Indian movies are in the competition section. For the first time, a Malayalam film from a woman director comes in the competition section. The film Manhole, directed by Vidhu Vincent, unravels the life and struggles of manhole workers. Another Malayalam film in the competition category, Dr Biju’s When the woods bloom, attempts to depict the story of a policeman who loses his way in a dense forest in his pursuit of a suspected Maoist woman.
The film, focusing on gender issues, has been chosen for screening at festivals such as the Montreal World Film Festival and International Film Festival of India.
Other Indian movies to be screened in the competition category are The last Mural by Saibal Mitra from Bengal and the Assamese silent film Maj Rati Keteki by Santwana Bardoloi.
Yesim Ustaoglu’s Clair Obscur, Mohamed Diab’s Clash, Mustafa Kara’s Cold of Kalandar, Jun Robles Lana’s Die Beautiful, Wang Xuebo’s Knife in the Clear Water, Brett Michael Innes’ Sink and Yang Zhang’s Soul on a String are other films in the competition category. These are films from Turkey, Egypt, Philippines, China, South Africa, Ghana, Singapore, Mexico and Iran.