The first ever Danish Film Festival was inaugurated here on Monday. The festival is organised by the Royal Danish Embassy, New Delhi, Royal Danish Consulate, Chennai and the Indo Cine Appreciation Foundation in association with the Danish Film Institute.
S Kannan, president of Indo Cine Appreciation Foundation (ICAF), said, “The Danish started to make films 120 years ago. Till date, nearly 50 films from the Danish film industry have been nominated for the Oscars under the best foreign film category. The Danish filmmakers have done bold experiments in their films. The Netherlands is one of the countries where crimes against women are minimum as the government has legalised pornography. Hence, many of the Danish films have sexual content.”
Inaugurating the film festival, S B Prabhakar Rao, Honorary Vice-Consul, Royal Danish Consulate, said, “Compared to the British and other invaders, the Danish came to India as friends and not as invaders. One of the Scandinavian countries, Denmark, which has a population of only 55 lakh, contributes a lot to the Danish film industry.
Every movie gets a subsidy from the State.
These films have universal themes and the ability to raise questions among the viewers. Though our Indian film industry is matured, our technicians should watch these films so they can learn more.”
Commending the ICAF, for its efforts, Dr A C Mohandoss, a former civil servant and an organiser of many film festivals said, “Tamil Nadu has a very close connection with Denmark. In Tranquebar (Tarangambadi), there are beautiful palaces which were built by the Danish.”
He added, “People of Denmark started to make movies from 1897. The Danish films are noted for their realism, moral values and sexual ‘frankness’. In 2012, at the Cannes Film Festival, the Danish film titled ‘The Hunt’ was selected as the best movie. This year too, at Cannes Film Festival, a documentary called ‘Whale Valley’ got a special mention.”
He concluded by saying, “A film is not only seen as an entertainment, it also reflects the culture.”
The festival will be on till June 13. A total of seven films are to be screened. The films are screened at 6 pm everyday at RKV Film and Television Institute, Vadapalani. The film ‘Head Hunter’ was screened during the inauguration.