An idea that has the whole industry sit up and take note: five short films will be presented together as a feature film titled Aviyal. The move to make such a film has already thrilled viewers and short filmmakers, who until now, did not have too much access to mainstream sources of revenue. The man behind the move is director Karthik Subbaraj, whose new-age films have already been accepted as trendsetters.
Talking to City Express, Karthik says, “Anthologies have been around for a while — you can find them in Hollywood, European cinema and even in Malayalam cinema. We started Stone Bench Creations to make big, mainstream avenues accessible to independent short filmmakers here. We thought about it and decided to combine short films as a feature film and get it censored.”
Karthik’s team at Bench Talkies released an anthology of six short films last year in select cities including Chennai and Coimbatore. “We tried it out last year and received an overwhelming response. In fact, one screen was given to us at Sathyam, where this anthology was screened for three weeks,” he smiles.
That inspired Karthik’s team, which then decided to do an anthology of five short films. “We decided to select short films based on a theme — this time it was ‘dark comedy’,” Karthik explains.
But were the short films made after they decided to release them as a feature film, or did they pick ones that had already been made? “A little of both. Four of the five directors whose short films are featured in this anthology are debutants. They are Shammeer Sultan, Guru Smaran, Lokesh Kanakaraj and Mohit Mehra. Along with their work, we wanted to have an established director’s short film. We chose Alphonse Puthren’s film as the fifth. Even I worked on it,” says a proud Karthik, adding that each film will be unique and quirky in its own way.
“We received more than 1,500 entries at Bench Flicks, a platform we set up to promote and distribute short films. We sort the films and give them to different forms of exhibitors like in-flight entertainment crews and pay-and-view channels. We also pick short films we think are good for theatrical releases, and when there is an opportunity, we release them,” says Karthik.
The director-cum-producer says Thenandal Films has the rights for the film and is planning to release it on 70 screens in the state on March 11. “In Kerala, we are planning to release it on 30 screens as one of the stories features Nivin Pauly and Bobby Simha,” he says, adding that the film will be released in the US as well. So, can audiences expect more such anthologies in the future? “Definitely!” he exclaims.