5th Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF 2016 )from 3-6 November in McLeod Ganj, Dharamshala

Dharamshala, September 14, 2016: The fifth Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF) will take place from 3 to 6 November 2016 in the beautiful mountain town of McLeod Ganj, Dharamshala , The home of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. DIFF is presented by White Crane Arts & Media, a trust founded by veteran filmmakers Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam to promote contemporary cinema, art and independent media practices in the Himalayan regions of India.
“ In DIFF 2015, 5000 cinema enthusiasts from every corner of world watched films. Some of India’s best-known film critics and journalists from leading media houses were on hand to cover the event,” said Ritu Sarin.
She further added that the organizers are determined that the event will maintain its established momentum. “This is our fifth year and it means a great deal to us to have reached this milestone,” says Ritu.
Co-Director Tenzing adds: “We hope to continue building on the qualities for which DIFF has become known – showcasing an excellent selection of films from India and around the globe .”
He informed PTI that this year DIFF’s Children’s Film Programme is curetted by Children’s Media Specialist, Monica Wahi who selected the films last year as well.
DIFF is thrilled to announce the first six films from DIFF 2016. The directors of all six films will be coming to the festival to present their films and participate in Q&A sessions. These include:
1, A Syrian Love Story by British director Sean McAllister hailed as a “Bergmanesque portrait of relationship and love” at the Sheffield Doc/Fest 2015 where it was awarded the Grand Jury prize.
2, National Film Award winner and Anurag Kashyap’s long-term cinematographer, Rajeev Ravi’s third directorial venture, the gangster epic,Kammatipaadam.
3, South Korean director Jeon Soo-il’s A Korean in Paris, a road film that takes us through the city of Paris in a tale woven within her underbelly of minorities.
4, Iranian director Rokhsareh Ghaem Maghami’s much-lauded Sonita, the story of Sonita, an 18-year-old undocumented Afghan illegal immigrant living in the suburbs of Tehran.
5, Internationally renowned as Thailand’s first female director, Pimpaka Towira’sThe Island Funeral, a road movie that explores the ambiguity of identities as two siblings travel through south Thailand, a Muslim-predominant region plagued by outbreaks of violence and official mistrusts.
6, Marathi film Lathe Joshi by Mangesh Joshi, a moving, poetic and meditative look at a good man lost in the crossroads of a rapidly changing world.
DIFF 2016 continues its Film Fellows programme, which was first set up in 2014 to enable budding filmmakers from the Indian Himalayan regions to attend the festival and participate in mentorship sessions with established filmmakers. Filmmakers Umesh Kulkarni and Anupama Srinivasan will mentor the fellows.
“This year sees a change of venue from the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts, which is undergoing major renovations until 2018, to the bucolic environs of theTibetan Children’s Village – a pleasant 15-minute drive McLeod Ganj. The festival films will be screened in two auditoriums on the campus with all other events, including master classes, panel discussions, workshops and a food and craft fair all located within walking distance,”said Ritu.
She said that DIFF 2016 registration is opened and can be done online on Book My Show.