The Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, Short and Animation Films (MIFF) is a festival organized in the city of

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the secon ...

(formerly Bombay) by the

Films Division The Films Division of India (FDI), commonly referred as Films Division, was established in 1948 following the independence of India. It was the first state film production and distribution unit, under the Ministry of Information and Broadcastin ...

, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting,

Government of India The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

. It was started in 1990, and focuses on documentary, short fiction and animation films.

History

The festival aims to provide a platform for documentary and short film makers from all over the world to meet, exchange ideas and explore possibilities of co-production and marketing of documentary, short and animation films. This biennial festival is traditionally held at the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA), Mumbai. However, most screenings of the 15th edition of the festival took place in the Films Division Complex on Pedder Road, which now sports multiple, state-of-the-art screening facilities. Entries are open up to November for the Golden Conch and Silver Conch awards in International and National Competition Sections. The top documentary film of the festival in International Competition is honored with the Golden Conch Award and a Cash Prize of Rs 1 million (Rs 10 lakhs). All the awards in the competition category are decided by an International and National Jury respectively, comprising top documentary and short filmmakers from India and abroad. Besides the competition films, MIFF also screens a number of special packages like Jury Retrospective, Best of the Festivals, MIFF Prism, Country Focus documentaries, and restored classics. Panel discussions, an open forum, seminars and workshops on documentary filmmaking are organized as side activities during the festival. The festival is open to the public, although prior registration as a delegate is required. The delegate fee is waived for students of film schools and mass media courses, in a bid to attract youngsters to meet up with masters. The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting approved the doubling of prize money for the Golden Conch Award-winning Best Documentary Film in the International Competition to Rs 1 million. The award money for the Lifetime Achievement award was also doubled to Rs 1 million. Altogether, cash awards of Rs 5.8 million will be given away during MIFF 2018.

2016

The 14th edition was held from 28 January to 3 February 2016. The 14th edition received a total of 825 entries including 135 entries in the International Competition. The International Jury was made up of Don Askarian (Germany), Jesper Andersen (Denmark), Mathicu Roy (Canada), Siddharth Kak (India) and Gitanjali Rao (Mumbai). The National Jury comprised Mike Pandey (India), Uma DaCunha (India), Biju Dhanapalan (India), Audrius Stonys (Lithuania) and Jane Yu (Taiwan). ''Manipuri'' Phum Shang by Haobam Paban Kumar won the top honors at the festival, along with the Swiss Indian films ''My Name Is Salt'' and ''Placebo''. Wildlife filmmaker from India Naresh Bedi was presented with the V Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award for promoting the documentary movement in India. Legendary filmmaker late V Shantaram was formerly the Chief Producer and Head of

2018

The 15th edition of MIFF was held from 28 January – 3 February 2018. The Florida Project director Sean Baker was head of the jury, joining Oscar-winning editor

Thom Noble Thom Noble is a British film editor who won an Academy Award and an ACE Eddie Award for the film ''Witness'' (1985). He was nominated for the Academy Award and the BAFTA Award for Best Editing for the film ''Thelma & Louise'' (1991). In 2018, ...

AFI Fest The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Leade ...

director Jacqueline Lyanga and Indian filmmaker

Vishal Bhardwaj Vishal Bhardwaj (born 4 August 1965) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, producer, music composer and playback singer. He is known for his work in Hindi cinema, and is the recipient of seven National Film Awards and a Filmfare Award. Bha ...

. Phuttiphong Aroonpheng's ''

Manta Ray Manta rays are large rays belonging to the genus ''Mobula'' (formerly its own genus ''Manta''). The larger species, '' M. birostris'', reaches in width, while the smaller, '' M. alfredi'', reaches . Both have triangular pectoral fins, horn-s ...

'' won best film in the international competition.

Rima Das Rima Das (born 1982) is an Indian filmmaker best known for her 2017 film '' Village Rockstars'', which won several national and international awards and became India's official entry for the 90th Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Language Fi ...

' ''

Bulbul Can Sing ''Bulbul Can Sing'' is a 2018 Indian Assamese language drama film directed by Rima Das. It was screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival. The film centres on three teenagers trying to come ...

'' won in the India Gold category.

Darren Aronofsky Darren Aronofsky (born February 12, 1969) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. His films are noted for their surrealistic, melodramatic, and sometimes disturbing elements, often in the form of psychological fiction. Arono ...

, who held a

master class A master class is a class given to students of a particular discipline by an expert of that discipline—usually music, but also science, painting, drama, games, or on any other occasion where skills are being developed. "Masterclass" is als ...

during the festival, was honored with an 'excellence in cinema' award.

2020

The 16th Mumbai International Film Festival was held from 28 January – 3 February 2020.

2022

The 17th Mumbai International Film Festival will be held from 29 May – 5 June 2022. Documentary, Short Fiction and Animation films completed between 1 September 2019 and 31 December 2021 are eligible for the festival.

References

External links

* *{{IMDb event, 0000110, Bombay International Documentary, Short and Animation Film Festival
Films Division
Ministry of Information and Broadcasting,

Recurring events established in 1990 Festivals in Mumbai Documentary film festivals in India Animation film festivals Short film festivals in India Tourist attractions in Mumbai Film industry in Mumbai Film festivals in Maharashtra Indian film festivals __FORCETOC__