The Karachi International Film Festival, simply known as the Kara Film Festival (Urdu: ''کارا فلم فیسٹیول'' or ''کارا فلم'') was founded in 2001 by the KaraFilm Society, reportedly in response to the declining state of the Pakistani film industry. The film festival was held annually until 2009. The 8th Kara Film Festival was supposed to be held in 2010 but has since been delayed every year due to the socio-economic problems that Karachi was facing. The goal of the festival was to "promote an appreciation of the art and craft of filmmaking among a wide population as well as to encourage creativity and high standards among filmmakers". The Kara Film Festival was founded to celebrate the past galore of Pakistani cinema and help aid in its revival. The festival featured a variety of independent films including

documentaries A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in term ...

, narrative features and

shorts Shorts are a garment worn over the pelvic area, circling the waist and splitting to cover the upper part of the legs, sometimes extending down to the knees but not covering the entire length of the leg. They are called "shorts" because they ...

. From the 6th festival onwards there was also a family-friendly section of children's animated movies There would be a jury who would celebrate emerging and renowned filmmakers by awarding their works. One distinctive feature of the festival was that it would showcase works of art by Pakistani artists. Another feature of the festival was that the opening and closing ceremonies would feature some of the new as well as some of the famed Pakistani musical talent.

History

Cineaste One a similar institution which substituted KaraFilm by organizing COSFF and workshops with a greater focus on education, and substituting indie films with student films. Cineaste One while succeeding KaraFilm festival does not employ anyone involved with it.

Awards

A jury hands out awards to the films they deem the best at the closing ceremony.http://www.karafilmfest.com/KaraFilm2009/awards09.htm

Documentary Films

*Best Documentary

Short Films

*Best Live Action Short Film *Best Animated Short Film *Best Telefilm

Feature Films

*Best Feature Film *Best Direction *Best Male Actor in a Leading Role *Best Female Actor in a Leading Role *Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role *Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role *Best Screenplay *Best Editing *Best Cinematography *Best Musical Score

Jury Awards

*Special Jury Award *Special Jury Award for Acting

References

External links

*
Sixth KaraFilm Festival (7-17 December 2006) - ''Dawn Review''
Film festivals in Pakistan Festivals in Karachi Kariwood Cinema of Sindh Short film festivals {{film-festival-stub