Mumbai, Oct 23: A record 1,402 entries have been received for the weeklong 20th International Children's Film Festival of India which will open in Hyderabad from November 8, a top official said here on Monday.
The ICFFI, the largest of its kind in the world and titled 'Golden Elephant' is being jointly hosted with Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and Telangana government, said Children's Film Society of India CEO Shravan Kumar.
This year, the 1,402 entries from 109 countries so far include short films, documentaries and animated films, based on the festival theme of 'New India', in tune with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of creating a New India by 2022, said Kumar.
"We believe every child has a story to tell and with this in mind, CFSI started the 'Little Directors' section where films for children and made by children are featured at the 20th Golden Elephant ICFFI, in competitive and non-competitive categories," Kumar said.
The CFSI chief said for the Little Directors section alone, 179 entries from more than 30 countries have been received, including 101 from India and the remaining 78 from other countries.
The festival will include workshops, open forums on various aspects of film-making and storytelling in which children and experts from different fields will participate, the youngsters will learn to grasp various aspects of filmmaking and related fields.
The biennial festival will strive to bring forth the most delightful, creative and imaginative national and international children's cinema to the young audiences in the country.
"Excellent features, shorts, live action, animation and Little Directors' films shall be screened on all seven days of the festival, give the children an opportunity to interact with other children, film-makers, guests and jury members from all over the world," said Kumar.
He said since inception in 1955, the CFSI has participated in more than 250 Indian and global film festivals, besides reaching out to children in conflict zones like Kashmir, tribal areas and remote areas of the northeastern states by organising film festivals there.
The CFSI also promotes leading filmmakers to join the cause of filmmaking for children by creating co-production platforms, including the recent film, "Pahuna" made jointly with Bollywood and Hollywood actress Priyanka Chopra's production house.