54th International Film Festival to be held from 20th November in Goa

Union Minister Anurag Thakur today announced that 54^th International Film Festival will be held from 20^th to 28^th November, 2023, in Goa. Speaking on the occasion, Thakur said that ranked 5^th largest market globally, India’s media and entertainment industry is a force to reckon with. He added that this market is growing every year with an average annual growth of 20% in the last three years. The movies made in India have covered every corner of the country and are now reaching the distant corners of the world.

In his statement, the Minister stated that this year Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award will be conferred on Mr Michael Douglas, a shining star of world cinema and who is known for his immense contribution in the cinematic universe.

Shri Thakur informed that the International Section of IFFI has seen a three times spike in number of films received and this is a display of the fascination of international film industry for IFFI.

Speaking about the newly introduced OTT awards, he said that since COVID19 pandemic OTT industry has seen a boom in India and original content created in India is employing thousands of people. In response to the dynamic landscape of this sector, growth of which stands at 28% annually, the Ministry has introduced this award celebrating the outstanding content creators on OTT platforms. He added that a total of 32 entries across 10 languages from 15 OTT platforms have been received and the winner will be awarded an amount of ten lakh rupees.

Anurag Thakur spoke about the booming startup ecosystem in the country and Governments focus on creating a support system to nurture such entities. He added that to bolster the startup ecosystem in film sector, and to recognise talent from the remotest corners of the country, we had started the Creative Minds of Tomorrow initiative. The Minister informed that there are over 600 entries in this section for this year. This year’s selection of 75 winners will take the total of such winners to 225 in 3 years.

The Minster made a special mention that all the venues for this year’s IFFI will be inclusive with all facilities and access for specially-abled. Audio description for visually impaired, sign language for hearing impaired, dubbing of content in multiple languages will be symbolic of the mantra of Sabka Sath Sabka Vikas. 

The Minister of State Dr L Murugan in his brief statement said that IFFI is one of the biggest film and cultural extravaganza of the world. He informed the audience that International Jury is being headed by acclaimed filmmaker Mr. Shekhar Kapur.