Dharamsala film fest lines up award-winning films, premieres

Mumbai: The sixth edition of the Dharamshala International Film Festival, slated for November 2-5, will feature award-winning documentaries as well as India and South Asian premieres of some movies.

The first line-up for the fest was announced on Tuesday via a statement.

Among two award-winning documentaries to be showcased are Kirsten Johnson's "Cameraperson" and Rahul Jain's "Machines".

There will be a special screening of "A Death in the Gunj", presented in person by director Konkona Sen Sharma.

That apart, there will be the India premiere of American film "Out of This World", a newly restored version of journalist and writer Lowell Thomas' account of his travels to Tibet in 1949. This film was originally released in 1954.

Deepak Rauniyar's Oscar entry from Nepal, "White Sun", will also be screened, while South Asian premieres of three experimental films -- Amar Kanwar's "Such a Morning" (India), Naeem Mohaiemen's "Tripoli Cancelled" (Bangladesh), and Singapore filmmaker Tan Pin Pin's "In Time to Come" -- are lined up.

To be held in the mountain town of McLeodganj, the film gala will also have films from Malaysia, Japan, Switzerland and Bhutan among others.

Presented by White Crane Arts and Media, a trust founded by filmmakers Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam to promote contemporary cinema, art and independent media practices in the Himalayan regions of India, this year's fest is supported by Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary, and the Himachal Pradesh government through its departments of tourism and language, arts, and culture. 

Sarin said in a statement: "Over the past six years, DIFF has carved out a special niche in the landscape of Indian film festivals. It is loved by filmmakers and film buffs alike and we want to ensure that DIFF 2017 continues to build on the qualities for which the festival has come to be known-its intimacy, warmth, unpretentiousness and single-minded focus on highlighting good indie cinema, all within beautiful mountain surroundings."