Kandy International Film Festival from June 221 min read
Reading Time: < 1 minuteMore than 15 full-length films from around the world will make their Sri Lankan debut at the Kandy International Film Festival (KIFF) from June 22 to 26 in locations around Kandy including Sigiri Theatre and the Open Air theatre at the University of Peradeniya.
Directors and films from Bangladesh, France, India, Singapore, Thailand and the United States as well as local features will be represented at the festival. The five-day celebration of film and culture is something completely unique in Sri Lanka, as it brings together for the first time in Sri Lanka, international and local award winning new films for Sri Lankan audiences.
The opening night film for the festival is an exhilarating French feature by David Dusa called “Fleurs du Mal,” which will be shown on Wednesday, June 22. Mr. Dusa’s work is a coming-of-age love story between Anahita, a beautiful young Iranian woman in exile in Paris, and Gecko, a free-spirited break-dancer working as a bellhop in one of the city’s hotels. The two are steeped in internet culture. She uses social media to keep up with the protests unfolding back home in Iran, and he connects with others through Facebook and YouTube.
As the characters’ romance flourishes, Mr. Dusa intercuts his cinematic footage with historic video to create a stunning effect. Other international feature films include “I Am,” by acclaimed Indian director Onir; Bangladeshi film “Meherjaan” by RubaiyatHossain; “Memories of a Burning Tree” that takes place in Tanzania and was made by Singaporean director Sherman Ong; “Mundane History” by Thailand’s Anocha Suwichakornpong; and the joint India-France production “Virgin Goat” by Murali Nair.
