The 52nd International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa will bestow the Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award on Martin Scorsese, the veteran Hollywood director, and Hungarian filmmaker Istvan Szabo, the Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur announced in a press release.
Szabo is one of the most acclaimed Hungarian filmmakers of the last few decades and is known for films like Mephisto (1981) and Father (1966), while Scorsese is known for directing Oscar-winning films such as Taxi Driver (1976) and Goodfellas (1990).
The festival will also pay homage to actors and filmmakers like Dilip Kumar, Sanchari Vijay, Sumitra Bhave, Buddhadeb Dasgupta, Surekha Sikri, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Bertraand Tavenier, Christopher Plummer, and Jean-Claude Carrière, who passed away in the past year.
Meanwhile, around 30 films have been shortlisted for screening in the Festival Kaleidoscope and World Panorama sections of the festival. The King of all the World (El Rey de Todo El Mundo), directed by Carlos Saura, will be the opening film. This will also be the film’s international premiere.
Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog, which won the filmmaker the Silver Lion for Best Direction at Venice Film Festival, will be the mid-fest film.
Iranian filmmaker Rakhshan Banietemad will head the IFFI jury this year. The jury will also include British director Stephen Woolley, Colombian filmmaker Ciro Guerra, Sri Lankan filmmaker Vimukthi Jayasundara, and Indian director Nila Madhab Panda.
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Thakur also announced that for the first time ever, IFFI has invited major OTT players to participate at the festival. Netflix, Amazon Prime, Zee5, Voot, and SonyLiv will all participate at the film festival through exclusive masterclasses, content launches and previews, curated film package screenings, and various other on-ground and virtual events.
Thakur noted that the trend of watching movies on OTT is on the rise and IFFI is embracing new technology and providing a platform for film industry members to interact with OTT players.
The Union Minister has also announced that for the first time, films from the five BRICS nations – Brazil, Russia, South Africa, China, and India – will be showcased through the BRICS Film Festival alongside IFFI.
The 52nd IFFI will be held from November 20 to 28, 2021 in Goa.