In a film festival marked by voices of dissent against mindless entertainment passed off as popular cinema, this was another cry against commercialism. Ramdas Naidu, director of the critically acclaimed ‘Moggina Jade‘, on Sunday said it was only his fascination and commitment to serious cinema that kept him going.
“After making three films, I’m losing out financially. It’s tough for serious filmmakers because even the theatre rentals are exorbitant. The situation is so bad that National Award-winning Kannada films are not even releasing in the State,” Naidu said on the sidelines of the Bengalooru International Film Festival 2008.
Dismissing the “unfortunate” impression that art films are boring, he said ‘Moggina Jade’ tried to delve upon the risks of endorsing the corporate culture and the possible imbalance in living standards that the culture threatened to bring along. Naidu said he had many subjects in mind for his future projects, including an adaptation of Beli mattha . The backlash against commercial cinema was echoed by Italian filmmaker Stefano Odoardi, whose film ‘A white ballad’ was screened as part of BIFFES 2008. Odoardi said finding money and audiences for serious cinema is getting tougher in Italy.