Memo urges promotion of cinema in State
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, October 15 2017: Film Forum Manipur submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister today urging promotion and development of cinema in the State .

The memorandum urged to implement the State Cine Policy already approved by the State Governmentn in its true spirit and in contentions with the aspirations of the cineast of the State .

Film Forum Manipur since its inception in 2004 till date is administering its functions and duties from a rented holding.

Deliveries of the forum which is actually a vast proposition dealing from registration of titles to the final stage of preview, consisting and collaborating with all its 12 constituent associations and guilds is becoming unmanageable, it stated .

Cine Festival is a part of the Sangai Festival for the last two editions.

However, it is limited and confined only to screening of films.

Cine event is yet another facet of such festivals where interactive sessions are held in between cine personalities of different cinema settlements for creation of a platform to encourage collaborative productions.

Cine events of such kind may be introduced in all the State level festivals to implant a new cinematic and cultural sensibility among the masses, the memorandum suggested .

The forum requested arrangements be made to co-invite the related personalities like the directors, producers specially the performers and other behind the screen cineasts to inter-exchange ideas and concepts as done in any festivals organised in other parts of the globe .

It further stated that Manipur State Film Development Society (MSFDS) being the State nodal agency for the development and achievement of cinema in Manipur and Film Forum Manipur, a federation of cine bodies for the cause of cinema in the State must co-act and co-operate .

MSFDS being a society needs to raise funds through rents and hiring charges of the auditorium and other equipment which we felt justified.

However, certain concessional arrangements should be made available to the film fraternity while hiring the house and other equipment in cine related programmes, it asserted .

In this regard, the forum requested proper modalities be framed and agreed in between MSFDS and the forum for effecting the propositions .

Claiming that the existing cinema houses in Manipur are not up to the present state of the art technology resulting in decline of cinegoers beyond expectations, the forum urged the CM to allow screening of cinemas of internationally acclaimed and cinemas produced in the State of technical and artistic excellence and other popular cinemas either weekly ot fortnightly or as per the audience demands .

The MSFDS auditorium, the only one designed with the state of the art technology may re-culture the audience attitude for enjoying cinema in cinema houses, it observed .

Manipur, one of the largest producers of films in the entire North East and eastern region of the country at large is contributing a sizeable amount to the CBFC by way of fees during certification of films.

However, we are compelled to spend undue expenditures while staying and approaching the office of CBFC at Guwahati.

We have made series of request for opening of a branch at Imphal since 2009 as being the major contributor to CBFC but the pleas went in vain, it lamented .

Film Forum Manipur in the memorandum requested the State Administration to initiate a diplomatic approach for opening of a branch of CBFC at Imphal at the earliest to resolve the grievances of film producers in the State.

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