F.i.g.h.t C.l.u.b

Two festival news updates.

Manjeet Singh’s next feature Chenu has been selected for the 9th edition of L’Atelier organized by the Cinéfondation of the Cannes Film Festival. 15 projects from 14 countries have been selected for 2013 edition of L’Atelier which invites directors/producers to meet potential partners during the Festival. So far, out of 126 projects presented over the last eight years, 83 have been completed and 29 are currently in pre-production. From May 17 to 23, L’Atelier will arrange meetings with the directors for film industry professionals interested in investing in their projects.

DearCinema has more info on the film – Chenu is the story of a young dalit boy in the northern Ganges belt. He is drawn into ongoing war between the naxals and upper caste militia, when his younger sister’s fingers are chopped for plucking mustard leaves from a landlord’s field. The script explores various factions existing in the northern Ganges belt and delves into the humiliating lives of the underprivileged dalits.

Manjeet Singh’s directorial debut Mumbai Cha Raja premiered at TIFF and have been doing the fest rounds since then. Last year Shivajee Chandrabhushan’s project The Untold Tale was selected for L’Atelier.

Tribeca Film festival has released the list of 12 documentaries that will premiere at the fest and will compete in the World Documentary competition section. Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar’s Powerless, which recently premiered at the Berlin Film festival, will have its North American premiere at Tribeca. Here’s the official synopsis from the Tribeca release..

Would you risk your life to flip a switch? In Kanpur, India, putting oneself in harm’s way to deliver electrical power is all too common. Powerless sheds light on the opposing corners of this political ring, from an electrical Robin Hood tapping wires for neighbors to the myopic utility company whose failure to understand economics forces it deeper into financial disarray. This vibrant exposé gives a whole new meaning to the words “power struggle.” In English, Hindi with subtitles.

To know more about the film, watch its trailer/teaser and for its credit roll, click here.

The 2013 film selection includes feature films from 30 different countries, including 53 World Premieres, 7 International Premieres, 15 North American Premieres, 6 U.S. Premieres and 8 New York Premieres. A total of 113 directors will present feature works at the Festival, with 35 of these filmmakers marking their feature directorial debuts. Among these directors, 26 are women. The 2013 film slate was chosen from a total of 6005 submissions.