Former finance minister AMA Muhith addresses the inauguration ceremony of 17th DIFF | CourtesyThe 17th Dhaka International Film Festival kicked off today with dance and stick performances.
With the slogan ‘Better Film, Better Audience, Better Society,’ former finance minister AMA Muhith inaugurated the event as chief guest at the main auditorium of the National Museum.
In his opening remarks, Chief patron of DIFF State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam said film festivals as such help promoting a positive film culture.
“Good movies impact our minds and have positive effect on society. We identify ourselves with the characters of the movie.”
Actor Ilias Kanchan, director Tauquir Ahmed, Indian film critic Premendra Mazumder, and singer Khurshid Alam were present at the inauguration ceremony among other distinguished guests.
This year, 218 films will be screened and among those, 122 are feature films and the rest are short films.
Following the speeches, Bhabna Dance Troupe performed traditional spear and stick dance to entertain the audience.
The special guests of the event were Festival Executive Committee Member M Hamid and Information Secretary Abdul Malek.
Rainbow Film Society, one of the most active groups in the film society movement of Bangladesh, is organizing DIFF 2019, just as they have for the previous 16 editions of the festival. The previous years when the festival was held are 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018.
Apart from holding regular film shows and film related seminars and workshops, Rainbow also brings out “The Celluloid,” one of the leading cinema periodicals of Bangladesh with an international audience.
The aim of organizing DIFF, according to a press statement from Rainbow, is to celebrate the global mainstream in film and its social relevance.
The DIFF also aims to create space for young and aspiring film-makers in Bangladesh as well as South Asia, so they may connect with global artistes, and learn international film-making standards, reads the statement.
