6th Annual India Film Festival of Alberta (IFFA) announces 2020 program including free drive-ins across the province
From September 1-30, 2020 the 6th Annual India Film Festival of Alberta (IFFA) presented by Edmonton Movie Club will take place online and at drive-ins across the province.
As part of the celebration of award-winning and independent films from India, free drive-ins will be held in Edmonton (Sept 4-6), Strathcona County / Sherwood Park (Sept 5-6), Calgary (Sept 10-12), and Fort McMurray (Sept 18-19). In addition to 10 days of drive-ins, IFFA is presenting 18 films online, a short film competition for Alberta filmmakers, as well as digital workshops and master classes.
The free Calgary drive-ins are:
Sep 10 – CHHICHHORE
Sep 11 – GOLKERI and THE LUNCHBOX
Sep 12 – AMAR AKBAR ANTHONY
All drive-in films start at 9pm, with the lot opening at 8pm.
This year the Indian film industry has lost a number of stalwarts like actors Irrfan Khan, Rishi Kapoor and Sushanth Singh Rajput, award-winning cinematographer MJ Radhakrishnan, and Malayalam director Sachy. IFFA 2020 will honour their contributions to Indian cinema by screening their work. Highlights from these filmmaking icons include THE LUNCHBOX (2013), MS DHONI: THE UNTOLD STORY (2016), CHHICHHORE (2019), AYYAPPANUM KOSHIYUM (2020), the digitally restored 1977 cult classic AMAR AKBAR ANTHONY, and the award-winning film for cinematography OOLU (2019).
IFFA has added a section on Gujarati Cinema, one of the major regional and vernacular film cinema industries in India, which looks at new age Gujarati films KEVI RITE JAISH (2012), BEY YAAR (2015), WRONG SIDE RAJU (2016) and LOVE NI BHAVAI (2017). These films brought Gujarati audiences to movie theatres, captured their attention, and filled their lives with uninhibited laughter.
The 2020 IFFA Visitors Section, showcasing new films from outside of India, features diverse hits such as the Indonesian superhero Blockbuster GUNDALA (available online), the recently-released Korean film TRAIN TO BUSAN PRESENTS: PENINSULA (Fort McMurray drive-in), and the Canadian documentary BECAUSE WE ARE GIRLS (available online).
For the online film component of the festival, IFFA has partnered with the Film and Video Arts Society of Alberta (FAVA) to present films through their digital platform FAVA TV. The cost of tickets is $20 for a full festival pass or $2 for individual movies. Streams can be accessed by anyone in Canada on-demand between September 1-30. Register in advance to receive a free drive-in ticket. To see the full lineup of films and learn more visit indiafilmfestival.ca (program currently available to view at this staging site).
The 6th India Film Festival of Alberta is presented by the Edmonton Movie Club, a non-profit organization dedicated to bridging cultures through cinema. This year’s India Film Festival of Alberta is supported by the Government of Canada, Alberta Government, Calgary Community Foundation, Edmonton Community Foundation, Edmonton Screen Industries Office and Edmonton Arts Council.
