Kiran Rao: By exposing young minds to Indie films we can promote better cinema culture

This year, the Mumbai Academy of Moving Image (MAMI), scheduled between October 20-27, is moving its section for children and young adults to the newly-revamped Films Division (FD) grounds at Peddar Road. This move comes with the promise of more space than the Cinemax theatres, where the films under this section were screened in the morning shows.
'We were in talks with FD even last year, but at that time the venue was under construction.FD is a beautiful space. A haven for documentary and animation filmmakers. The Mumbai International Film Festival for short films, animation and documentaries is also hosted there,' reasons Smriti Kiran, Creative Director, MAMI, adding that with this dedicated hub, the number of films screened in the section could go up from 12 in 2015 to 20-24 in 2016.
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Anupama Chopra, Festival Director, informs that they signed the MoU with Films Division on Thursday, making them collaborative parties. FD will provide the venue and infrastructure while the MAMI team will curate the films and organise the activities. 'The two to three day event will not only screen films all day but also conduct workshops and master classes, promising wholesome entertainment for kids in the age group of 4-17 years, which parents constantly feel the absence of in the city,' says Anupama.
The team is confident of pulling a large audience from schools, which ferried the children in buses, giving MAMI a series of packed shows. Kiran Rao, Chairperson of MAMI, exults, 'Now our ambitious plans for this section can be realised. We believe that by exposing young minds to the rich diversity or artistic and Indie films, we go a long way towards creating a better cinema culture for our future. From this year we have FD as a dedicated venue for screenings and other film related activities in the section for children and young adults.'
'MAMI is a well known event in the festival calendar of Mumbai city. Films Division is happy to partner for the 18th edition of the festival being held between 20-27 October 2016. One of the exciting and important segment of the event - a children's cinema section aptly named 'Half Ticket' will be held at the Films Division complex. I hope the partnership with MAMI will continue in the future editions of the festival,' says Mukesh Sharma, DG, Films Division.
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