Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival announced its line-up for 2023, with over 250 films including 40 World Premieres, 45 Asia Premieres, and 70+ South Asia Premieres, and a record-breaking number of 1000+ submissions for the South Asia programme. These films are curated from over 70 languages, over 70 countries, 20 screens, 8 venues, and a state-of-the-art festival hub Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC) at BKC, Mumbai.
The press conference which was also hosted at the NMACC, witnessed the festival’s illustrious board members. Anupama Chopra, Farhan Akhtar, Rana Daggubati, Siddharth Roy Kapur, Vikramaditya Motwane, Zoya Akhtar, Rohan Sippy, and Ajay Bijli unveil the meticulously curated line-up of the best in global and South Asian cinema.
The film line-ups include Pedro Almodovar’s Strange Way of Life, Bradley Cooper’s Maestro, Anurag Kashyap’s Kennedy, Aki Kaurismaki’s Fallen Leaves, Palme d’Or winner Anatomy of a Fall, Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Monster, Alice Rohrwacher’s La Chimera, Ken Loach’s The Old Oak, among many other debutant South Asian and international filmmakers. This diverse array of cinemas promises an enthralling experience for the festival cinema-goers and makes the upcoming MAMI festival a year to reckon with.
Besides this, the festival promises to spotlight contemporary films and new cinematic voices from South Asia. The main competition at the festival this year is the South Asia Competition. It aligns with the festival’s new vision to become a hub for South Asian and South Asian Diaspora cinema and talent. This competitive section aims to showcase breakthrough contemporary South Asian films.
The 14 films are from debutant and second-time filmmakers from across India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal, as well as diaspora filmmakers from the UK and Germany. South Asian films are also part of a non-competition section that has 46 films (22 features + 24 non-features) that showcase the diversity of the region and offer a glimpse into the rich tapestry of South Asia. It includes works from Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Nepal, as well as diaspora perspectives from Australia, Germany, the USA, the UK, Poland, and Spain.
Artistic Director, Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, Deepti DCunha said, “We are very proud that we have managed to achieve such a diverse curation in our South Asia section within the first year of us expanding our vision to be a festival that is focused on building an ecosystem for new cinematic voices from South Asia and the South Asian Diaspora. This commitment extends beyond film screenings, aiming to facilitate the exchange of ideas, collaborations, and business opportunities while bringing the best of world cinema to Mumbai.”
The World Cinema section of the festival will showcase more than 90 titles from over 35 countries. The selection comprises some of the most talked-about films from this year’s festival circuit; such as Palmed’ Or winner Anatomy of a Fall by Justine Triet, Bradley Cooper’s Oscar-tipped Maestro, Beyond Utopia by Madeleine Gavin that won the Audience Award at Sundance Film Festival. Additional titles include The Daughters of Fire by Pedro Costa, Monster by Hirokazu Kore-eda, In Our Day by Hong Sang-soo, Strange Way of Life by Pedro Almodóvar, The Old Oak by Ken Loach, Fallen Leaves by Aki Kaurismäki and La Chimera by Alice Rohrwacher.
Anu Rangchar, Head of International Programming, Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, added, “We have curated some of the most discerning international titles for the festival audience. Besides the buzzworthy titles, there are several other titles that have ended up becoming Academy Award nominees from their respective countries. These titles have the innate potential to only get bigger with time. Our curation also has some hidden gems that one wouldn’t be able to otherwise watch in India, as the probability of them independently releasing here is fairly low. There’s something for everyone, and we have curated the section keeping our festival audience in mind, who love to be surprised by the narratives of these films.”
Speaking at the press conference, Anupama Chopra, Festival Director, Jio MAMI, said, “With every new edition of the festival, we hope to create a larger impact for all our stakeholders, from filmmakers to audiences. Our commitment to cinema and filmmakers remains at the heart of all that we stand for at the festival, and we hope to emerge as a melting pot of talent from across the world while spotlighting and creating more opportunities for South Asian films and filmmakers.”
Maitreyee Dasgupta, Co-Director, Jio MAMI, added, “We are looking forward to hosting the 10-day-long festival that offers a platform for established and emerging filmmakers to be a part of an ecosystem that encourages co-creation and business opportunities. Through the various programmes and competitions, the festival strives to be a destination where filmmakers and audiences feel empowered, heard, and experience the joy of cinema, its impact, and new ideas.”
The festival announced the following key categories (competition & non-competition):
South Asia Competition: Through this competitive section, the festival showcases 14 breakthrough contemporary South Asian films in diverse languages. Highlights: Mithya by Sumant Bhat, Barir Naam Shahana (A House Named Shahana) by Leesa Gazi, The Red Suitcase by Fidel Devkota.
Focus South Asia ( Non-Non-Competition): This section features films from the South Asian Diaspora that highlight and celebrate the diversity of the region. Featuring a potpourri of lengths, languages, storytelling methods, and forms, the films in this section spotlight talent from South Asia and the South Asian diaspora and underline the wealth of narratives that make up the South Asian experience. It includes 46 films across lengths Highlights: All India Rank by Varun Grover, Pushtaini by Vinod Rawat, Stolen by Karan Tejpal, Maiby Milin Dhamade
Icons South Asia: This section features iconic films by prominent South Asian talent. Highlights: Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam by Anand Patwardhan, Indi(r)a’s Emergency by Vikramaditya Motwane, Paradise by Prasanna Vithanage, Something Like an Autobiography by Mostofa Sarwar Farooki.
There are also curated films in the Gala Premieres, After Dark, Marathi Talkies, Restored Classics, Tributes, Recap and Retrospective sections. The festival has two competitive short film sidebars this year, namely Dimensions Mumbai and Royal Stag Barrel Select Large Short Films.
JIO MAMI Mumbai Film Festival will take place from Friday, October 27 to Sunday, November 5, 2023, in Mumbai, India.
About Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival:
Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, organised by the Mumbai Academy of Moving Image (MAMI), has brought the best of contemporary world cinema and talent to the city of Mumbai since 1997. With its new expanded vision to spotlight South Asian and South Asian diaspora filmmakers, Jio MAMI becomes the Hub for South Asia, discovering and connecting emerging talent to the worldwide festival ecosystem. Along with celebrating cinematic excellence and bringing joy to our audiences, we aim to facilitate the exchange of ideas and provide easy access to information related to filmmaking, funding, film distribution, business opportunities, and strategic marketing support for films and filmmakers. The festival also conducts a robust Year-Round Programme that acts as a hub for creators and cinephiles through screenings, networking opportunities, access to labs and workshops for skill development, masterclasses, and, very importantly, creating a community of cinema lovers.
