A single director cannot fit all of the themes in a film. It requires either multiple films from him or a collaboration with a colleague. Such is the case with a new film, which will be showcased at the Indian Film Festival Of Melbourne (IFFM), this year. Titled as ‘My Melbourne’, it will bring four big Indian directors together. They are Kabir Khan, Imtiaz Ali, Onir and Rima Das. Each director is going to make a short separate film, which will be complied together and made into one film.
Dealing with themes such as Race, Disability, Sexuality and Gender, will be explored in the short films, with each director directing their film on their chosen theme. A selected team from Victoria, Australia will work with them, who all will receive guidance from the directors too.
Since the directors will work with their respective teams, the teams will be allotted a budget. Scripts, pre-production work will be planned via Zoom calls and the actual shooting will take place in Melbourne, once the team is allowed to travel after restrictions are ended.
Each director, talked about the various aspects which are important in the context of our times. For Imtiaz ali, the current time has been of immense learning. Talking about stories he said :
“Viewing stories of identity in the context of the diverse society that we are all a part of is quintessential for us to chart our path ahead. I am looking forward to meeting a new set of people and understanding their life stories for the screen.”
On the other hand, Kabir Khan is excited to be a part of the four films. He elaborated on how being together in a community has become more important now.
While, the festival was going to be held in August, it got pushed ahead because of the Coronavirus. Now, it is being held in the month of October. From October 30 to November 7, the festival will be held amid proper health measures.