Bangalore, December 18: Filmmaker and writer Baragur Ramachandrappa on Tuesday described filmmaking as a “federal art” that combines several forms and is a constant balancing act between commercial compulsions and a never-say-die artistic impulse.
Speaking at a seminar on the film industry here organised in the run-up to the Bangalore International Film Festival scheduled to start from December 26, he said there was a “crisis of sensibility” particularly at a time when forces of globalisation had made commercial compulsions strong.
Mr. Ramachandrappa said that the film industry today is in the grip of “intellectual and commercial contractors”, just as the “economy of religion and the economy of war” are. The industry and the art of cinema needs to be liberated from them, the writer added.
Crossover films
Film critic Jogi said that the film festival has arrived at an interesting time when Kannada film industry was in a transition phase. This year saw many “crossover films” being made and there is hope that more would be on the anvil. Mr. Jogi cited Lucia and Six Minus Five Equals Two as two examples of successful Kannada crossover films.
‘Shun violence’
Home Minister K.J. George, who inaugurated the seminar, urged the Kannada film industry and the audience to shun films that celebrate violence. The 80-year-old Kannada film industry should return to making “value-based films” and those that portray women in positive light, the Minister said.
