The
renowned young director from Pune, known for his critically acclaimed
films like Valu, Vihir, Deool; Umesh Kulkarni now has another feather
in his cap. Chosen as a jury member for a segment at the 14th Mumbai
Film Festival organised by the Mumbai Academy of Moving Images
(MAMI), Umesh will be judging short films made by young filmmakers
from Mumbai. The segment titled Dimensions Mumbai is a platform for
young filmmakers from Mumbai, below the age of 25, to make short
films that are five minutes or less in duration and depict some
aspect of life in Mumbai.
Umesh,
himself a film student, having learnt film direction from FTII, has
had an eventful journey from being a film student to being a jury at
the festival. Reminiscing his student days, he says, “My first
appearance at a big film festival was in Germany, when my second year
Dialogue Exercise film was selected for the festival in Munich. Those
days, film festivals were exciting places to be at.” As a student,
“…the interaction with fellow participants and with great
filmmakers was a great learning experience. The exchange of ideas and
the overall atmosphere was tremendous,” he adds. Umesh’s Diploma
film Girni has won many a laurels and has been appreciated by critics
and the audience alike.
 |
| A still from Umesh's Diploma film - Girni |
The
first time Umesh was invited as a jury member, was at the Kerala
Short Film Festival, two years ago. He keenly observes the difference
in the role he has to play as a judge, as against that of a student.
He says, “I personally don’t like to judge someone else’s work,
so I avoid that kind of an undertaking. But when I am given that
task, it is crucial to do it correctly.” He adds, “As a judge,
you have to watch the films differently. You have to see what the
idea is, how it is being shown, what treatment it has received and
the overall presentation.” Umesh, who will be judging the short
films at MAMI’s Mumbai Film Festival that takes off on October 18,
will be joined by actor Sanjay Suri, filmmaker and theatre actress
Gitanjali Rao and filmmaker Reema Kagti. “Getting to interact with
the other jury members is crucial. The personal preferences and
biases that creep in need to be avoided and objectivity is very
necessary,” adds Umesh.
 |
| A still from the critically acclaimed Valu |
Short
film, as a form, is at a very nascent in India and a much-closed
group of people are actually aware of this medium. “What people do
not understand is that it is a form of expression in itself.
Awareness about the medium is very minimal. If you tell someone you
are making a short film, they ask whether it’s a documentary,”
says Umesh. He further adds, “Short films provide a very different
avenue for expression. Telling your story in a crisp form is an art
in itself and it gives an opportunity to experiment,” he says. For
a better future of this medium, Umesh suggests TV channels should
take up some initiative and set up slots to screen some short films
and make the audience familiar with the same.
 |
| A still from National Award winning Deool |
Umesh
also talks about the ease with which films can be made today. With
digitization, the availability of the equipment for making a film has
become very easy, but has making good films also become easy? “There
is definitely a rise in the amount of content but the quality is seen
only in a few of them. Just having the equipment is not enough, its
optimum use is what makes a good filmmaker,” Umesh responds.
“Understanding the importance of every single shot that you take is
very crucial. There shouldn’t be wastage of footage, just because
one can afford it now. But that comes with discipline and more than
that, an understanding of space, time and a fair understanding of
editing,” he suggests.
Apart
from Umesh, who is a part of the jury, his production, Pune 52 is
also being screened at the festival in the India Gold segment. The
segment has films from some other Pune-based filmmakers too. This
perhaps is the beginning of an era that would bring the golden age of
Pune cinema back to the city, with the prodigal son leading the
charge.
Published in DNA After Hrs (Pune) on October 18, 2012
Un-cut version
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