Amid COVID surge, International Film Festival of Kerala postponed
The 26th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) has been postponed in the wake of surging COVID-19 cases, State Cultural Minister Saji Cherian said. The annual festival, organised by Kerala State Chalachitra Academy on behalf of Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala, was set to be held from February 4-11, here. Announcing it, Kerala Minister for Cinema and Culture Saji Cherian said the event will be staged as and when the Covid scenario in the state improves.
The state-run Kerala State Chalachitra Academy is the organiser of the event, which by now, has won huge praise not just in the state but across the world on account of the quality of the films that are being screened.
The prestigious eight-day movie gala, which is usually held in December, screens films from across the world in coveted categories like International Competition, Malayalam Cinema Today, Indian Cinema Now, World Cinema, Country Focus, Retrospectives of major filmmakers among others.
A competition section for the films from Asian, African and Latin American countries is the highlight of the festival.
The Golden Crow Pheasant Award has a cash prize of Rs 20,00,000 (nearly $28,000) for the best feature film to be shared equally between the Director and the Producer. There are many more cash prizes which would be given.
Kerala has been witnessing a sharp spike in the COVID-19 cases for the past one week. On Sunday, the state reported 18,123 fresh infections, taking the total number of COVID-19 positive cases to 53,69,706.
