Khosrow Masoumi believes that persistence in holding the festival is the key to its success and considers FIFF as a portal for exporting the Iranian cinema to the world.
“Fajr International Film Festival is at the beginning of its way and we should be patient and work hard to see the day it is held as vibrantly as other well-known international film festivals. In some years from now we will definitely see more international enthusiasm and interest in participating in FIFF and it will become one of the great festivals held in Iran,” Masoumi stated in an interview with the public relations office of the 34th Fajr International Film Festival.
He referred to the idea of holding workshops supervised by acclaimed international and Iranian filmmakers, which were set to work in the previous edition and are being held in this edition too, as a great idea which can help the festival thrive.
“Some good Iranian films by internationally-acclaimed Iranian filmmakers should be screened at FIFF, and the filmmakers should not simply think of having their films in the national section but to compete to be present in the international section as well,” Masoumi added. “A good point about this edition is that the international section is being held at a totally separate venue, which can help it to have an independent identity of its own,” he continued, asserting that in order to achieve the desired goals, the festival organizers should use the knowledge and experience of the previous organizers and managers as well as the international ones.
“Another thing to be done is to motivate the cinephiles to come and see the films, as a cinema without audience is meaningless,” said the director of ‘Taboo’.
In the end, referring to the opportunity presented by the festival to introduce the Iranian cinema to the countries of the region, he pointed out that the best use should be made of this opportunity to export the Iranian cinema to the countries with similar cultures to Iran’s. “Regarding the limitations we have the festival should focus on certain topics and themes and the films which are selected should be in alignment with this objective,” he added.
The 34th edition of Fajr International Film Festival will be held from April 20th to April 25th, 2016 in Charsou Cineplex, under the supervision of the well-known Iranian filmmaker, Mr. Reza Mirkarimi, who is also the Managing Director of Khaneh Cinema.
For more information on Fajr International Film Festival, visit the festival website, www.fajriff.com
