TIFF 2018: Delegation to promote Indian cinema in overseas market, encourage foreign collaborations

The ministry of information and broadcasting in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) will send a 15-member delegation comprising directors, producers, distributors and studio officials to the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) to promote Indian cinema in the overseas market and encourage foreign collaborations.

The delegation will visit the gala from 8-10 September, and will be a part of an India Pavilion to facilitate new business opportunities, said a statement.

Ashok Kumar Parmar, joint secretary (films), ministry of information and broadcasting, will represent the government in the Indian delegation to TIFF 2018.

The market potential for Indian content in Toronto is huge because of the strong presence of the Indian diaspora and great interest in Indian cinema. India-Canada are in a co-production treaty and the delegation will explore opportunities to work on co-producing films with Canada.

The objective is to promote Indian films across linguistic, cultural and regional diversity to forge an increasing number of international partnerships in the realms of distribution, production, filming in India, script development and technology, thereby accelerating the growth of the film sector in India.

The Indian delegation, through various interactions, will promote ease of shooting films in India through the Film Facilitation Office (FFO) that facilitates single window clearance for filmmakers and provides the platform for 'film tourism' in India.

They will also showcase India as a post-production hub, promote collaborations for films with international production houses and encourage Indian Panorama Films for sales and syndication as the 49th edition of the International Film Festival Of India (IFFI) is set to be held in Goa from 20-28 November.

This year, among the Indian films being screened at TIFF are Manmarziyaan, Manto, Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota, Bulbul Can Sing, The Sweet Requiem, Reaso, Circle and The Field.

TIFF 2018 is being held from 6-16 September .