The 15th Baku International film Festival has officially opened
at Nizami Cinema Center, Azernews reports.
The Baku International Film Festival, established by the Young
Filmmakers Center, is being held this year from October 4 to 8 with
the support of the Azerbaijan Culture Ministry and the Film
Agency.
The project is part of the Baku Cinema Breeze (BCB) film
festival. This major event also features prominent festivals such
as the DokuBaku International Documentary Film Festival, ANIMAFILM
International Animation Festival, and the Ata Turk World
International Animation Film Festival.
During the opening, festival director Fehruz Shamiyev noted that
this year the Baku International Film Festival is celebrating its
15th anniversary and has introduced many talented individuals and
interesting films to a large audience over the years.
Founded in 2004, the festival previously operated under the name
START. The Baku International Film Festival is the longest-running
festival in our country and has become a venue for showcasing
awarded and successful films from the Cannes, Venice, and Berlin
film festivals, as well as films that have received Oscars.
"The festival, which annually brings together filmmakers, aims
to expand its audience in the coming years, encouraging local
authors and creating opportunities for creative discussions," said
Fehruz Shamiyev.
Acting Director of the Azerbaijan Film Agency and Honored Artist
Orkhan Fikratoglu stated that every festival contributes to the
development of cinematography.
"We are very pleased to be at the opening of such a successful
festival project, which has come a long way over the past 15 years.
I would like to thank everyone who contributed to the traditional
holding of this festival and wish success to the participants," he
said.
In their remarks, well-known filmmakers Zaur Gasimli, Ruslan
Sabirli, and Nasimi Aliyev stressed the importance of the
festival.
For their contributions to the development of national cinema,
the main prize of the festival, the Qızıl Nar (Golden Pomegranate),
was awarded to the People's Artists of Azerbaijan, Gamida Omarova
and Shukufe Yusupova.
Over the course of five days at the Nizami Cinema Center, 79
films from 26 countries, including Germany, France, Italy, the UK,
Korea, China, India, Colombia, Russia, Turkiye, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Georgia, Moldova, Croatia, Iran, and
others, will be screened. Admission to the screenings is free.
In celebration of its 15th anniversary, the festival has
prepared a series of innovations, one of which is a competition for
feature films. Thus, the international competition program of the
festival will now include both feature and short films.
The national competition program includes short narrative and
documentary films, as well as social videos. A separate category
has been created for students to compete.
In total, 25 screen works are participating in the national
competition program. Among the non-competitive programs is "Our
Language," which showcases films made in the Azerbaijani language
by the compatriots living in different countries around the
world.
The jury comprises renowned directors, filmmakers, and producers
in various categories, including Guseyn Mekhtiev, Zaur Gasimli,
Irada Gezaloğlu, Nasimi Aliyev, Teymur Hajiyev (Azerbaijan), Siddiq
Barmak (Afghanistan), Mahmut Fazil Joshkun, Can Ozbatur, Zumra
Erturk (Turkey), Ismail Monsef (Iran), Evgeny Maizel (Russia),
Eldar Yoldashev (Uzbekistan), and others.
On the opening day, two films were screened. The festival is
held with the support of the Nizami Cinema Center, the
AzerbaijanFilm Studio, the State Film Fund, the British Council,
and the Azerbaijan Producers Guild.
Media partners of the event are Azernews, Trend, Day
and Milli.
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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews' staff journalist, follow her on
Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr