29-04-2021

FESTIVALS: Kutaisi ISFF 2021 Announces New Dates for Physical Edition

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    TBILISI: The first edition of the Kutaisi International Short Film Festival, which was postponed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, is finally taking place in a physical format 8–12 May 2021, in compliance with the state regulations regarding the safety of participants. The festival is supported by the Georgian National Film Center and the Kutaisi Municipality.

    The 15 films which were selected for the main competition in 2020 will be back in the lineup and the same goes for the 26 titles selected for the International Super Shorts Competition.

    Nine Georgian films are competing in the festival, which focuses on innovative short films, paying special attention to new aesthetic developments and the individual vision of directors.

    The festival also aims to help the city of Kutaisi to be included in the list of UNESCO creative cities. 

    The jury will award two prizes in the main international competition (with films from 10 to 30 minutes), the Golden Dinosaur for best film and best director, as well as the Dinosaur’s Footprint award in the second international competition (with films from 1 to 5 minutes).

    In the sidebar, the festival will feature Chinese, French and German short film programmes with the support of Chinese filmmakers, the French Embassy and the Goethe-Institut in Georgia. Screenings of Georgian short films will also be held, while the Saqanima Georgian Animators Association will present the Programme of the Film Center "Georgian Film-Abkhazia" Educational Film Studio "Kvali XXI".

    A script development workshop is also planned in the industry section of the festival, whose programme will also include masterclasses, discussions and presentations.