Film Festival Program
Showcasing over 50 films this year, IndiEarth XChange Film Festival 2015 screens an exciting collection of independent films – showcasing both established and emerging filmmakers - from rare, difficult-to-access documentaries sourced from India's film archives, to 2015 releases, from animation to international features, and a colourful collection of short films.

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Tree Of Unity (India)

Director: VG Samant
4 min / English / Short, Animation / color / 1972

A Classic animation by Films Division on the theme of National Integration broadcasted first in 1972. The mumbling gibberish as dialogues, characters, music towards the end of the film and the dance moves have stayed in public memory since a long time.

Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 10:30

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On Board (Brazil)

Director: Davi Mello
23 min / Portuguese (English subtitles) / Short, Drama / color / 2015

Lúcia, pregnant with her first child, is preparing to be a single mother.

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Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 10:34

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My River Under Dream (Costa Rica)

Director: Jorge Mario Zuleta
1 min / Spanish (English subtitles) / Video Art / color / 2015

A river located in rural Costa Rica is depicted with a still camera. This scenario becomes the playground for a glitchy generative stream of bended images created from non-traditional techniques. 'My River Under Dream' is an analogy of how fragile nature is.

Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 10:57

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Between The Forest And The Song (India)

Director: Wanphrang Diengdoh
53 min / English / Documentary / color / 1972

The people of Kongthong village in Meghalaya make a living cultivating broom and practicing Jhum cultivation. Although considered environmentally degrading, they send their children to school and sustain themselves through this practice. The village is also famous for its song naming tradition, a dying art in these modern times. Roads are being built, so access to the village is more feasible, but this also means that the village and its indigenous practices are slowly being reduced to mere spectacle. Where do minority populations stand amidst the forces of market economy, religion and other so-called modern imperatives?

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Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 11:00

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Not Your Life (Israel)

Director: Tal Shefi
66 min / Hebrew (English subtitles) / Documentary / color / 2013

Not Your Life tells the story of two women, a mother (who is the filmmaker) and her daughter, trying to find their place in the world and in each other. Through candid conversations, as they explore their past and present during a journey to Goa, where they have lived for many years, a portrait of their relationship emerges.

Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 12:10

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Red Dream (Iran, Islamic Republic Of)

Director: Shahriar Pourseyedian
22 min / Persian (English subtitles) / Short, Drama / color / 2014

Mohamad is a boy who sees the world around him from his own point of view. A new year is coming and he has a dream…

Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 13:15

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Awakenings (India)

Director: Bhargav Saikia
13 min / English, Hindi (English subtitles) / Horror, Mystery / color / 2015

The line between dreams and reality is blurred when a young woman in charge of two children is haunted by mysterious entities.

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Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 13:36

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The Superstars of Koti (India)

Director: Anuj Adlakha, Farha Alam
75 min / Hindi (English subtitles) / Documentary / color / 2015

The Superstars of Koti is a documentary feature about three teenage boys in a mountain village in India whose lives get pinned to each other through the revered deity of their terrain. In a macrocosm evolved out of an ancient belief where the Deity inhabits a few chosen ones, the 3 boys in their respective hierarchical roles reflect upon paths that have been laid out for them by the Deity. As they clash in a flight of adolescent aspirations, will a coming of age entail harmony? Or will equilibrium be restored by God’s own hand?

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Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 13:50

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The Sound of a Country (Ireland)

Director: Myles O'Reilly
38 min/ English / Documentary, Music / color/ 2015

In December of 2014 the Irish traditional fiddle and guitar duo Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill joined Sarod player Matthew Noone on a tour of India, to play several shows as well as meet and collaborate with a host of famous Indian traditional musicians. Myles O'Reilly joined the to tour to film and edit this short film encapsulating the spirit of the journey."The experience of the people here, the openness and the friendliness, the non cynical human interaction and connection that happens so easily in this country, we found that most inspiring" says Martin Hayes, speaking about his time in India.

Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 15:20

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Echo (India)

Director: Madhuri Ravishankar
18 min / Gujarati, Hindi (English subtitles) / Documentary / color / 2015

‘Goonj’ (Echo) is an intimate portrait that follows the life of Zuvaria, a 5 year old, as she attempts to understand the world that unfolds around her. Zuvaria is the only person in her family who is hearing impaired. The film journeys through her daily routines, making an attempt to catch a glimpse of how she understands what being deaf means and how she responds to it. It is also about the family’s persistence, perseverance and accompanying joys at each hurdle that’s overcome. Zuvaria’s spirit for life and the innocent stubbornness with which she attempts to overcome her shortcomings and tries to communicate, leaves an echo in our souls.

Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 16:00

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Auto Driver (India)

Director: Meena Longjam
30 min / Manipuri (English subtitles) / Documentary / color / 2015

Laibi is a female auto driver based in conflict torn Imphal city. In order to support her ailing husband and the education of her two sons, she took up this profession defying a traditional society. Starting off as a daily wage laborer in a brick farm where she earns only 60 rupees for loading 1500 bricks, she now has to face the discrimination of passengers who shun female auto drivers.

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Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 16:20

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K2 & The Invisible Footmen (USA, Pakistan)

Director: Iara Lee
54 min / Hindi, English / Documentary / color / 2015

K2 & The Invisible footmen, filmmaker Iara Lee and her team chronicle the lives of those who make possible ascents of the world's tallest mountains, including both Pakistani porters and Nepalese sherpas. The film also follows the first official all-Pakistani climbing team, made up of former porters. This team successfully summited in 2014, on the 60th anniversary of the first ascent of the mountain. Amid breathtaking scenery, the film depicts the everyday sacrifices of porters and the courage of those indigenous climbers who choose to return to scale K2 in spite of past tragedies. In their striving to perfect their craft, these mountaineers provide a fresh look into the cultures and national traditions of Pakistan, a country typically portrayed in the foreign media as merely a land of conflict and sectarian strife.

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Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 16:50

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Trip (India)

Director: Pramod Pati
4 min / English / Short, Abstract / color / 1970

A film on Bombay, using pixilation and an abstract soundtrack to depict the evanescence of urban daily life. Used as an educational tool to understand time-lapse, sound sync and lighting apart from the historical chronicling of a city.

Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 17:45

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Sulemani Keeda (India)

Director: Amit Masurkar
89 min / Hindi, English / Feature, Satire / color / 2014

This is a Bromantic Comedy about two struggling writers who peddle their mediocre screenplay, "Sulemani Keeda" in Bollywood. Perenially hungry and horny, they lie, drink, hit on unsuspecting girls in bookshops and attend poetry readings where they read their vulgar verses. Things look bright when they meet a wannabe auteur, Gonzo Kapoor who wants to make a film inspired by Tarkovski. Gonzo gives them three days to come up with a great idea. When one of them falls in love with a bohemian photographer who is leaving India in three days, he is faced with a choice- whether to co-write a film he doesn't believe in or woo the girl he has fallen in love with.

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Venue: Walhaja / Date: 29th Nov 2015 / Time: 17:50