Cyrus Dastur, notable theatre personality, and founder of Shamiana Arts visited iLEAD to present screenings of few short films and interact with students.
Students who were enthusiastic about shorts and also features interacted with Mr Dastur about the process of making movies and getting known as filmmakers.
Mr. Dastur spoke at length about how to make an impact with shorts in an overtly competitive scenario in India. After screening a host of short films, including 'Lila' (2014), 'Cupidity' (doubling as brand promotion for 'Cornetto') and the very recent 'Stutterer' that won the Academy award in 2016, he explained to students the art of short filmmaking. He also encouraged them to showcase their work in worlds' top short film festivals that make for great platforms to portray one's art.
"The audience is not obliged to watch your film, so focus on the content if you wish to carve a niche in the industry," he said while offering some tips and tricks to students for excelling in the art. The Q&A session also covered practical concerns of budget, where Mr. Dastur stressed on 'labour, talent and attitude' as determiners to gain funding in the long run. Mr. Dastur's venture 'Shamiana' can be traced online too. Before signing off, he shared his contact for film lovers in the room and suggested everyone to keep working on their dreams of film making.
