CM calls for end to IFFI squabble

PANJIM, SEPT 22 
Chief Minister Digambar Kamat today said that the squabbling between State and Central Government authorities over the organisation of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) needs to stop.
Kamat, who met Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ambika Soni in Delhi yesterday, said that the minister was kind enough to accept Goa’s suggestions.
“The MoU for the forthcoming IFFI was finalized and the minister accepted our suggestions,” he said.
Kamat also said that the ESG would curate one country focus, a foreign perspective, operate the short film centre, etc as part of its scope of work.
“DFF and ESG will further work in a more homogeneous manner because this is the country’s international film festival and under no circumstances do we want to give an impression that DFF and ESG are working in different directions,” Kamat told reporters.
Kamat also said both the opening and closing ceremonies of this year’s International Film Festival of India (IFFI) will be outsourced to an event management agency (EMA).
Kamat said that the decision to outsource the organisation of these events to an EMA was necessary to create hype about the festival.
“The opening and closing ceremonies need more hype and the I & B ministry felt that an EMA may be asked to manage the ceremonies of the festival. Both the ceremonies were earlier organised by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting,” Kamat said.
“The ministry has decided that they will form a committee to decide how best to hold the opening and closing ceremonies,” Kamat said.
The committee will be headed by the IB Secretary, joint secretary (films-IB), director general of Directorate of Film Festivals and chief executive officer, Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG), Kamat said, adding that expenditure for both the events would either be funded by the IB or raised through sponsors.