The India Film Project, a platform for amateurs and professional filmmakers which will see them making a film within the duration of only 48 hours, will be held from 20-28 September.

The 2013 edition of the India Film Project will see the India Film Project going online. Participants can shoot a film in their own city within 48 hours over the weekend and upload it online.  The project also announced that it is going international starting this year; which means a larger pool of participants from different countries will be making films simultaneously in two days based on a common theme. It will also mean better production quality from a large number of cities covering different locations with diverse languages and varied lifestyles.  The last date for registrations is 14 September 2013.

A common theme and genre will be given to participating teams when the 48 hours period commences at 8:00 pm on Friday 20 September. These teams will have to script, shoot, edit and submit the film by 8:00 pm on Sunday 22 September 22. Apart from the filmmaking competition, the project will also feature a five day film festival online, conducting workshops by eminent filmmakers and technicians and also include film marketing related panel-discussions, cinema exhibitions, etc.

The winning films made at IFP are also sent to various film festivals across the globe and some of them have also won at several international film festivals.

“It’s lovely to see participation flowing from all across the country. We have received plenty of registrations from teams from Metros like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Bengaluru to smaller cities like Siliguri, Bhilai, Davangere, Rajkot, Dehradun, Indore, Ranchi, Raipur, etc. and many more tier-II cities. It’s a rare opportunity to make a film and showcase it to such a renowned jury”, said founder and project director Ritam Bhatnagar.

This year’s jury includes 2013’s national award winning film Paan Singh Tomar’s director Tigmanshu Dhulia. Tigmanshu has also directed Saheb Biwi aur Gangster (1 & 2), Shagird and Haasil. Tigmanshu has also acted in Gangs of Wasseypur (1 & 2).

Another jury member, Nikhil Advani, is the man who has directed Kal Ho Naa Ho, Patiala House, Salaam-e-Ishq and D-Day are some of his commercial works. Commenting on the IFP he says, “Our industry is growing exponentially and the need for professionals in-front and behind the camera is also keeping in pace. Initiatives like the India Film Project need to be supported and advocated strongly as they provide a credible platform for new talent to be showcased.”

The third jury member is Bejoy Nambiar. This Indian director, producer and screenwriter is mostly known for his critically acclaimed short films, Rahu and Reflections. He marked his debut with the Hindi film Shaitan (2011) for which he won Most Promising Debut Director at the 18th Annual Colors Screen Awards in 2012.

“Making a film is a real test of time and here I also learnt the importance of team management which is crucial in film making” said Adhish Panchal, second runner up of the IFP 2012 edition and one of the winners of the 2011 edition as well.

The IFP is a platform which encourages and offers amateurs to learn and feel the experience of filmmaking, showcase their work to a large audience, own the film, and learn the methodological approach to filmmaking. It also provides professional and independent filmmakers a platform to compete with best of teams from across the country, being judged by a versatile jury.