Pune: FTII short film to compete at Cannes Film Festival 2024

A group of students from the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) has created a short film called ‘Sunflowers Were The First Ones To Know’, which has been selected to be screened at the highly respected Cannes Film Festival in 2024. The film is directed by Chidanand S Naik and will be competing in the La Cinef Competitive section against 17 other short films.

The film, featuring cinematography by Suraj Thakur, editing by Manoj V, and sound design by Abhishek Kadam, tells the intriguing tale of an elderly woman who disrupts her village by stealing the community’s roster. This act leads to a chaotic series of events, culminating in her family being sent into exile to fulfil a prophecy.

This year’s La Cinef, marking its 27th edition, saw an overwhelming response with 2,263 submissions from global film schools. The section celebrates student films, particularly in fiction or animation, highlighting the diverse backgrounds of film students. The lineup includes entries from Lebanon, China, Greece, Italy, Mexico, Palestine, the Czech Republic, South Korea, Australia, Israel, the US, the UK, and France.

The Cannes Film Festival, set to run from May 14 to 25, will host the award ceremony in the Bunuel Theatre on May 23. The distinguished jury, comprising Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar, Paolo Moretti, Claudine Nougaret, Vladimir Perisic, and Belgian actress Lubna Azabal, will decide the winners.

FTII took to the social media platform X to express their pride in the achievement, praising the collaborative efforts of the students from their TV wing’s one-year program. This program uniquely brings together students from various disciplines to work on a single project.

This selection not only marks a significant accomplishment for the students and the institute but also highlights the rich storytelling and technical skills fostered at FTII, paving the way for future filmmakers.