SIFFCY’2016 opened on 5th December 2016 at Sirifort Auditorium complex, New Delhi with award-winning Swiss-German movie “Heidi”, directed by ‘Alain Gsponer’, followed by Award winning Indian movie “The Trap(Ottaal)”, Directed by ‘Jayaraaj.

National award winning actor Mr. Manoj Bajpai and Mirziya film star Saiyami Kher inaugurated the opening ceremony of the festival in the presence of, Santanu Mishra, co-founder and executive trustee of Smile Foundation and chairman SIFFCY, Jitendra Mishra festival director SIFFCY & other dignitaries.

With an objective to sensitize children and youth through meaningful cinema, the week-long film festival screened 120+ films in different categories.18000+ children & youth participated in more than 10 different activities in these 7 days.

KEY ACTIVITIES:

1.FILM SCREENING (FEATURE FILM, SHORT FILMS, DOCUMENTARIES)

100 meaningful films made for children & youth including feature films, short films and documentaries from across the globe will be screened during the festival under five categories –

• International Competition
  Handpicked films from across the globe, selected for the supreme finesse of their art, the most compelling storytelling and highly inspiring depiction of world issues, compete with each other under the category. These critically acclaimed films have already travelled to prestigious international film festivals and have numerous nominations and awards to their credit. May the best film win!
• The Yellow Carpet
  SIFFCY is a celebration – of exuberant childhood, of youthful energy, of positivity and progressive change. And the one colour that captures it all is YELLOW. So, we have ditched the traditional red carpet and are all set to welcome our special screenings on the Yellow Carpet instead. These entries call for a space of their own and we are more than happy to extend them this privilege. Let’s roll it out for them!
• 70MM Smile
  The category showcases exceptionally crafted pieces of good cinema from the world over that bring together an eclectic mix of cultures, beliefs, values and behaviours. Passionate film makers create magic on the screen with spell bounding stories and enchanting characters, leaving their young audience asking for more. You are going to love this!
• Next Gen
  Young, aspiring filmmakers unleash their talent to the fullest as they showcase their best under the category. All they need is an appreciative audience and a stage – bubbling with energy, courage and oodles of confidence, the film-making trainees and students breathe in their fresh ideas to make some very good films. SIFFCY is a platform to promote good cinema and these upcoming stars of the industry are setting the right tone, choosing to make films with a message. Kudos to them!
• Take One
  Children have a unique way of looking at the world and their perspective is often unclouded by any preconceived notions and conceptions. SIFFCY is not just about cultivating a culture of viewing good cinema among our children, but just as much about imbibing an appreciation of the art of filmmaking and its larger purpose in their young minds. Children don the director’s hat under this category and with their first take, help us see the world through their eyes. This one is an innocent surprise!

2.FILM MAKING WORKSHOP FOR AND WITH CHILDREN .

An initiative to motivate children to make their own stories into films themselves –
KIDS: between the ages twelve and seventeen
PROFESSIONALS: a team of film professionals including Director, Script Writer, Cinematographer, Editor and Music Director
PARTICIPATION: a shared process between film professionals and kids using the latest technology and equipment
This ongoing three month workshop has been conducted in four major cities of India and has been a big hit with children. The films made by our young filmmakers are now ready and will be showcased during SIFFCY.

3. PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP

An initiative with the support of ‘IIP’ (Indian Institute of Photography, New Delhi), to empower children and youth by enabling them to visualize their dreams and look at the world with their own perspective, bringing it all out by capturing the right photographs through the camera lens

4. ART DESIGN WORKSHOP

An exciting session by the highly experienced and respected Art Director Sukant Panigrahy (best known for his work in Holiday, No One Killed Jessica, Drishyam & Dev D) designed to encourage young minds to engage with experimentation and generation of ideas, which will be supported by a sound grounding in art and design principles .

5. CINEMATOGRAPHY WORKSHOP

Budding filmmakers will call the shots in this hands-on live action cinematography workshop by the leading Indian Cinematographer Shanti Bhushan Roy (with projects like Satyamev Jayate, Ballad of Rustom, 24) and try their hand at lighting control, camera angle, and picture composition, while exploring the fundamental elements of camera operation

6. STORYTELLING WORKSHOP

Fun and interactive learning sessions where children will not only develop a love of language and literature, getting skilled in narration and performance, but will also be encouraged to immerse into the world of their imagination and weave powerful magical stories through words and oration

7. The Treehouse – Book/Film Workshop

Presentation and announcement of The Treehouse – Book & Film Workshop by Copenhagen Bombay Learning, that SIFFCY is planning to bring to the children of India next year. Read More…

8. AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS

• Best Film (Feature)
• Best Director (Feature)
• Best Story (In Feature)
• Best Actor / Actress
• Best Film (Short / Doc)
• Best Student Film
• Best Film with Special Message (Special Citation in any category)
• Special Mention Plaques may be awarded at the discretion of the Jury .
• Certificate of Participation to all films presented in this section.