Talking Movies At Xavier's While the fever of the International Film Festival of India began to subside in Panaji, the Film Club of St. Xavier's College, Mapusa generated its own heat during a three-day festival of "Films with a difference", the club comprising of students interested in theatre as well as films and media, invited Ms. Gayathri Konkar of `Moving Images' to screen and conduct discussions on a selection of special films on the 14th, 15th and 16th of December, 04.
The festival coincided with the three-day Fete commemorating the closing of the College Ruby Jubilee Year. 'The Colour of Paradise' is a multiple award winning film by the Iranian director Majid Majidi. The story of the young blind boy Mohammed and his innocent quest for love and acceptance in the 'normal' world around him, moved the audience to silent tears. Majidi's fine handling of the simple story-line, combined with breathtaking cinematography, was a celebration not only of the rare natural beauty of Iran, but also of the 'other kind' of film. Director Antonio Pedro Vasconcelos', Cannes, Best Debut award-winning feature film 'Jaime' was a stark expos� of the dark world of the poor and unemployed youth of Portugal Vasconcelo handles this universal theme with a moving yet unpretentious honesty, portraying the plight of the eponymous hero with a sensitivity rarely seen in most contemporary mainstream films. The screening of Alan Parker's gripping American Civil rights era film, 'Mississippi Burning' starring, Gene Hackman and Willem Dafoe, served as an appropriate sounding board for generating a healthy discussion on the differences between Art films and mainstream 'flicks'. The general observation was that the latter category tended to depend largely on powerful background scores and the rapid shifting of scenes to hold audience attention, while the former moved at a more deliberate pace, dwelling on subtle details, using natural sound effects to cater to the taste of a more focused and perhaps sensitive audience. The French film 'The Fabulous Destiny of Amelie Poulaine'and 'The Victor Weeps' a powerful documentary on the plight of the Afghan refugee produced by world class photographer Fazal Sheikh, provided that additional dimension to the viewer�s perspective of the silver screen. On the whole, the free screening of movies on campus and the interesting discussions on themes, Cinematography, Art versus mainstream film etc. that were generated after each screening, was a truly enriching learning experience. "We were fortunate to be given the opportunity to watch and appreciate such interesting and inspiring films at no cost" and "...even though the films were in different languages, we didn�t mind reading the subtitles because they all tell a unique story" said one of the students, echoing the general feeling after the festival. It is interesting to note that in addition to being one of the few colleges in Goa to have a Theatre Club, St. Xavier's is now perhaps the only colleges to have successfully hosted their own film festival. The students are already looking forward to the next St. Xavier's "Film Festival With A Difference" which is set to run for a longer duration and showcase a wider variety of films. The festival was coordinated by Ms. Alice D'Cruz, the Head of the Department of English.
