Indian Film Industry Became One of the Key Focus Areas of the Third Moscow International Film Week

VMPL
New Delhi [India], September 3: The Third Moscow International Film Week has concluded in Moscow. The event took place from August 24 to 30 and featured premieres of Russian and international films, meetings with actors and filmmakers, business sessions, open-air screenings, tours of the Moscow film cluster’s venues and children’s events.
“This year, Moscow International Film Week attracted more than 720,000 visitors, while around 200 industry representatives from 26 countries took part in the business program. Russian and international experts discussed joint projects, and cooperation agreements were signed with the Producers Guild of India and the League of Filmmakers of Kazakhstan,” said Alexey Fursin, Minister of the Moscow Government and Head of the Moscow Department of Culture.

On August 27 and 28, the business program took place at the Moskino film factory and included around 40 sessions. They were grouped into four tracks: “Author — Industry,” “Screen — Audience,” “Local — Global” and “Heritage — Future.” Participants discussed film production and financing, casting, audience engagement, bringing projects to international markets, co-production, new technologies and the opportunities offered by film commissions.
One of the central areas of the international agenda was the development of cooperation with India — from co-production and film tourism to promoting Moscow as a location for international shoots.
Indian directors Deepak Tijori and Pan Nalin discussed joint Russian-Indian projects and their potential to reach international audiences. Harshad Bhagwat, Founder of the International Film Tourism Conclave in India, assessed Moscow’s opportunities for international productions. According to him, around two thousand films are produced in India every year in approximately 30 languages, and about 100 projects are shot outside the country annually.

On August 28, Moskino and the Producers Guild of India signed a cooperation agreement in the field of film production. The parties agreed to jointly promote filming locations and services, exchange talent and infrastructure opportunities, and hold industry events.
“India is a huge and dynamically growing film market, and we are placing a strong focus on it. Cooperation with the Producers Guild of India opens up a direct dialogue for us with leading players in the Indian industry. We plan not only to exchange visits, but to build long-term, systematic work — from joint projects to the creation of shared production chains,” said Georgy Prokopov, CEO of Moskino.
“The signing of the MoU with Moskino is an important step towards strengthening professional ties between the filmmaking communities of our countries. Russia and India are connected by more than half a century of a shared love for cinema, and today this interest is translating to growing collaboration off-screen too. We see great potential for active cooperation and look forward to working closely with Moskino to act as a bridge that connects the creative communities in both nations,” said Shibasish Sarkar, President of the Producers Guild of India.
A cooperation agreement was also signed between Moskino and the League of Filmmakers of Kazakhstan.

The international program featured Christopher Lambert and Mithun Chakraborty. During his meeting with the audience, Lambert praised the capabilities of the Moskino complex and spoke about working with a Russian film crew on Sobibor. Chakraborty noted the emotionality and sincerity of Russian audiences. According to him, it was during his first visit to Russia that he realized the scale of his popularity and the affection of his fans.
Over the seven days of Moscow International Film Week, more than 210 events were held for residents and visitors of the city. The children’s program took place in seven city parks. Films were also screened in the open air. For the second year in a row, the Cinema Truck — a mobile cinema with a large screen — traveled around Moscow. Thanks to its technical equipment, screenings could be held not only in the evening but also during the day. The screenings attracted more than 3,000 viewers in parks, estates and at the venues of the Moscow film cluster.
Moscow International Film Week is organized by the Moscow Department of Culture and the autonomous non-profit organization Moskino. The event is held as part of the Moscow — City of Cinema project, which aims to create and develop a multifunctional ecosystem for the production of films, series and television projects.
(ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by VMPL. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same.)