Festival Preview | Two heads better than one
The theme at Persistence Resistance this year is collaborations
Persistence Resistance, the curiously named annual documentary festival of the Magic Lantern Foundation (MLF) in Delhi, took a break last year, but is back with the suggestion that two heads are always better than one. The theme of Persistence Resistance, which will run at three venues in Delhi between 16 and 20 February, is collaborations, whether it is between film-maker couples (Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam, for instance) or a director and his or her magnificent obsession (R.V. Ramani’s self-reflexive cinema).
Persistence usually screens over a hundred films, but the list has been hacked down to just 22 titles for the latest edition. “This year, we thought we would do a rethink on what a film festival is about," says Gargi Sen, festival curator and the director of MLF, a non-governmental organization that produces and distributes documentaries. “There are many documentary festivals, so we asked ourselves if we really needed one more. We asked around and realized that what we offer is important—conversations. We are one of the festivals to look at the practice of the documentary."
The conversations include sessions with couples for whom personal and professional collaborations are inseparable from each other—film-maker Deepa Dhanraj and cinematographer Navroze Contractor, the academics and documentarians Anjali Monteiro and K.P. Jayasankar and directors Sarin and Sonam. The films made by these partners in life and cinema will also be screened: Invoking Justice (17 February, 7pm) and Something Like A War (17 February, 1pm), Naata (18 February, 9.30am), So Heddan So Hoddan (18 February, 12.30pm) and Saacha (18 February, 7pm), as well as The Shadow Circus: CIA in Tibet (19 February, 2.30pm), When Hari Got Married (19 February, 5.15pm) and A Stranger in My Native Land (19 February, 7pm). The more unusual pairing is between a people and ideas. Ramani, who directs, shoots and often edits his own films, will discuss his relationship with his camera with film-makers Surabhi Sharma and Anupama Srinivasan.
The screenings will be held at the India International Centre, Max Mueller Bhavan and Khoj International Artists’ Association. They will begin on 17 February and will be preceded by the Delhi launch of Project Cinema City, a commemorative tome on the multi-arts Cinema City initiative.
Persistance Resistance is on from 16-20 February and is free and open to all. Timings and venues vary. Click here for the full schedule and details.
Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!