New Delhi/Panaji, Jul 14 (IANS): American cinematographer and film director John Bailey, President of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, has confirmed his participation for this year's International Film Festival of India (IFFI) to be held in Goa from November 20-28, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar said on Sunday.
Addressing the media after the first steering committee meeting for the IFFI 2019 in Panaji, Javadekar also said that Russia may be on board as the country in focus this year.
"IFFI is India's pride. This year's IFFI is especially significant since it marks the golden jubilee edition," he said.
The steering committee meeting was held to ensure the necessary coordination between the key stakeholders involved in the process of organising the festival, a Ministry press statement said.
Roadshows will be conducted across seven cities in India to reach out to the film fraternity to develop a buzz around the festival. Business exhibitions to display relevant technologies for films and an exhibition marking the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi will also be organised along with this year's festival.
The number of private theatres taken on board for showing films during the festival will be increased to cater to the high demand for extra screening of popular films.
Students of premier film institutes, including the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, and the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI), Kolkata, will be involved in the management of this year's festival, Javadekar said.
The list of films to be shown would be finalised by September to give sufficient time to cine lovers to plan for attending the festival.
Javadekar added that this year's festival will pay tribute to ex-Chief Minister of Goa Manohar Parrikar, who was instrumental in making Goa the permanent venue for IFFI.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said that organising the 50th edition of IFFI was a proud moment for the state and his government will leave no stone unturned to ensure top notch infrastructure and hospitality arrangements to make this edition of the festival memorable.
A special IFFI golden jubilee edition poster was also released by Javadekar and Sawant during the event.
Eminent film personalities, including Karan Johar, Siddharth Roy Kapoor, Feroze Abbas Khan and Subhash Ghai, will be part of the IFFI steering committee, Javadekar said.
The key sections at the IFFI include international competition, festival kaleidoscope, world panorama, Indian panorama, masterclasses, in-conversations, special retrospectives, homages, open-air screenings and film bazaar -- organised by the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC).