Shimla being one of the cradles that nursed the rise of theatre traditions in India and one of the earliest exponents of the Indian Film Industry, it’s only natural to celebrate the zeal and zest of the city’s association with the arts by hosting the film festival. Perhaps India’s first, it was in 1887 that the historic Gaiety Theatre was opened in Shimla and with the advent of movies it was in th
is elite retreat in the hills that one of the first film theaters outside Bombay was set up. Nestled in the Himalayas, amidst panoramic settings in the land of Himachal Pradesh and drawing upon the divine muse, the Shimla Film Festival is a tribute to the live and vibrant tradition of the arts in the city. The film festival presents an opportunity to express a deep appreciation of the budding artists, filmmakers and other in the field of film making, striving day and night for fostering awareness and change. Not just as a screening venue or as a shooting location for countless film scene settings, many creative and intense actors, directors, musicians and other film artists have grown out of the city’s artists groups to establish a firm imprint on the country’s film industry. Celebrating life and the bounty of the Himalayan environment are central to the festival. The Shimla Film Festival connects tradition with current trends, brings together producers, directors, actors, scriptwriters, musicians, technicians to enable audiences to gain a deeper understanding of film craft and partake of nature’s bounty in serene settings. Vision
To imbibe, express and exhibit films as a multimedia art form of complete creative expression
Objective
Bridging the global with the local and the local with the global, Shimla Film Festival aspires to bring together filmmakers and artists – young, amateurs and professional, to showcase genres of film craft that explore the themes of changing life patterns, conflict, compassion, love, tragedy, a prevailing unsettled peace, migration, environment, wildlife and other concerns. Multimedia craft of filmmaking being one complete medium and there being a new tribe of very talented filmmakers, who are rooted to their lands, one of the primary motive of the film festival is to capture latent talent and provide them a platform to screen their film.
