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| Saturday, 1 May 2004 |
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August Sun to shine in Canadian cinemas "Ira Madiyama" (August Sun) which was in the international limelight will be commercially released in Canada as a Summer Release, turning a new page in the local film industry.
"This will be the first time a Sri Lankan film is commercially released in Canada," claimed the film's director and acclaimed artiste Prasanna Vithanage adding that this will help create a good market for our films at the international arena. Canada will be a good base for our films. The film which has already gained international recognition won another unique award at the 17th Singapore International Film Festival held from April 15 to 30. The film was presented the award for the Best Film from the Joint Jury representing the FIPRESCI (International Film Critic Federation) and NETPAC (Network for Promotion of Asian Cinema). Director Prasanna Vithanage who was present at the festival to receive the coveted award, is proud of his achievement which he believes would bring international recognition to local films and artistes. Prasanna noted the importance of penetrating the international film festival arena. "We should somehow like other directors worldwide make efforts to gain acknowledgment from the international audience. It is pleased to note that the situation is now changing compared to ten to fifteen years ago. Sri Lanka is already in this - the Sri Lankan flag is now seen at almost every festival," "International festivals are just a platform which gives you a recognition. The mere recognition is not sufficient. We need to market our films captivating audiences worldwide," Prasanna stresses. The film revolves around three narratives which unfold simultaneously. During two scorching days in August, three different groups of people face different experiences due to circumstances beyond their control. An eleven year old Muslim boy, Arfath, is struggling to keep his companion and friend, a dog, while the family is forced out of their home by the rebels. Chamari, a young women is looking for her husband who is a soldier missing in action. A young soldier Duminda walks into a brothel to find his sister among the working girls. According to Prasanna, these are ordinary people thrown into the heat of war. The experiences they encounter may not be directly related to the conflict. These events, like the weather, govern their lives. The film stars Peter D'Almeida, Nimmi Harasgama, Namal Jayasinghe, Mohomed Rahfiulla. Ira Madiyama has also won two other significant awards - Best Film (Silver Award) and Best Actress (Nimmi Harasgama) at the Las Palmas International and Jury' Special Mention at the Fribourg International Film Festival. However, Prasanna was confident that this kind of international awards would give a boost to his campaign in marketing the film worldwide. "But we should not make films only for festivals. We should make good films so that they will find their own way towards festivals," Prasanna noted. Ira Madiyama had its world premier at the 27th Montreal World Film festival in August last year. |
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