Showcasing the brilliance of globally acclaimed Korean films, the three-day Korean Film Festival 2022 was inaugurated at the National Museum Auditorium in the capital's Shahbagh on Wednesday. State Minister for Cultural Affairs KM Khalid joined the opening ceremony of the festival organised by the Korean Embassy. South Korean Ambassador to Bangladesh Lee Jang-Keun and National Museum Director General Md Kamruzzaman also spoke. "Bangladesh and South Korea have many similarities in history, tradition and culture. Based on our similarities and strong diplomatic ties, cultural exchange between the two nations can be one of the means of strengthening mutual cooperation. And this festival is a testament to that," Khalid said. "2023 will mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Bangladesh and South Korea. To celebrate the occasion, cultural exchange between the two countries will be increased through special events." Khalid expressed deep grief over Halloween stampede in Seoul, the capital of South Korea on October 29. A one-minute silence was observed at the ceremony. Read more: Winners of K-pop contests Dhaka announced The embassy has selected these five films for this year's festival from various genres of Korean films, including comedy, thriller, action and animation, which will reflect and showcase various aspects of Korean history, society and modern culture. The festival began with "Escape from Mogadishu" at 6pm after the opening of the festival at the National Museum Auditorium. Thursday, two movies will be screened at the festival – "Dude in Me" at 2pm and "The Battle of Zangsari" at 5pm. Friday, the festival will screen "Underdog" at 11am and "The Edge of Shadows" at 3pm. Read more: Bangladeshi food products appreciated at South Korea fair    

Several young filmmakers are now taking Bangladeshi content to the international arena, and Nuhash Humayun is one of them. With drama projects such as ‘Hotel Albatross’, the short film ‘700 Taka’, web series ‘Pet Kata Shaw’, his recent short film 'Moshari' and his upcoming project for the international OTT platform Hulu, Nuhash's career is gaining momentum towards global success. After the success of 'Moshari' at two 'Oscar qualifying’ film festivals (HollyShorts Film Festival and Melbourne International Film Festival), audiences in Bangladesh have been wondering where and when to see the film, and answering that question, Nuhash told UNB that the short film is going to be available for Bangladeshi viewers in October. Regarding the work plan and experience, he said, "Interest of our viewers always sparks inspiration for any content creator. I have been blessed with that interest and our audiences might not have to wait too long for ‘Moshari’, which I hope everyone will be able to see in October.” Read:'Beauty Circus’ & ‘Operation Sundarban’ set the ball rolling for Bangladesh film industry “Working on this project has been really different for me. To succeed, I had to wait ten years. The idea for the plot first came to me ten years ago, but at the time there was no support since I dared to experiment with such fiction. I still needed a lot of creative support when I started developing ‘Moshari’, but I managed to finish it. Additionally, I've received a lot of reaction from audiences abroad. Now I’m eagerly waiting for Bangladeshi audiences’ reaction.” The news that Nuhash Humayun has created content for the international OTT platform Hulu broke the local internet, while the conversation regarding ‘Moshari’ was still going on. The completed content, which features numerous well-known Bangladeshi actors, is already in Hulu’s pipeline; however, due to the embargo till the official promotion from Hulu, Nuhash is currently keeping a lot of information about the project private.

Iranian filmmaker Kamal Kachooeian- directed film ‘Adapt’ bagged the ‘Best Film’ award at the 8th Dhaka International Mobile Film Festival concluded on Tuesday at Star Cineplex, Shimanto Shambhar, Dhanmondi in the capital. Turkish film ‘Scent’ by Sezgin Yuzay won the CinemaScope Best Film Award while Bangladeshi film ‘The Ghost’ by Fahim Shiyam won the ULAB Young Filmmaker Award.  A total of 153 films were submitted from 31 countries worldwide at the 8th edition of this flagship festival from the Department of Media Studies and Journalism (MSJ), University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB). Read: Best War Movies of 2021: Military Action Films Portraying Battlefields Worldwide The closing ceremony was joined by internationally acclaimed Bangladeshi filmmaker Mostofa Sarwar Farooki as the chief guest. ULAB Vice-Chancellor Professor Imran Rahman was present as the special guest. "As the current generation of filmmakers, you are far ahead of us. The beauty of shooting films using a mobile phone is that you have the same privileges as a filmmaker while sitting overseas that we did not have in our day. Among you, I see a lot of promising faces who will take over the industry in a few years with quality content," Farooki said at the event.

With 225 films from 70 countries, the Dhaka International Film Festival (DIFF) will raise its curtain Saturday. One hundred and twenty-five full-length feature films and 96 short and independent films are scheduled to enthral the moviegoers at the festival, where Bangladesh will be represented through 18 full-length feature films and 22 short and independent films. The films will be screened at the Bangladesh National Museum, Alliance Francaise de Dhaka, Star Cineplex, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, Sufia Kamal National Public Library and the academy auditorium of the foreign ministry. They will be screened under 10 categories – Asian cinema competition section, retrospective, wide angle, tribute, Bangladesh panorama, cinema of the world, children films, women filmmakers, short and independent films and spiritual films. The nine-day DIFF is going to be inaugurated at the main auditorium of the Bangladesh National Museum at 4pm. Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen will inaugurate the festival as the chief guest. State Minister for Cultural Affairs KM Khalid and Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Vikram K Doraiswami will join it as special guests. The DIFF will also feature the Eighth Dhaka International Conference on Women in Cinema 2022 at the Samson Lounge, Dhaka Club from January 16-17 and West Meets East: Screenplay Lab from January 16-19 at Alliance Francaise de Dhaka. Thursday, a press conference was arranged at Dhaka Club in the capital where the festival director Ahmed Muztaba Zamal, DIFF Chairperson Kishwar Kamal, Secretary at the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism and DIFF Executive Committee Member Md Mokammel Hossain, Dhaka Club President Khandaker Mashiuzzaman Romel, Iranian filmmaker and DIFF head programmer Zohreh Zamani, festival executive committee member Jalal Ahmed, and patron committee member journalist Shyamal Dutta briefed the journos. Rainbow Film Society has been organising the DIFF every year since 1992.  

Echoing the slogan 'Together we all, divided we fall', Youth Bangla Cultural Foundation is going to inaugurate an international film festival titled 'Youth Bangla International Film Festival' on December 10 at the International Hope School Theatre Hall, Uttara in the capital. The maiden edition of this week-long international film festival is commemorating the Birth Centenary of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and Golden Jubilee of Bangladesh's Independence, according to the organizers. Showcasing a total of 60 national and international films, the festival is going to be the first-ever festival in the country using the Dolby Atmos surround system, to ensure the enhanced audio-visual experience for the moviegoers. A press event was arranged on Tuesday at the Bangladesh Shooting Sports Federation, where the organizers briefed the journos about the details of the festival. The press conference was joined by several iconic cultural personalities of the country including noted thespian-filmmaker Gazi Rakayet, also the festival director, alongside legendary actresses Dilara Zaman, Sharmili Ahmed, Shampa Reza, recitation artist Shimul Mustapha, singer-music director S I Tutul, silver screen actress and Youth Bangla's film secretary Nipun, actor Shipan Mitra, director Sohanur Rahman Sohan and more. Youth Bangla Cultural Foundation President Muna Chowdhury and the festival's Chief Patron Seema Hamid were also present at the press conference. A total of five films will be selected from the participating films to be awarded in this festival, the organizers said at the press conference. Films have been selected from India, Iran, Germany, Argentina, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal and Netherland, alongside Bangladeshi films, according to the organizers.  The opening film for this year's festival is Hasina: A Daughter's Tale directed by Piplu Khan. Several other prominent Bangladeshi films are also scheduled to be showcased in the festival, including Muktir Gaan by late eminent filmmaker Tareque Masud; Morshedul Islam directed Liberation War-based film Amar Bondhu Rashed and Gazi Rakayet directed film Gor (The Grave), Bangladesh’s first English-language based film and second nomination for the upcoming 94th edition of the Oscars. "One of our penultimate goals for this debuting film festival is to building a bridge between our new generation filmmakers and the rest of the cineworld," Gazi Rakayet said at the press conference. A highly-revered, five-member international and independent jury board will select the best films, best directors and best actors-actresses, he informed. "Our Youth Bangla Cultural Foundation believes that films can spontaneously depict human emotions, and a single good film can positively change a person and the society. Through this first-ever film festival, we sincerely want to connect all of our talented film artistes, filmmakers and scholars, for the betterment of our esteemed film industry," Youth Bangla Cultural Foundation President Muna Chowdhury said at the press conference. From 3 pm till 9 pm, the festival is expecting to cater up to 450 moviegoers each day till December 16.

With the slogan "Stride towards versatility," the maiden edition of the "Vistula 1st Polish Film Festival" virtually started Wednesday for the Bangladeshi audience. The five-day festival has been organised by WSPIERAM Foundation in association with the International Academy of Film and Media (IAFM) and supported by the Polish Film Institute. The inauguration of the festival was officially announced at 7pm on the IAFM's official Facebook page. The festival will showcase 10 contemporary Polish films including, features, shorts, and documentaries by noted filmmakers. Read: Three Bangladeshi films selected for Busan International Film Festival Also, there will be masterclasses, lecture sessions, and cine-talks about Polish cinemas by internationally acclaimed film intellectuals at the five-day festival, according to the organisers. A masterclass titled "Cinematography: Women Behind the Camera" by Polish female cinematographer Weronika Bilska will be held during the academic session, and a lecture titled "Introduction to Polish Cinema" by Professor Sanjay Mukhopadhyay, an Indian writer, teacher, critic, and theorist. From September 22 to 26, movie enthusiasts can watch free online screenings of the films at Mojeekino. 

For the first time ever, three Bangladeshi films - Abdullah Mohammad Saad's "Rehana Maryam Noor". Mostofa Sarwar Farooki's "No Land's Man", and Mohammad Rabby Mridha's "Paayer Tolay Mati Nai", have been selected to be showcased at the prestigious Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) 2021. The selection of the film "Paayer Tolay Mati Nai" (No Ground Beneath The Feet) was confirmed on Wednesday, which will be screened on October 7, 8, and 13 in the “A Window on Asian Cinema” section of the festival. Read ‘Mission Extreme’ is set to release worldwide on December 3rd Scheduled to be run from October 8 to 15, this year’s festival has enlisted these films as part of its “A Window on Asian Cinema” section, where Farooki's upcoming movie "No Land's Man", has been nominated for the Kim Jiseok Award. “What stands out is the selection of 3 films from Bangladeshi cinema, which has been considered until now to be on the cinematic periphery,” the BIFF website highlighted Bangladesh’s history-making participation at this year’s festival. Produced by acclaimed director-producer Abu Shahed Emon, "Paayer Tolay Mati Nai" is presented by Box Office and Golpo Rajjo films, and the film is co-produced by Impress Telefilm Limited and Batayan Productions. Read Web Series "Boli": Chanchal Chowdhury Again in an Unprecedented Character Mir Mokarram Hossain is the executive producer of the film, alongside its co-producers Faridur Reza Sagar, Managing Director of Impress Telefilm, and Tahrima Khan, Batayan Productions. Starring Mostafa Monwar, Priyam Archi, and Dipannita Martin are in the lead roles among others, “Paayer Tolay Mati Nai” narrates the story of an ordinary man named Saiful, who has embraced his miseries while walking through various conflicts in his life with his two wives, family, work, morality, and sociality. Farooki’s “No Land’s Man” stars noted Indian actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui and popular Bangladeshi singer-actor Tahsan Rahman Khan in the lead roles, narrating the theme of social discrimination in terms of race, religion, and nationality. Read Networker Baire Review: Story of joy, tragedy, travel, and unexpected event The joint venture by the US company Dialectic and Bangladesh's Chabial, in association with India's Magic If Films, Bangladesh's Sun Music & Motion Pictures, and Bongo BD, “No Land’s Man” also has teamed up with the Oscar-BAFTA-Grammy-famed world-famous Indian composer A R Rahman for its music. Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, Anjan Chowdhury, Nusrat Imrose Tisha, Shrihari Sathe, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, A R Rahman, and Faridur Reza Sagar are co-producing the film, which was the recipient of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and Asia Pacific Screen Awards' Script Development fund in 2014. It was part of the Asian Project Market at Busan and was the Best Project at India's Film Bazaar that year. Bangladesh's maiden entry at the prestigious “Un Certain Regard” section of this year’s Cannes Film Festival, 'Rehana Maryam Noor' is scripted, edited, and directed by Abdullah Mohammad Saad as his second directorial venture. The film was also showcased at the Melbourne International Film Festival and is now scheduled for the upcoming BFI London Film Festival. Read Holey Artisan Victim Faraaz's Heroism is Now on the Silver Screen The story of this 1 hour and 48 minutes long film revolves around Rehana Maryam Noor, an assistant professor at a private medical college, played by popular actress Azmeri Haque Badhan. For the past 26 years, the Busan International Film Festival has been organized in South Korea every year, featuring films from aspiring young Asian and global filmmakers. The festival was held online last year for the first time, due to the ongoing global pandemic of Covid-19. Organized by Busan City and the Korean Film Council, in collaboration with the South Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, the festival has earned its global recognition as one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world. Read Shah Rukh Khan's daughter Suhana to make Bollywood debut soon?

An individual has to make diverse decisions throughout life. When a person stays firm about a decision knowing that he will have to pay the ultimate price in the future, the person has to be at his strongest. Rehana Maryam Noor is such a stubborn character. Written and directed by Abdullah Mohammad Saad, Rehana Maryam Noor has made history by representing Bangladesh in the 'Un Certain Regard' section at the Cannes International Film Festival. 'Rehana Maryam Noor (2021)' Movie Review Although Rehana is the main character in the movie, the story revolves around the harassment of her student, Annie.  In whose name the movie, Rehana Maryam Noor is a single mother of a 6-year-old girl. Raising a daughter alone, taking care of father, mother, and brother, raising expenses - all she has to do single-handedly. Nevertheless, such people have to be strong! But we see how persistent she is as she always wears her husband's watch. Read Rehana Maryam Noor screened at Cannes amid standing ovation Rehana is a 37-year-old- medical college teacher. To prove the insistence of this medical college teacher, the director showed that she was sitting next to the student to catch cheating in the exam hall, and she became successful in that too. The talented director Saad depicted all these small but meaningful incidents to create the context of the story.

Rehana Maryam Noor’, a film directed by Bangladeshi director Abdullah Mohammad Saad, screened at the 74th Cannes Film Festival's prestigious 'Un Certain Regard' section on Wednesday. The screening took place at Bangladeshi time 3:15 pm at the Sal Dubusi Theater in Cane Pale Do Festival building. The film has received 'Standing Ovation' from the audiences. READ: Asia in Cannes: Spotlight on Asian Movies in 74th Cannes Film Festival Director Abdullah Mohammad Saad, actress Azmeri Haque Badhan, Singaporean producer Jeremy Chua, cinematographer Tuhin Tamizul, production designer Ali Afzal Ujjal, sound engineer Shaib Talukder, colorist Chinmoy Roy and executive producer Ehsanul Babu attended the screening on Wednesday at the festival. The second Bangladeshi film ever being showcased in a competitive section of arguably the most prestigious and celebrated film showcase in the world, Rehana Maryam Noor has created buzz among the movie lovers and critics all over the world. A large number of audiences were spotted outside the festival venue, cued to enter the screening, according to the local media. Read Best Movies Preview: The Anticipation on the Run for Cannes Film Festival 2021 There will be a total of three screenings of the movie at the festival. Both of the screenings will take place tomorrow, July 8 at 12:30 pm and 2 pm (Bangladeshi time) at the festival. It is of course the first from Bangladesh to be chosen for Un Certain Regard, which translates to 'From Another Angle' in French, and features films that stand out for their unusual styles and often non-traditional storytelling. Previously, late Tareque Masud-directed Matir Moina (2002) was the first Bangladeshi entry to be screened in competition at the festival, coming away with a prestigious FIPRESCI award. Read Cannes Film Festival 2021: Movies and Filmmakers under the Limelight The second directorial venture by talented filmmaker Abdullah Mohammad Saad, 'Rehana Maryam Noor's storyline narrates the tale of the eponymous private medical college teacher who becomes the witness to an unexpected incident while leaving the college one day. Being awestruck with the incident, Noor starts to protest against the incident and the system, as the story moves forward. The ensemble cast of the film features prominent actors including Saberi Alam, Azmeri Haque Badhan, Afia Zahin, Kazi Sami Hasan, Afia Tabassum, Yasir Al Haque and more, in the major roles. READ: Rehana Maryam Noor: The Bangladeshi Film in the prestigious list of Cannes Alongside Un Certain Regard, other segments of this year's festival are 'In Competition', 'Out of Competition', 'Midnight Screenings', 'Cannes Premiere' and 'Special Screenings'. Officially began yesterday as the first offline film festival during the pandemic era, this year's festival is scheduled to take place from July 6 to 17 in Cannes, France.

The competition event among the best movies of the Cannes film festival 2021 has already been knocking at the door. This most-coveted fest program is going to take place from July 6 to 17 at the Palais De Festival Center in Cannes of France. Spike Lee, the American filmmaker, will lead the juries in competition while Andrea Arnold, the British filmmaker will be the head of Un Certain Regard. The program will be live from its opening day on TV Festival De Cannes, and its YouTube, and Dailymotion channels. Best movies of Cannes Film Festival 2021 Annette | In Competition | Opening Film The festival will launch with ‘Annette’ of the french director Leos Carax. This musical movie comes up with screenplay by Ron Mael and Russell Mael of Sparks. This film features the music of the pop band Sparks where the protagonist characters Marion Cotillard plays a stand-up comedian where Adam Driver plays an opera singer. They discover that their two-year-old baby girl has born with an unusual gift that is completely changing their lives. Read Cannes Film Festival 2021: Movies and Filmmakers under the Limelight The French Dispatch | In Competition This comedy-drama will likely delight the French with three different storylines about a fictional American newspaper staff. The casts are full of celebrities including Timothee Chalamet, Frances McDormand, and Tilda Swinton, Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, Benicio Del Toro, Saoirse Ronan. The eccentric filmmaker Wes Anderson made this film getting inspired by his love for an American weekly magazine ‘The New Yorker’. This movie depicts the freedom of the press as well as the significant connection of a reporter with the worldwide phenomena. Benedetta | In Competition The ever-controversial Dutch director Paul Verhoeven appears this time with ‘Benedetta’. This film, based on the non-fiction novel ‘Immodest Acts: The Life of a Lesbian Nun in Renaissance Italy’ written by Judith C. Brown, portrays the unorthodox love affair of a nun through a national revolution. The Belgian actress Virginie Efira stars the title role. In this movie, Verhoeven engaged some crew members of his previous films. Interestingly, Verhoeven himself along with David Birke wrote the screenplay of Benedetta’. Read Greatest Love Stories in Celluloid: Hollywood’s Best Romantic Movies of All Time Bergman Island | In Competition Bergman Island is written and directed by the French filmmaker Mia Henson Love. Tim Roth and Vicky Krieps star in this comedy-drama. The theme is an American filmmaking couple embarks on a summer trip to an island on the Baltic Sea of Faro. The island is famous for the Swedish filmmaker Ingmar Burgman as he shot most of his iconic films there. Even he lived and died on that island. The screenplay of Bergman Island shows how the couple naturally loses their grip during the filmmaking. Mia Wasikowska and Anders Danielsen Lie are also in this artistically made film within a film. Memoria | In Competition Already Palme D’or winner in 2010, the Thai filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul will come up with his first English language film Memoria. Tilda Swinton, the executive producer of the film, plays a Scottish tourist who encounters supernatural activities during the visit to her sister in Columbia. As the ending day of the festival matches with this Weerasethakul’s birthday, another Palme D’or will be a surprising gift for him. Speaking of the movie, he gave a hint of a great twist. Read 'Ahimsa – Gandhi: The Power of the Powerless' decodes the force of nonviolence Titan | In Competition Whereabouts of a young woman, a medical experiment, some automobile crimes, and cold movement of a mid-aged man; that’s all filled up within this horror movie. The plot is not straightforward like the previous films of the French film director Julia Docounau. Eventually, this film is getting lots of vibes and curiosities. Nathalie Boyer, Agathe Rousselle, and Vincent Lindon will be seen in this mysterious and compelling background. Julia is best known for her first feature film ‘Raw’ which won the International Federation of Film Critics prize. Mothering Sunday | Cannes Premier This British drama film has been made based on the novel Mothering Sunday by Graham Swift. The background is England after World War I where a love story is developed in a single-day drama. Jane, played by Odessa Young, secretly plans to meet her lover starred by Josh O’Connor. Colin Firth and Olivia Colman are also in the movie directed by the French director Eva Husson. The screenplay was written by the British playwright Alice Birch. Read Rehana Maryam Noor: The Bangladeshi Film in the prestigious list of Cannes Cow | Cannes Premier ‘Cow’ is a close-up portrait of the daily life of a regular dairy cow. The English filmmaker Andrea Arnold has made this masterpiece by exploring the challenges of the lives of this domestic animal and its great service to us. She is considered as a regular Cannes director and already won an Oscar in 2005 for her short film Wasp. BBC Film and Doc Society have sponsored the endeavor which is set to premiere at Cannes Film Festival 2021. Vortex | Cannes Premier After the successful presentation of Irreversible, Love, Climax, and Lux Aeterna in Cannes, the Argentine filmmaker Gasper Noe is going to bring a documentary-style film Vortex this time. The film revolves around the last days of an elderly couple as they gradually keep forgetting everything. The casts are the Iconic Italian director Dario Argento, Francoise Lebrun, and Alex Lutz. It is considered to set a new dimension in the horror genre. This Noe film will undoubtedly create a big buzz like his previous ones. Read Female filmmakers of Bangladesh have made their mark in the industry Red Rocket | In Competition Sean Baker has made his name as the favorite indie filmmaker after his great achievement in The Florida Project. This pitch-black American comedy tells the story of a porn star who is no longer as famous as before. He goes back to his hometown expecting open arms reception. But he realized soon that he doesn’t belong there anymore. Bree Elrod and Suxanna Son have acted in the film while Simon Rex plays the main character. Baker himself and Chris Bergoch have written the screenplay together like the previous hit films. In a nutshell These are just a glimpse of the best movies of Cannes Film Festival 2021. There are more surprising motion pictures including independent films and some classics. It is obvious that the World is going to encounter some amazing screenplays that will lead the future movie genres. Read Top 10 English Comedy Movies released in 2021