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Rashed Chowdhury, member of the executive committee of the Bangladesh Short Film Forum and former General Secretary of the Forum, had recently the honour of screening his short film Bismaraner Nadi (The River Lethe, 16mm, 2004) at the ten-day 4th Commonwealth Film Festival in Manchester inaugurated on April 29.
   The filmmaker took part in the festival with a grant from the British Council Dhaka.
   Earlier, the 35-minute film was screened at an international film festival in Kolkata.
   In 1999 he made a 48 minute documentary film in Beta-cam format titled N’hanyate (The Long Wait) on the life and works of noted and self-exiled sculptor Novera Ahmed, which has achieved much acclaim both from film critics and audiences.
   Chowdhury has been involved in the short film movement since 1990s. According to him, the financial crisis is the most crushing hindrance in the development of the short film industry in the country.
   ‘Suppose I spend one lakh takas in making a film but get nothing in return; how do I take up the next venture and make the next film. It’s not possible if I don’t have funds,’ said Chowdhury.
   ‘Unfortunately, we do not get producers for short films. The producers are interested making feature films and television plays. We make films at our own expense,’ he further said.
   ‘We have very few post production facilities in the country. Filmmakers are bound to go abroad for developing their films and for the subtitles, just so that they can have good quality print of the films. That automatically adds up to the expenses,’ said Chowdhury.
   He said that in other countries, the government provides support, both financial and logistic; but in our country the scenario is totally the opposite. ‘At least, we need infrastructural or technical supports from the government.
   The government can set modern equipments in the Bangladesh Film Development Corporation. This will also play a role in the development of a commercial film,’ said the filmmaker.
   ‘As the distribution network for short films have yet to be developed in the country, the films do not get chance to be screened outside Dhaka. This is also an obstacle in this field,’ Chowdhury added.
   ‘The short film makers, who had received acclaim for their work, are now involved in making feature films; they have to get back their investments for survival.’
   The Short Film Forum will open a fifty-seated auditorium at Shahbagh in August this year, where the organisers will screen only short films made in the country. ‘I hope that this auditorium will be the centre for short filmmakers and will refurbish the short film movement in the country,’ he added.
   ‘A short film is like a short story; its impact is very effective. On the other hand, making short films can be a training phase for promising filmmakers in the future,’ concluded Chowdhury.

The premiere show of Karnaphulir Kanna, (Teardrops of Karnaphuli) a documentary by Tanvir Mokammel, was held at the Goethe Institut in Dhanmondi on Sunday.
   Motiur Rahman, editor of the daily Prothom Alo was present as the chief guest while Niels Severin Munk, ambassador of Denmark to Bangladesh was present as the guest of honour. Barrister Devashish Roy, the Chakma raja and Hameeda Hossain, a human right activist were present as special guests. Dr Markus Litz, director of the Goethe Institut delivered the welcome speech.
   A DVD of the documentary has also been released by Lesser Vision on the occasion.
   Devashish Roy said that the problem began when the government took a decision to make an artificial lake and send some Bengalis to settle there. The people of the Hill Tracts were not included in the decision making and their opinion was not taken into consideration.
   Tanvir in his enactment stated, ‘We should recognise the problems of the tribal people. I started working on it last year, bringing these problems into light’.
   The government and the general public should also be aware of the sufferings of the tribes and raise their voices in support of the cause; only then can peace be established in that region, said the speakers in the ceremony.
   The documentary has been shot in an interviewing format. The show documents opinions of different tribal groups, employees of different administrations and elected persons as well, the Chakma raja, members of the Shantibahini, Bengali settlers along with many others who have been living in the region. The problems are depicted through the show.

A former lover of Pablo Picasso is to sell 20 sketches by the artist at an auction in Paris later this month.
   The selection of artwork is estimated to be worth up to $2.4m (£1.3m).
   Genevieve Laporte, 79, had a secret two-year affair with Picasso, whom she first met as a student when she interviewed him for a school newspaper.
   ‘He was a tender man, respectful, intelligent, timid,’ said Ms Laporte. ‘Not at all the abominable snowman we’re used to hearing about.’
   Picasso sketched many pictures of Ms Laporte while on holiday in St Tropez in 1951 at the height of the couple’s affair, when she was 24.
   Many sketches bear the inscription ‘For Genevieve’.
   Picasso asked Ms Laporte to move in with him two years later shortly after his girlfriend Francoise Gilot had just left him, but she refused.
   ‘His ex-girlfriend leaves one morning, and he asks me to move in to the (same) house the next day,’ she said. ‘Would you have gone?’
   Ms Laporte married a former member of the French Resistance in 1959 and became an award-winning poet and documentary film-maker.

Aranyak Natyadal’s 40th production Raarang will be staged at 7:00pm at the Experimental Theatre Hall in Segunbagicha on June 22.
   The play, written and directed by Mamunur Rashid, presents the historic Santal movement against the British Regime in India in 1784.
   The fights for rights of Santal for the ownership of land through centuries have also been presented in the play.

G Series has released Shanta Paribar on VCD. The drama is scripted and directed by Debashis Kakon and Afsana Mimi respectively.
   Different roles are played by Azad Abul Kalam, Chandni, Shatabdi Wadood, Snata Shahrin, Tushar, Usha Mohan, Saleh Ahmed, Faruk Ahmed, Shirin Bakul and others.

Michael Stipe sent a goodwill message to the Burmese activist US rock group REM have performed a concert for Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, which was beamed by satellite into Burma.
   Lead singer Michael Stipe dedicated three songs to the activist, who is held under house arrest in the country and recently turned 60.
   REM were playing to 25,000 fans at Ireland’s Ardgillan Castle.
   ‘We pray with our hearts that by your 61st birthday, you will walk free among your people’, said Stipe.

11:00pm-12:00am, Animal Planet
   Gorilla numbers worldwide have been decimated by man’s greed and cruelty and environmental damage caused by incessant African wars, poaching and the rape of the landscape by big businesses.
   This programme tells the story of Damian Aspinall’s first major project to create new gorilla groups just by rescuing local orphaned African gorillas, and then by relocating young gorillas reared in England in their natural African habitat.

Scientists in a mid ocean research station have been experimenting in the quest for a cure for Alzhiemers disease. Their three genetically engineered sharks develop superhuman intelligence and begin hunting down their creators - chasing them when the floating station begins to sink during a tropical storm. Mixture of Jaws and Alien with surprises and excitement.
   Deep Blue Sea
   HBO
   9:30pm
   Starring
   Samuel L Jackson, Thomas Jane