Overview
About the event
The Directorate of Film Festivals, Govt of India held the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) at
Thiruvananthapuram in 1988. The festival ushered in interest in serious films and subsequently several
film societies were born throughout the state. The societies' activities included screening classic films from around the world, conducting group discussions on various aspects of cinema and circulating pamphlets on renowned filmmakers.
The film societies obtained copies of films from archives and embassies of some countries as a part
of culture exchange programs. The film society movement helped to raise film literacy among people
and the need for an international film festival to the level of the IFFI came up. The first IFFK was in
Kozhikode in 1996. The event was managed by the Kerala State Film Development Corporation (KSFDC)
till 1998 when the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy was formed and was bestowed with the
responsibility of conducting IFFK along with other activities for cinema promotion. Later, the FIAPF
accredited the festival, and a competition section was added to the event in 1999.
The competition is limited to films produced in Asia, Africa, or Latin America. The 'FIPRESCI (F??d??ration
Internationale de la Presse Cin??matographique) and the Netpac (Network for the Promotion of Asian
Cinema) have also recognized the festival. The festival is perhaps the only one to have screenings for
residents of a jail, a juvenile home(Poojappura Central Jail, Thiruvananthapuram) and a poor home (Sri?�Chitra Poor Home)?�
