Santosh Mehta chats up Estonian director Tina Lokk, one of the jury members, at the recent Osian Ninth Cinefan Film Festival

The focus of Osian’s Ninth Cinefan Film Festival that concluded in Delhi recently was the Japanese cinema. Twenty women filmmakers exhibited their creative work during the festival which saw more than 140 films by over 100 filmmakers from 35 countries.

Tina Lokk, the founder-director of the Black Nights Film Festival in Tallinn, Estonia, was among the jury members. Tina has studied film theory and criticism at VGIK, Moscow, and was briefly the editor-in-chief of two local film and photo journals. In 1993, she co-founded a distribution company, Filmimax which brought European and Independent films into the Baltic market.

Tina has published critical articles, worked as a film correspondent for television and radio, and lectured at universities on film history and theory. She was elected to the European Film Academy in 2000 and was a member of the executive board of the European Coordinator of Film-Festivals.

Tina says, "I have been invited as a jury at the Osian’s Cinefan’s festival for the first time but I have attended the festival at least three times. Being a festival director, I want to see and enjoy more movies so that when I go back to my country I can recommend these films."

About the festival, Tina said there was so much change from th last Osian’s Cinefan’s festival. "This year the quality as well as the theme of the films was good. Some of them have been directed by women filmmakers. There was a time when nobody thought the festival would have its own identity. But now one can proudly say that it is popular especially, among the young Delhiites."

She met noted film personalities like Kiran V Shantaram, Anil Mehta and Anurag Kashyup. She said the fest gave her an opportunity to know more about the Indian cinema.

Tina admits, "Training is important in cinema. I have completed a film course from Moscow. I am a scriptwriter, critic and teach at the Estonia Film Institute. Nobody is from cinema in my family. My parents are ordinary people but they are proud of me"

According to her, films impart knowledge and entertain masses at the same time. "Cinema’s contribution to society cannot be ignored. However, filmmakers must keep in mind that one cannot see films only from the director’s point of view," she asserts.

Tina grabbed the opportunity to see a few Indian films during the festival including Black-Friday by Anurag Kashyup.

The festival gave her an opportunity to establish rapport with Indian filmmakers who she found Indian filmmakers creative and intellectual. "Being into cinema I want to socialise and like such people who are knowledgeable and important."

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