Tucked beside a wall plastered with richly colored Bollywood posters, Tula Goenka’s office contrasts the wall with an outstandingly bland appearance — at least, until the door is opened. 

Goenka, founder and co-director of this year’s ninth annual Human Rights Film Festival, ‘Illuminating Oppression,’ sits in her office, surrounded by small figurines covered in hand-painted Sanskrit and shelves boasting a vast collection of Bollywood DVDs. The festival begins Saturday, Sept. 17 at 7 p.m.

Celebrating its ninth year, Palestinian film ‘Budrus’ will headline ‘Illuminating Oppression,’ followed by a Q-and-A session with producer Nadav Greenberg. The festival will be held in the Life Sciences Complex Auditorium and will be free and open to the public. ‘We Were Here’ and ‘Nostalgia for the Light,’ among other films to be screened, will follow similar themes of prominent social and political struggles in regions such as South Asia, Latin America and the United States. The film ‘I Am’ will conclude the event.

Goenka, a television, radio and film professor, said the festival first originated in 2002 as an idea to screen films that dealt with human rights issues in South Asia. That idea soon evolved into the festival, which Goenka annually co-directs alongside English department associate professor Roger Hallas.

Although the festival has not attracted large crowds in the past, Goenka said, she anticipates that this year’s film selections will draw a greater turnout.

‘Nine years ago, the intended purpose of the festival was to showcase films that solely focused on social issues in South Asia,’ Goenka said. ‘Since then, not only have I had the immense pleasure of working with my colleague, professor Hallas, but we have added films that include issues from different parts of the world.’

Still nestled in her chair, Goenka explained the process in which the films are selected for viewing in the festival.

‘We do not take submissions for the event, but instead send out invitations to those whose work we are interested in sharing,’ she said.  ‘Sometimes, we work directly with the director or producers of the film and ask them if they would be willing to contribute their work.’

Goenka also said both she and Hallas refrain from selecting commercial films for the festival.  She said due to the fact that they do not use big industry films, screening independent films in the festival allows the filmmakers to make their work more known to the general public.

Before selecting the films that would be showcased in the festival, however, Goenka explains that there are specific goals kept in mind when planning the annual event, including continually diversifying its films.

‘We aim to first and foremost bring these voices on campus so that they may be heard,’ she said. ‘Secondly, we want to make SU, especially the students, socially aware of the issues facing today’s world so that they can create change and work towards a better future.’

falara@syr.edu

Published on September 14, 2011 at 12:00 pm