Online Film festivals: A new beginning

This era of the worldwide pandemic has confined us to lead a digitalized life. Today we are conducting a whole lot of things online which we could have never thought of. Movies are released on OTT platforms, Schools are conducted on Google meet, Offices are conducted from home and even Film Festivals are getting arranged on online platforms. Now the question lies how long can we get everything online?

What is actually the future of online festivals? Well, to be true, everything has its pros and cons, online activities are also counted in this race. When we hear the term film festival, the first thing that comes to our mind is a red carpet, screening, clicks, ramp walk, and so on.  It’s true that this exciting event atmosphere cannot be experienced online. The screening of a movie on the Big Screen is also not possible online.

But the online festivals also have their own benefits. There are many filmmakers or film buffs that are unable to attend offline film festivals due to their physical inability or financial crisis but online festivals have been a boon for them. Moreover, online festivals made it easier to take part in just a click so the engagement of viewers has been more in the case of online festivals. It can be attended from any corner of the world.

But there are some peoples who still crave the traditional way of film screenings and events of festivals. So, the situation is getting a bit confused regarding the future of film festivals; whether they should be online or offline. What I feel is, people should change their way of thinking and look forward to the new aspirations and possibilities that an online platform could bring out.