 "FTII’s Kannada Short Film Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know qualifies for Oscars 2025")
(Film & Television Institute of India) FTII’s award-winning Kannada short film ‘Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know’, directed by Chidananda S Naik, has qualified for the Oscars 2025 in the Live Action Short Film category.
The short film won the first prize earlier this year at the Cannes Film Festival’s La Cinef Selection. The 16-minute-long Kannada project is inspired by Indian folk stories and traditions.
After bagging the prize at Cannes, the jury praised the film and commented, “An illumination that, from the depths of the night, shines with humour and a keen sense of direction, the first prize is awarded to Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know by Chidananda S Naik.”
"Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know", an FTII student film, OFFICIALLY QUALIFIES for the 2025 Oscars in the Live Action Short Film Category!
— FTII (@FTIIOfficial) November 4, 2024
The film's poignant & profound narrative is centered on an elderly woman who steals the village rooster
(1/3)#FTII #Oscars #LaCinef pic.twitter.com/YNRdV6KwRg
Produced as part of final year exercise, film has won several Awards this year including La Cinef - Cannes 2024. The qualification comes after it won at Bengaluru International Short Film Festival
— FTII (@FTIIOfficial) November 4, 2024
(2/3)#Cannes2024 #BengaluruInternationalShortFilmFestival pic.twitter.com/9HREuH7a6M
Congratulations to entire student team Mr. Chidanand Naik (Direction), Suraj Thakur (Camera), Manoj V (Editing) and Abhishek Kadam (Sound).
— FTII (@FTIIOfficial) November 4, 2024
Read more: https://t.co/f5hr6YbVXq
(3/3) pic.twitter.com/By6FfuPqOa
“I have aspired to tell this story for as long as I can remember. Our goal was to recreate the experience of not merely hearing these stories but of genuinely living them—an experience I hope resonates with audiences around the globe,” said Chidananda in the press note.
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