A total of 127 local and international films are slated to compete at the 2024 Rivers State International Film Festival (RIFF).
The Director of RIFF, Kate Ezeigbo, revealed this during a press conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State on Thursday.
She said the 2024 festival, which is the second edition of the event has the theme, “The Shift”
Kate revealed that RIFF received 2,230 films from 172 countries, with the United States of America and India having the highest submissions.
According to her, the criteria for submission of films included cultural analysis, focus on gender inequality, sexuality, power dynamics, security and racism; issues on social justice at the national and regional levels.
She she revealed further that other criteria include stories addressing indigenous and cultural or racial groups that are usually marginalised such as the disabled. Also included among the determining criteria are stories that focus on a wide variety of other cultures and communities who make up the diversity of human life and films about technology, psychology, medicine and spirituality and their impact on human beliefs and practices.
As part of RIFF social responsibility to the creative industry, the director said this year’s edition of the film festival would feature free medical outreach, empowerment of the less privileged, Tour Rivers Initiative among others.
The medical outreach, according to her is to help address some of the health challenges of films practitioners.
“In recent times the sudden death of film practitioners in Nigeria became alarming and scary. We embarked on research and found out that because of the peculiarity of their job being very tedious and time-consuming they barely a have the time to do a routine check on their health,” she said.
Ezeigbo also expressed her gratitude to the many sponsors that are backing up this year’s event.
