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As legions of birds fall from New Delhi’s darkening skies, and the city smolders with social unrest, two brothers race to save a casualty of the turbulent times: the black kite, a majestic bird of prey essential to their city's ecosystem. April 12, 2023 at 10:15:00 PM AFS Cinemas All That Breathes India, USA, United Kingdom | Documentary 2022 | 94 min | Hindi TICKETS TICKETS Winner of Sundance Film Festival and Cannes Film Festival Awards for 'Best Documentary' (2022) In one of the world’s most populated cities, two brothers — Nadeem and Saud — devote their lives to the quixotic effort of protecting the black kite, a majestic bird of prey essential to the ecosystem of New Delhi that has been falling from the sky at alarming rates. Amid environmental toxicity and social unrest, the ‘kite brothers’ spend day and night caring for the creatures in their makeshift avian hospital. Director Shaunak Sen (CITIES OF SLEEP) explores the connection between the kites and the Muslim brothers who help them return to the skies, offering a mesmerizing chronicle of inter-species coexistence. Restoration Process About the Artist Shaunak Sen is a filmmaker and film scholar based in New Delhi, India. CITIES OF SLEEP (2016), his first feature-length documentary, was shown at various major international film festivals (including DOK Leipzig, DMZ Docs and the Taiwan International Documentary Festival, among others) and won 6 international awards. Shaunak received support from the IDFA Bertha Fund (2019), the Sundance Documentary Grant (2019), the Catapult Film Fund (2020), the Charles Wallace Grant, the Sarai CSDS Digital Media fellowship (2014), and the Films Division of India fellowship (2013). He was also a visiting scholar at Cambridge University (2018) and has published academic articles in Bioscope, Widescreen and other journals. Trailer For English subtitles, make sure to turn on the YouTube closed captions. Credits Crew: Director: Shaunak Sen Writer: Producer(s): Shaunak Sen Aman Mann Teddy Leifer Florrie Priest Film Editor: Charlotte Munch Bengtsen Featured Cast: Nadeem Shehzad Mohammad Saud Salik Rehman Thank you to our community partners for this screening! This program was made possible in part with a grant from Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Amber, a happiness agent, travels the Bhutanese Himalayas surveying people's happiness. On his remote mountain journey, he searches for fulfillment. April 13, 2025 at 3:30:00 PM AFS Cinema Virtual May 2 - 4, 2025 Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Indie Meme Special 10th Year Retrospective Showcase Agent of Happiness Bhutan, Hungary, USA, Czech Republic | Documentary 2024 | 94 mins | Dzongkha, Nepali, English Recorded Q&A with Director Arun Bhattarai TICKETS WATCH ONLINE Limited tickets available on site. Jury and Audience Choice Award for Best Documentary - IMFF 2025, Austin, USA Sundance Film Festival 2024 71st Sydney Film Festival 2024 MAMI Mumbai Film Festival 2024 How can you measure happiness? The country of Bhutan invented Gross National Happiness to do just that, and Amber is one of the agents who travels door to door to meet people and measure how happy they really are. He is still living with his elderly mother at the age of 40, but is nevertheless a hopeless romantic who dreams of finding love: a happiness agent who is in search of his own happiness. We embark with Amber on a cross-country road trip meeting citizens from all walks of life, reminding us of the fragility and beauty of our own happiness. No matter where we live. Film Heritage Foundation used the best surviving elements for the restoration – the original camera negative and the 35 mm print preserved at the NFDC – NFAI. Unfortunately, the sound negative was not available. We digitized the sound from the 35 mm print preserved at Film Heritage Foundation. The film elements were repaired by the Film Heritage Foundation conservators and the scanning was done in Prasad Lab in Chennai We found that due to the deterioration of the print, there were vertical green lines on many parts of the film. While the scanning and digital clean-up was done at Prasad under the supervision of L’Immagine Ritrovata in Bologna, the grading, sound restoration and mastering was done at the lab in Bologna. Both Shyam Benegal and Govind Nihalani, the cinematographer of the film, have been involved in the restoration of the film. Restoration Process Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation The screening will be preceded by a performance by Specific Thing. Specific Thing is the project of local musician Román. Sometimes he plays by himself and sometimes he plays with his snazzy band — he loves to do both! And the music? It draws from folk, punk, pop, latin, communism, animals, friends... He likes to keep it cartoony, quick, and catchy. The band released an album in 2025 called "Now Is Actually Not A Good Time". Find more at @specificthing on Instagram. Meet Specific Thing About the Artist Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Arun Bhattarai (director, cinematographer, co-producer, Bhutan) premiered his first feature-length documentary ‘The Next Guardian’ (co-directed by Dorottya Zurbó) - an intimate family story set in Bhutan - at IDFA in 2017. The film has been screened at more than 40 international festivals (True/False, Ambulante, SFFILM, MoMA DocFortnight etc.). Before becoming an independent filmmaker, he worked as a TV director at the Bhutan Broadcasting Service for 5 years. He graduated from the first edition of DocNomads Joint Master in documentary directing in 2014. His recent short documentary ‘Mountain Man’, about Bhutan’s only glaciologist won the best pitch prize at If/Then Global Short-Pitch at IDFA 2019 and is supported by the IDA-XRM Media incubator program. The film has been screened at IDFA, DOC NYC, Chicago IFF etc. His new film ‘Agent of Happiness’ is supported by the Sundance Film Institute, Catapult Film Fund and DMZ Docs Fund among others. The project was developed at the Points North Fellowship 2022, True False Rough Cut Retreat 2023 and Doc.incubator 2023. He established his own production company - Sound Pictures - dedicated to creative documentaries in 2015. He is one of the few independent documentary filmmakers in Bhutan. Dorottya Zurbó (co-director, Hungary) premiered her first feature-length documentary ‘The Next Guardian’ (co-directed by Arun Bhattarai), - an intimate family story set in Bhutan - at IDFA in 2017. Since then, it has been screened at more than 40 international festivals (True/False, San Francisco IDFF, MoMA DocFortnight etc.). Parallelly, she worked on her first directorial debut ‘Easy Lessons’, a feature-length documentary about a young Somalian refugee girl who tries to adapt to Hungary, premiered at the Locarno Film Festival Critics Week section in 2018. The film participated in more than 40 international festivals (HotDocs, Camden IDFF, Sarajevo IFF etc.) receiving awards such as the Hungarian Critics Award for Best Documentary in 2019. Her new film ‘Agent of Happiness’ is supported by the Sundance Film Institute, Catapult Film Fund and DMZ Docs Fund among others. The project was developed at the Points North Fellowship 2022, True False Rough Cut Retreat 2023 and Doc.incubator 2023. Besides filmmaking, she has been teaching at the prestigious DocNomads Joint Master program in Europe. Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Trailer Credits Crew: Director: Arun Bhattarai Dorottya Zurbó Writer: Producers: Noémi Veronika Szakonyi Máté Artur Vincze Arun Bhattarai Film Editor: Péter Sass Featured Cast: Amber Kumar Gurung Sarita Chettri Guna Raj Kuikel Hemlata Gurung Yangka Lhamo Wangmo Lhamo Dophu Dem Dechen Selden Tshering Lham Tshering Tashi Tshomo Karma Lhamo Kezang Yuden Karma Wangdi Restoration Effort Led By: Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, Director, Film Heritage Foundation Restoration Credit: Restored by Film Heritage Foundation in association with Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd.(Amul), the cinematographer Govind Nihalani and the director Shyam Benegal. Funding supported by Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd.(Amul) Thank you to our community partners for this screening!

Chaoren, an eleven year-old boy from a rural fishing village, fights to attend and excel in school, amidst the threats of poverty and displacement. Eventive Virtual May 2 - 4, 2025 Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Indie Meme Special 10th Year Retrospective Showcase International Premiere Eikhoigi Yum (Our Home) India | Narrative Feature 2022 | 86 mins | Manipuri ORIGINAL FILM PAGE WATCH ONLINE Limited tickets available on site. IMFF2023 - Audience Choice Award for the Best Narrative Feature at IMFF, Austin, USA 69th National Film Awards, Best Manipuri Film, India Best Director at Kazan International Muslim Festival, Russia FIPRESCI Award for the Best International Film at 27IFFK, Kerala/India Belonging to an isolated fishing community of the Loktak lake, Chaoren makes the best use of his exclusive existence by excelling in school. When the canoe he uses every day to attend school has to be sold off because of his father’s illness, his spirit is not dampened. He beats the long distance from his shanty floating hut to his school by swimming his way through. But when the Government issues an eviction notice demanding Chaoren’s family to leave their home, his dreams are left with an angst of a displaced person. Film Heritage Foundation used the best surviving elements for the restoration – the original camera negative and the 35 mm print preserved at the NFDC – NFAI. Unfortunately, the sound negative was not available. We digitized the sound from the 35 mm print preserved at Film Heritage Foundation. The film elements were repaired by the Film Heritage Foundation conservators and the scanning was done in Prasad Lab in Chennai We found that due to the deterioration of the print, there were vertical green lines on many parts of the film. While the scanning and digital clean-up was done at Prasad under the supervision of L’Immagine Ritrovata in Bologna, the grading, sound restoration and mastering was done at the lab in Bologna. Both Shyam Benegal and Govind Nihalani, the cinematographer of the film, have been involved in the restoration of the film. Restoration Process Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation The screening will be preceded by a performance by Specific Thing. Specific Thing is the project of local musician Román. Sometimes he plays by himself and sometimes he plays with his snazzy band — he loves to do both! And the music? It draws from folk, punk, pop, latin, communism, animals, friends... He likes to keep it cartoony, quick, and catchy. The band released an album in 2025 called "Now Is Actually Not A Good Time". Find more at @specificthing on Instagram. Meet Specific Thing About the Artist Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Romi Meitei is prolific filmmaker who has produced several box-office hits. Besides notching up commercial successes, his films have been screened in world-renowned film festivals including IFFI, MIFF, IFFK, and others. He is recipient of the prestigious FIPRESCI and NETPAC awards, and well as the 'Best Director' Prize at the Sailadhar Film Awards in Assam. His projects have also received several Manipur State Film Awards, including 'Best Feature Film', 'Art Director', 'Child Artiste', and 'Best Editor' for EIKHOIGI YUM at the MSFA 22 award ceremony. He is the Chairman of Mami Thawan Foundation, which aims to render services for the welfare of Manipur. Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Trailer Credits Crew: Director: Romi Meitei Writer: Romi Meitei Producers: Chingsubam Sheetal, Romi Meitei Film Editor: Johni Meitei Featured Cast: Restoration Effort Led By: Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, Director, Film Heritage Foundation Restoration Credit: Restored by Film Heritage Foundation in association with Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd.(Amul), the cinematographer Govind Nihalani and the director Shyam Benegal. Funding supported by Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd.(Amul) Thank you to our community partners for this screening!

The lives of three characters change when they unexpectedly have to confront and come to terms with their past. April 13, 2025 at 8:00:00 PM AFS Cinema Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Indie Meme Special 10th Year Retrospective Showcase Austin Premiere Puratawn (The Ancient) India | Narrative Feature 2024 | 100 mins | Bengali Recorded Q&A with writer-director Suman Ghosh TICKETS WATCH ONLINE Limited tickets available on site. Best Feature film- Washington DC South Asian Film Festival Best Actress (Sharmila Tagore)- Washington DC South Asian Film Festival Best Feature Film- Indian Film Festival at Houston Rittika returns to her ancestral house with her husband Rajeev to celebrate her mother’s 80th birthday. After reaching her house she finds that her mother is not the same as she had always believed her to be. Initially jolted with this realization, she slowly comes to terms with her condition and its irreversibility. Through her mother she comes to change her perspective on life and being. What seemed like an ostensibly routine and ritualistic event turns to a larger metaphysical enquiry into human existence and how the past dictates our current state. The film deftly braids in questions of failing memory, cherishing the past, a fear of obsolescence and reconciliation into a haunting, moving story that is at its heart about burying the ghosts of the past in order to make peace with what has happened so that one can move on. Film Heritage Foundation used the best surviving elements for the restoration – the original camera negative and the 35 mm print preserved at the NFDC – NFAI. Unfortunately, the sound negative was not available. We digitized the sound from the 35 mm print preserved at Film Heritage Foundation. The film elements were repaired by the Film Heritage Foundation conservators and the scanning was done in Prasad Lab in Chennai We found that due to the deterioration of the print, there were vertical green lines on many parts of the film. While the scanning and digital clean-up was done at Prasad under the supervision of L’Immagine Ritrovata in Bologna, the grading, sound restoration and mastering was done at the lab in Bologna. Both Shyam Benegal and Govind Nihalani, the cinematographer of the film, have been involved in the restoration of the film. Restoration Process Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation The screening will be preceded by a performance by Specific Thing. Specific Thing is the project of local musician Román. Sometimes he plays by himself and sometimes he plays with his snazzy band — he loves to do both! And the music? It draws from folk, punk, pop, latin, communism, animals, friends... He likes to keep it cartoony, quick, and catchy. The band released an album in 2025 called "Now Is Actually Not A Good Time". Find more at @specificthing on Instagram. Meet Specific Thing About the Artist Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Suman Ghosh is a National Award winning Indian filmmaker. He has made 9 feature films and 2 documentary films. He had his film training at Cornell University in New York. His first feature film "Footsteps" starring Soumitra Chatterjee and Nandita Das won 2 National Awards in 2008. It was shown at numerous film festivals including Vancouver, Karlovy Vary and IAAC New York. His second feature film "Dwando" also starring Soumitra Chatterjee, was a part of the Indian Panorama at IFFI Goa in 2009. His next feature film "Nobel Thief", starring the Indian megastar Mithun Chakraborty was world premiered at the Busan IFF and was an official selection at the BFI, London Film festival. The film received the "Best Indian Film"; award at the Bengaluru International Film Festival in 2012. His next feature film "Shyamal Uncle Turns off the Lights" has had a warm reception from critics and audiences all over the world. It was world premiered at the Busan Film Festival in South Korea and had its North American Premiere at the MoMA, NY. It won the "Outstanding International Feature Award"; at the ReelWorld Film festival in Toronto. It is being distributed in North America by Global Film Initiative. His next feature film "Kadambari" starring Konkona Sen Sharma and Parambrata Chatterjee. It is based on the life of Rabindranath Tagore and his controversial relationship with his sister-in-law Kadambari Devi. It was screened at several film festivals worldwide and received the Best Feature Film Award and the Best Actress for Konkona Sen Sharma at the Washington DC South Asian Film Festival in 2015. His next film “Peace Haven” world premiered at Busan IFF and was an official selection at MAMI and NYIFF. His debut Hindi feature film is titled “Aadhaar” which World premiered at the Busan IFF and is awaiting an all India release later this year. In 2023 he made the documentary on legendary film director and actress Aparna Sen titled “Parama: A Journey with Aparna Sen” which is scheduled to begin its festival journey later this year. In 2023 his film "Kabuliwala"was a major box office success in Bengal and also been to several top film festivals of the world including Shanghai Film Festival and Washington DC International Film Festival. His latest film "Puratawn" (The Ancient) is releasing in India on the 11th of April. Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Trailer Credits Crew: Director: Suman Ghosh Writer: Suman Ghosh Producers: Rituparna Sengupta Film Editor: Aditya Vikram Sengupta Featured Cast: Sharmila Tagore Rituparna Sengupta Indraneil Sengupta Restoration Effort Led By: Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, Director, Film Heritage Foundation Restoration Credit: Restored by Film Heritage Foundation in association with Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd.(Amul), the cinematographer Govind Nihalani and the director Shyam Benegal. Funding supported by Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd.(Amul) Thank you to our community partners for this screening!

An imaginative kid in a water scarce slum realizes a superpower and decides to help his struggling mother to make her life easy. Eventive Virtual May 2 - 4, 2025 Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Indie Meme Special 10th Year Retrospective Showcase United States Premiere Waterman India | Short 2023 | 24 mins | Marathi, Kannada TICKETS WATCH ONLINE Limited tickets available on site. 16th IDSFFK - Best Film Award in Short Fiction Category 14th Bengaluru International Short Film Festival 2024 - 1st Runner Up in Kannada category In a low-income neighborhood in Pune, 'Kitty', an eight-year-old boy, lives with his mother 'Saroja' amidst severe water shortages. During Kitty's summer vacation, Kitty fills his days playing with his imaginary friend while Saroja struggles to manage household tasks and water collection alone, due to her husband's absence. Their neighbor Gullamma suggests Kitty should grow-up quickly to help his mother. Meantime Kitty becomes intrigued after encountering a stiltwalker and playing with Gullamma's son, Dasthgir. He convinces Dasthgir to get him a pair of stilts. Later, Kitty discovers that whenever he walks on stilts, all the taps around him start running with water. When he shares this news with other people, he gets laughed at. His own mother gives him a scolding. Angered, Kitty runs away but is found and brought back home by Dasthgir. Saroja reassures Kitty that they will use his ability to bring water to the neighborhood. Soon after, in the middle of the night, stilts emerge from Saroja's house, and wherever Kitty's shadow passes, taps and containers start running with water, flooding the lanes and roads. Kitty continues to walk as his stilts echoes through the neighborhood. Film Heritage Foundation used the best surviving elements for the restoration – the original camera negative and the 35 mm print preserved at the NFDC – NFAI. Unfortunately, the sound negative was not available. We digitized the sound from the 35 mm print preserved at Film Heritage Foundation. The film elements were repaired by the Film Heritage Foundation conservators and the scanning was done in Prasad Lab in Chennai We found that due to the deterioration of the print, there were vertical green lines on many parts of the film. While the scanning and digital clean-up was done at Prasad under the supervision of L’Immagine Ritrovata in Bologna, the grading, sound restoration and mastering was done at the lab in Bologna. Both Shyam Benegal and Govind Nihalani, the cinematographer of the film, have been involved in the restoration of the film. Restoration Process Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation The screening will be preceded by a performance by Specific Thing. Specific Thing is the project of local musician Román. Sometimes he plays by himself and sometimes he plays with his snazzy band — he loves to do both! And the music? It draws from folk, punk, pop, latin, communism, animals, friends... He likes to keep it cartoony, quick, and catchy. The band released an album in 2025 called "Now Is Actually Not A Good Time". Find more at @specificthing on Instagram. Meet Specific Thing About the Artist Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Vishwas K is alumni of FTII, and he graduated in Direction and Screenplay Writing. His diploma film Waterman won the Best Short film award at the 16th IDSFFK in July 2024, and first runner up in Kannada competition at the 14th Bengaluru International Short Film Festival in Aug 2024. The film has also been screened in March 2025 at Bengaluru International Film Festival organized by Govt of Karnataka. Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Trailer Credits Crew: Director: Vishwas K Writer: Vishwas K Producers: Film & Television Institute of India Film Editor: Gokul Gopinathan Featured Cast: Kartik Pujari Shwetha Rani H K Jahida M A Sanju Chavann Pruthviraj Lodga Restoration Effort Led By: Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, Director, Film Heritage Foundation Restoration Credit: Restored by Film Heritage Foundation in association with Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd.(Amul), the cinematographer Govind Nihalani and the director Shyam Benegal. Funding supported by Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd.(Amul) Thank you to our community partners for this screening!

Former police officer Thakur Baldev Singh enlists the aid of two contrasting but devoted friends and small-time rogues – the charismatic Veeru and the introspective Jai – to apprehend the notorious dacoit Gabbar Singh, who terrorizes the village of Ramgarh. March 1, 2026 at 8:30:00 PM AFS Cinema Sholay India | Narrative Feature 1975 | 204 mins | Hindi LIVE Q&A with Shehzad Sippy following the screening TICKETS TICKETS Former police officer Thakur Baldev Singh enlists the aid of two contrasting but devoted friends and small-time rogues – the charismatic Veeru and the introspective Jai – to apprehend the notorious dacoit Gabbar Singh, who terrorizes the village of Ramgarh. The film delves into the turbulent history between Thakur and Gabbar, marked by a brutal encounter where Gabbar, having escaped imprisonment, massacred Thakur's family and inflicted a severe injury upon him. Amidst the unfolding drama, romantic subplots emerge, as Jai finds affection with Thakur's widowed daughter-in-law, Radha, and Veeru is captivated by Basanti, the spirited local cart driver. Following a series of intense confrontations, Gabbar is ultimately subdued by Jai and Veeru, leading to a dramatic and poignant climax where Thakur delivers him to justice. The stark, dramatic landscape of Ramanagara in South India, meticulously transformed into the village of Ramgarh, provided a breathtaking backdrop for the film's spectacular cinematography. Despite a modest initial reception, the film, which took two and a half years to produce and boasts a runtime exceeding three hours, achieved unprecedented success, dominating the national box office for 19 years. Its dialogues have achieved legendary status, remaining instantly recognizable and frequently quoted by audiences even half a century after its initial release, a testament to Sholay's enduring cultural impact. Photo courtesy: Sippy Films Restoration Process The restoration proved to be a complex endeavor, spanning nearly three years. The primary challenge lay in the condition of the original camera negative, which was severely deteriorated and thus unsuitable for the restoration. Consequently, the restoration predominantly utilized the interpositives located in London and Mumbai. Fortuitously, the colour reversal intermediate discovered in London remarkably contained the original ending and two previously deleted scenes. Film Heritage Foundation had also successfully acquired the original Arri 2C camera instrumental in the filming of ‘Sholay’. Photo courtesy: Sippy Films Given the absence of 70mm prints, Film Heritage Foundation consulted with veteran cinematographer Kamlakar Rao, who had collaborated on ‘Sholay’ with the film's cinematographer, Dwarka Divecha. Rao recounted Divecha's technique of employing a ground glass in front of the camera lens, upon which Rao made markings to delineate the margins of the 70mm frame. This invaluable insight guided our decision to adopt a 2.2:1 aspect ratio for the restored film. Adding to Film Heritage Foundation’s good fortune, the original magnetic sound elements were located at the Sippy Films office. The sound restoration was meticulously conducted utilizing both the original sound negative and these magnetic elements. The final restored version is a culmination of efforts based on two interpositives and two colour reversal intermediates, incorporating the original ending and the deleted scenes, thereby reviving the director's authentic vision for the film. About the Artist Lauded as a cinematic masterpiece, Ramesh Sippy's 1975 magnum opus, Sholay, transcends mere entertainment to stand as a cultural touchstone in Indian filmmaking. Its critical acclaim is underscored by its designation as the greatest Indian film in a 2002 British Film Institute poll and its recognition as ‘Film Of The Millennium’ by BBC India in 1999. This monumental production, a true blockbuster, commenced its historic run at Mumbai's Minerva cinema, captivating audiences for an unprecedented five consecutive years. ----- Shehzad Sippy is the managing director of Sippy Films, an Indian film production studio, founded by his grandfather G.P. Sippy in 1951. Having recently acquired the company from his family, Shehzad is currently focused on developing and producing new content for a global audience. Shehzad started his career in private equity with a focus on investing and facilitating ownership transition in financial services companies. Shehzad received his B.S. in finance from the University of North Texas and his MBA from Columbia Business School. Photo courtesy: Sippy Films Trailer For English subtitles, make sure to turn on the YouTube closed captions. Credits Crew: Director: Ramesh Sippy Writer: Salim-Javed Producer(s): G. P. Sippy Film Editor: M. S. Shinde Featured Cast: Dharmendra Sanjeev Kumar Hema Malini Amitabh Bachchan Jaya Bhaduri Amjad Khan A. K. Hangal Satyen Kappu Iftekhar Leela Mishra Vikas Anand Mac Mohan Keshto Mukherjee Sachin Master Alankar Viju Khote Restoration Effort Led By: Film Heritage Foundation and Sippy Films Pvt. Ltd. Thank you to our community partners for this screening! This program was made possible in part with a grant from Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Michael is a young police officer assigned to infiltrate a Tamil separatist organization in order to bring down one of its top financiers, but as he delves into this community, he gradually begins to identify with those he is supposed to destroy. April 13, 2025 at 5:45:00 PM AFS Cinema United States Premiere Little Jaffna France | Narrative Feature 2024 | 100 mins | French, Tamil Recorded Q&A with writer-director Lawrence Valin TICKETS TICKETS Jury Award for Best Narrative Feature - IMFF 2025, Austin, USA The district of 'Little Jaffna' in Paris is the heart of a vibrant Tamil community, where Michael, a young police officer, is assigned to infiltrate a criminal group known for extortion and money laundering for the benefit of separatist rebels in Sri-Lanka. But as he works his way deeper into the heart of the organization, his loyalty will be tested, in a relentless pursuit against one of Paris' most hidden and powerful gangs. Restoration Process About the Artist Lawrence Valin grew up in Paris. In 2017, he graduated from La Fémis with the La Résidence program. In 2020, his medium-length film "The Loyal Man" was selected for the Clermont-Ferrand Festival, where he received the Best Actor Award and was nominated for the César Award for Best Short Film 2021. His first feature film, "Little Jaffna," won the Gan Foundation Award and received the Grand Prix des Prix du Scénario 2023. Trailer For English subtitles, make sure to turn on the YouTube closed captions. Credits Crew: Director: Lawrence Valin Writer: Lawrence Valin Marlène Poste Malysone Bovorasmy Gaëlle Macé Arthur Beaupère Yacine Badday Producer(s): Simon Bleuzé Marc Bordure Jérôme Hilal Lawrence Valin Film Editor: Anaïs Manuelli In Collaboration With Guerric Catala Featured Cast: Lawrence Valin Puviraj Raveendran Vela Ramamoorthy Radikaa Sarathkumar Marilou Aussilloux Thank you to our community partners for this screening! This program was made possible in part with a grant from Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

In a small town of 1960's India, where cinema is forbidden for women, a 14-year-old embarks on a quest to watch her first film. April 12, 2025 at 8:15:00 PM AFS Cinema Virtual May 2 - 4, 2025 Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Indie Meme Special 10th Year Retrospective Showcase Texas Premiere The First Film India | Short 2023 | 19 mins | Hindi Followed by the film And, Towards Happy Alleys . TICKETS WATCH ONLINE Limited tickets available on site. Audience Choice Award for Best Short - IMFF 2025, Austin, USA Festival de Cortos de Bogotá - BOGOSHORTS Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival South Asian Film Festival of Montréal – Montréal In a small town in 1960s India, deep-rooted in orthodox traditions, cinema is believed to corrupt young minds, and women are forbidden to watch films. Devi, a 14-year-old girl, is obsessed with films and dreams of watching one in a theater. Her neighbor, Mohan, a 14-year-old mute cinephile boy, narrates stories from his favorite films to her at night. When an unforeseen incident shakes their world, Devi has one last chance to pursue her dream. The First Film celebrates friendship, courage, and the magic of cinema. Film Heritage Foundation used the best surviving elements for the restoration – the original camera negative and the 35 mm print preserved at the NFDC – NFAI. Unfortunately, the sound negative was not available. We digitized the sound from the 35 mm print preserved at Film Heritage Foundation. The film elements were repaired by the Film Heritage Foundation conservators and the scanning was done in Prasad Lab in Chennai We found that due to the deterioration of the print, there were vertical green lines on many parts of the film. While the scanning and digital clean-up was done at Prasad under the supervision of L’Immagine Ritrovata in Bologna, the grading, sound restoration and mastering was done at the lab in Bologna. Both Shyam Benegal and Govind Nihalani, the cinematographer of the film, have been involved in the restoration of the film. Restoration Process Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation The screening will be preceded by a performance by Specific Thing. Specific Thing is the project of local musician Román. Sometimes he plays by himself and sometimes he plays with his snazzy band — he loves to do both! And the music? It draws from folk, punk, pop, latin, communism, animals, friends... He likes to keep it cartoony, quick, and catchy. The band released an album in 2025 called "Now Is Actually Not A Good Time". Find more at @specificthing on Instagram. Meet Specific Thing About the Artist Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Piyush Thakur is an alumnus of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII). His student short film The Real Millionaire was nominated for the International Grand Prix at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival and traveled globally to more than 75 film festivals, winning multiple awards. He was selected from India for the International Student Film Camp in Serbia. After FTII, he worked as an assistant director to Sanjay Leela Bhansali on the film Bajirao Mastani. He was also selected for the Kyoto Filmmakers Lab in Japan and Platform Busan at the Busan International Film Festival. His latest short film, The First Film, had its world premiere at the Festival de Cortos de Bogotá - BOGOSHORTS in Colombia and was recognized as a 'Short Film Market Pick' by the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival and 'Film Bazaar Recommends' by NFDC Doc Film Bazaar. It won The German Star of India – Audience Award at the Indian Film Festival of Stuttgart and Best Short Narrative International Award at the Nepal Human Rights International Film Festival. Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation Trailer Credits Crew: Director: Piyush Thakur Writer: Piyush Thakur Deepak Lohana Producers: Piyush Thakur Film Editor: Piyush Thakur Featured Cast: Priyanka Beriya Vasudev Nishad Tony Chawada Usha Athaley Yuvraj Singh Shibanee Mukherjee Rajveer Mukherjee Ajay Athaley Restoration Effort Led By: Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, Director, Film Heritage Foundation Restoration Credit: Restored by Film Heritage Foundation in association with Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd.(Amul), the cinematographer Govind Nihalani and the director Shyam Benegal. Funding supported by Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd.(Amul) Thank you to our community partners for this screening!

An indigenous/tribal woman begins interacting with AI while working at a data centre in the remote Indian province of Jharkhand. August 10, 2025 at 7:30:00 PM AFS Cinema Humans in the Loop India | Narrative Feature 2024 | 74 | Hindi, Kurukh Virtual Q&A with director Aranya Sahay TICKETS TICKETS Best Film Winner, FIPRESCI Award Best Debut Film, New York Indian Film Festival 2025 Best Feature Grand Jury Prize, IFFLA 20225 Inspired by the real phenomenon of 'data labelling' in indigenous regions across India, 'Humans In The Loop' follows Nehma, an indigenous woman who, after divorcing her Hindu husband, returns to her ancestral village with her children—Dhaanu & Guntu. To support her family, Nehma takes an unusual job—'data labelling,' tagging images to help algorithms distinguish objects. Major AI firms outsource this to remote regions of India, where labor is cheap. At the centre, a common saying "AI is like a child", resonates with Nehma. Having grown up believing in life, even in inanimate objects, she connects to the metaphor. She approaches her work with care of a parent teaching their child. As Nehma immerses herself in work, her bond with Dhaanu deteriorates. Struggling with village life, Dhaanu contemplates running away while Nehma begins to see AI as a surrogate child, hoping it will understand her perspective. But as AI mirrors human biases, Nehma questions if it can ever truly see through her indigenous lens. Restoration Process About the Artist Aranya is an Indian filmmaker based out of Mumbai. He studied Direction at FTII, Pune. He went on to assist Imtiaz Ali and Patrick Graham as an Associate Director & Director's Assistant. He has directed five short films, of which 'Songs for Babasaheb' and 'Chait' have screened at Mumbai International Film Festival, Signs Film Festival, and Jaffna Film Festival. In 2021, his film 'Saaya' was selected as a 'Film Bazaar Recommends' project. He was a participant and grant winner in the Museum of Imagined Futures Impact Fellowship Programme in 2023. Trailer For English subtitles, make sure to turn on the YouTube closed captions. Credits Crew: Director: Aranya Sahay Writer: Aranya Sahay Producer(s): Storiculture SAUV Films Mathivanan Rajendran Sarabhi Ravichandran Shilpa Kumar Film Editor: Swaroop Reghu Aranya Sahay Featured Cast: Sonal Madhushankar Ridhima Singh Geeta Guha Anurag Lugun Monika Aranya Sahay Thank you to our community partners for this screening! This program was made possible in part with a grant from Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Two shepherds begin to hear a mysterious sound in the Himalayas, but their town is skeptical of their concern. Eventive Virtual May 3 - May 5, 2024 Last Days of Summer India | Short 2023 | 15 mins | Boti TICKETS TICKETS Official Selection of the Rotterdam International Film Festival (IFFR), INTERFILM Berlin, & the Dharamshala International Film Festival A recurring mysterious sound from Himalaya mountains is only heard by two curious young shepherds. Unable to convince the villagers of the worrying nature of such sound, they journey into the unknown to unravel the mystery. Restoration Process About the Artist Born in 1990, Stenzin Tankong is a Film & Television graduate from the Symbiosis Centre of Media and Communication. He’s a director and scriptwriter from Ladakh. He has been working on motion pictures for about five years now, and his one aim is to bring the stories of his people and culture onto the world platform. LAST DAYS OF SUMMER is his first professional film. Trailer For English subtitles, make sure to turn on the YouTube closed captions. Credits Crew: Director: Stenzin Tankong Writer: Jigmet Wangchuk Producer(s): Flore Cavigneaux, Jérôme Blesson Stenzin Tankong, Urgain Phunts Film Editor: Featured Cast: Tsewang Chodak, Stanzin Thupstan , Padma Angmo Thank you to our community partners for this screening! This program was made possible in part with a grant from Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

When a mysterious gatecrasher appears at their wedding, Madhav and Sufi are forced to face past secrets and reflect on what makes a family. Filmocracy Virtual April 28 - May 1, 2023 Queer Parivaar India | Short 2021 | 27 mins | English, Bengali TICKETS TICKETS Restoration Process About the Artist Shiva Raichandani is a multidisciplinary non-binary artist whose works harness the power of storytelling to create inclusive spaces for positive gender-expansive representation in media. Shiva is a screenwriter, director, and producer for film and TV. As an awardee of the inaugural Netflix Documentary Talent Fund, they directed a short film called PEACH PARADISE, which premiered on TikTok’s first-ever live film showcase. Shiva’s independent short QUEER PARIVAAR won the prestigious BAFTA-qualifying Iris Prize ‘Best British Short’ award, making it available for broadcast and streaming on Channel 4. Trailer For English subtitles, make sure to turn on the YouTube closed captions. Credits Crew: Director: Shiva Raichandani Writer: Shiva Raichandani Producer(s): Film Editor: Featured Cast: Shiva Raichandani, Taru Devani, Asifa Lahore Thank you to our community partners for this screening! This program was made possible in part with a grant from Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

A mother and son communicate through Jugalbandi (a conversation through art), and come to accept each other through dance and music. Eventive Virtual May 3 - May 5, 2024 Kalã Canada | Short 2023 | 12 mins | English TICKETS TICKETS Kalã is a film about a mother coming to terms with her only son's sexuality through music, dance, and the help of a healing beautician. It is a journey of self-acceptance for a Pakistani mother. The lead is played by Pakistan's superstar actress Bushra Ansari. Kalã is every South Asian mothers warm embrace of their queer child. Restoration Process About the Artist Arshad Khan is a Montreal-based filmmaker. Khan’s internationally acclaimed, award-winning autobiographical documentary Abu (2017) has played at film festivals around the world and won the INSPIRIT Foundation grant for 2018/19. Abu documents his rocky relationship with his father after Khan came out as a gay man. It also chronicles the wider story of young gay people fighting homophobia and invisibility within South Asian and Muslim cultures. Khan is developing two fiction features, FARA and ANYONE BUT HIM about the tribulations of second generation immigrants to Canada. Trailer For English subtitles, make sure to turn on the YouTube closed captions. Credits Crew: Director: Arshad Khan Writer: Arshad Khan Producer(s): Bobby Bajaj, Arshad Khan Film Editor: Featured Cast: Bushra Ansari Thank you to our community partners for this screening! This program was made possible in part with a grant from Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.