NEW DELHI: Over 25 films from Germany, Nepal and India are to be screened in the First Frame 2007 international students’ film festival being held on February 6 and 7 in the capital.

Organised by the Madhubala Institute of Communication and Electronic Media (MBICEM), the Festival will feature documentary, fiction and short films. Awards will be presented for best Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Film, and a special award to be presented by the co-sponsor UNITECH.

First Frame 2007 has gone global this year and the media partner for the event is SAHARA NCR. The event has been co-sponsored by UNITECH and is supported by Bajaj Hindustan and other corporate organizations.

Former Film and Television Institute of India Director Mr. Mohan Agashe, senior film critic and indiantelevision.com Consulting Editor Mr. B B Nagpal, and KATHA Centre for Film Studies Director Mr. Prabodh Parikh are among the jury for the Festival. The final entries were shortlisted from those received from Germany, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Canada, Nepal and India by a four-member panel comprising renowned poet Kailash Bajpai and filmmakers Pankaj Singh, Ajay Bedi, and Raza Haider.

Many of the entries received have been to prestigious festivals including the Mumbai International Film Festival, Berlin Asia Pacific Film Festival, Asian Film Festival (Singapore), Indian Social Forum 3-Screen Festival, and the first Wordless International Short Film Festival.

The Film Festival opens on February 6, and screenings are open to all. Ancillary activities include workshops like Reality Films by renowned documentary filmmaker from Magic Lantern Foundation, Delhi, Gargi Sen, and Gone in 30 seconds, conducted by Advertising professional Azaz Ahmed, Creative Head, Publisis India. These workshops can be attended by registration and payment of nominal fee.

Started in 1996, MBICEM is a media institute affiliated to Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, imparting education in Print Media, Radio, Television, Advertising and Video Production. The institute aims to equip the students with professional skills to meet the requirements of the corporate media world.

First Frame in its very first edition in 2003 screened both fictional and documentary films. The participation of students was from three media colleges of Delhi; MBICEM, IP College for Women and Sri Aurobindo Institute of Mass Communication. Mrs. Aruna Vasudev, Editor, Cinemaya, was the guest of Honor for the event. The 2004 edition was bigger, inviting participation from institutes at national level like MCRC, St.Xavier's College Mumbai, YMCA and FTII.