KOCHI: Script 2012 that concluded last week saw some extremely well-made as well poignant films screened. But what was interesting was that the female contestants outclassed the men in the students' category.Among those who shined the brightest was Reema Sengupta, a 21-year-old aspiring writer and director from Mumbai. The youngster who is currently pursuing her degree in contemporary media practice from the University of Westminister, London, won a lot of praise for her film, ‘Tigers - They are all Dead’ that competed in the students’ category. The film, a political satire portrays a fictitious but imminent future where the last living tiger too is dead.Reactions of Mumbaikars are taken. The protagonist of the film is a three-year-old child who does all he can to bring back his favourite animal back on earth. “My film is a critique on our society. I support Gandhi’s view ‘A nation is judged by how they treat their animals’. I was really angry about the social injustice and callousness shown towards tigers," she says.However, she didn't want to merely show righteous indignation and do nothing about the issue. "I felt I should voice my opinion. Being a media student, I have the platform and opportunity for it," she says.She was meticulous in choosing her crew. Even though she shot the film within four days at twelve locations, she had a wonderful experience working with her team. Reema is passionate about films that impact society in a positive way and looks upon online funding as a new and useful medium. The two sites she mentions in this regard are indiegogo.com and kickstarter.com.As her next step she is planning on directing a science fiction project. She also likes to act and has done theatre. “I am really happy with the response to my film in Kerala. There's an intellectual audience here who can understand the nuances and symbolism used…it’s great inspiration for me…,” Reema says. Reema bagged the 1st prize in the students’ category in Script 2012. She is next heading to the Jaipur Film Festival where her film has been selected as an entry. The other two who won accolades at the festival were Divya Cowasji and Shilpi Gulati, the duo-directors of ‘Inside Out’.Both students of Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, the film was made as part of their course ‘Media Culture Studies'. ‘Inside Out talks about the experience of women in public spaces in a metropolitan city like Mumbai. “Unlike men, a woman’s access to public space is limited and largely relegated to the sphere of purposefulness. This is what we are trying to portray through this film," says Shilpi. Their film bagged the Special Jury Award in Script 2012.
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