The Tri-Continental film festival, a showcase of human rights films from Latin America, Asia and Africa, begun in Delhi today. This is the fourth time this festival is being organized and is going to be inaugurated by Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit. The screenings would take place at India Habitat Centre and the Alliance Francaise in Delhi. The film fest is organized by Breakthrough, an international human rights organization.

There are 23 documentaries, of which three are from India. The festival starts with an Iranian film “It’s always late for freedom,” which talks about the social problem of drugs. Directed by Mehrdad Oskouei, the film also addresses issues like poverty and divorce. A unique feature of this film festival is the ‘traveling screen,’ which means that the screenings will be held in several parts of the country.

The schedule for the screening is:
Delhi: January 18 to January 21
Mumbai: January 25 to January 27
Bangalore: February 1 to February 3
Kolkata: February 8 to February 10

From among the films screened, one would be selected for The Jury Prize for Best Film. The jury members include renowned filmmakers, film critics and scholars. Through the remainder of the year, the films from the festival would be screened at various universities, cultural institutions and other interested groups.

The film festival was first held in Argentina in 2002. "With every passing year we have attempted to showcase diverse images of war, triumph, poverty, exploitation, whispers from the margins and strident voices of the unheard,” said Alika Khosla, associate director of Breakthrough.