Anirban Datta

Anirban Datta left pursuing Physics after graduation to become a full-time screenwriter.

In this period, he worked for several regional and national projects as a professional script & screenwriter.

He did his PG Diploma in Cinema from Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute (SRFTI), Kolkata in Direction and Screenplay Writing (2001-2004). Here is my Nocturne (2004) His institute documentary film was premiered in Indian panorama, IFFI Goa, 2005 and travelled to major Indian festival. it was also exhibited at Helsinki City Art Museum on Indian Pop Art & Culture, 2006; and at ISFVF, Beijing Film Academy 2006.

Tetris (2006), his Diploma film premiered at Festival de Cannes’06 in Cinefondation competition and travelled to Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival, 2006, ISFVF, Beijing Film Academy 2006, IFFK, Trivadrum 2006 and in IFF Rotterdam as part of a retrospective of Indian student films.

After graduating from SRFTI he directed and produced several commissioned or internationally co-produced documentaries for international broadcasters of the likes of NHK Japan, YLE Finland, VPRO Netherlands, and Doordarshan, India. The projects were pitched at IDFA Forum, Docedge Asian forum Kolkata, Changing India – Steps for the Future International Pitching Workshop, Goa; received important grants & funds like Jan Vrijman Fund (production) given by IDFA (received twice), Sundance Documentary Fund, PSBT-Films Division Fellowship Grant, PSBT-Doordarshan Fellowship Grant. The Films travelled over two hundred international festivals, received numerous national and international awards and recognitions including three Rajat Kamal – Indian National Film Awards. Bhultir Khero / Chronicle of an Amnesiac (2007) a film commissioned by NHK Japan (TV2); Nokia Award for Best Developed Project, Docedge’ Kolkata’05; Rajat Kamal (Spacial Jury Award), 55th Indian National Film Awards,’09; Nominated for Ogawa Shinsuke Prize, YDIFF’09, Yamagata, Japan; John Abraham National Award for Best Documentary, SIGNS’07 Trivandrum, in for motion (2008) a co-production with Steps India, YLE (Finland) and Jan Vrijman Fund; World Premier, IDFA 2008, Amsterdam, (in competition),Rajat Kamal (Best Film on Environment) 57th National Film Awards’09; Inaugural film (Non feature), Indian Panorama, IFFI’09, Goa, India; IDPA Silver Award for Best Documentary’08, Mumbai; Special Mention Jury Award, 2nd IDSFFK, Trivandrum; SIGNS’09, Trivandrum; EcoFilms’09 Rhodos, Greece; Asiatica Filmmediale’09, Rome; 54th Dok-Leipzig 2011. BOM/ One Day Ahead of Democracy (2011): World Premier, IDFA 2011, Amsterdam; Rajat Kamal, 59th National Film Awards 2011; Grand Prize, Pärnu International Documentary and Anthropology Film Festival 2012; Special Mention Jury Award, MIFF’12, Mumbai, India; John Abraham National Award, Cinema of Resistance, SIGNS’12 Trivandrum, India; Wasted (2012): A PSBT-Films Division Fellowship Film; Special Jury Award, John Abraham National Award, *SIGNS’12; Inaugural film, Shahernama Film Festival’14, Mumbai; Kochi-Muziris Biennale 2014-15, Artist’s Cinema section; Bangladesh Short Film Festival, Dhaka’12; Astra Film Festival’13, Romania; Open Frame’14, Delhi; Urban Lens’14 Bangalore; VIBGYOR International film festival 2015, Trissur, India. Kalikshetra (52min, doc, HD 2018)Writer/Director: A PSBT-Doordarshan Fellowship Film for telecast in Doordarshan; Closing Film, Kolkata Peoples Film Festival 2018; SIGNS2019 Kochi India; Bangladesh Sort & Documentary Film Festival Dhaka 2019; Urban Lens Bangalore 2018; Open Frame Delhi 2019.

How film practice that can create an active dialogue with academic possibilities on a formal and pedagogic level is a subject of Anirban’s passion & preoccupation. A two-way dialogue can create enriched outcomes both for pedagogy as well as practice. He held faculty position at Film Direction & Screenplay Dept., Film & Television Institute of India (FTII) Pune as Associate Professor (2019-20), and Asst. Professor (2012-13). He had a brief stint as Associate Professor at Script writing and Direction Dept., K R Narayanan National Institute for Visual Science & Arts, Kerala in 2017. He has conducted filmmaking workshops for various institutes and universities of repute like National Institute of Design (NID) Ahmedabad,Ashoka University (Young India Fellowship Program),Sri Aurobindo Centre for Art and Communication (SACAC) Creative Documentary Program, Maharashtra Institute of Technology (documentary Workshop), Jindal Global University to name a few. He also conducted country’s first ever workshop on filmmaking with Smartphones for SKIFT (a Skill india initiative of FTII Pune) supported by the Indian Army at Baramulla, J&K. He was invited as international mentor for Dhaka Doclab at Rajshahi, Bangladesh. He has served as a jury member, non-feature films section, for 56th Indian National Film Awards 2008; member of Jury committee, National Students Film Award NSFA, FTII Pune 2012; Wular Lake International Short Film Festival Baramulla J & K India for years 2018 and 2019; 13th IIUSFF, Dhaka University.