Annapurna StudiosPrivate Limited today announced the launch of the International Institute ofFilm & Media (ISFM) in Hyderabad, the onlyprivate, non-profit film and media institute in India. The institute has the dual mission ofproviding world-class education to aspiring students and offering highlytrained talent to the entire media industry. The launch event was marked by thepresence of Mr. Akkineni Nageswara Rao, veteran actor Nagarjuna and instituteCEO, Mr. Kurt Inderbitzin who jointly unveiled the logo of the institute.
Located in the premises of Annapurna Studios, the International School of Film and Media will provide a world-class learning experience by combining government-recognized degrees with the best practices of international higher education. Theinstitute will also associate with multiple international film schools,establishing student and faculty exchange programs and other internationalopportunities for aspiring students
Privately managed, non-profit filminstitute
· Awards recognized Degrees
· Offers students cutting-edge technology
· Modelled after the best higher education institutes in the world
· Rivals the best film and media programs
· Largest campus of any film school in Asia: 22 acres.
ISFM is built ona pillar of state-of-the-art infrastructure and technology, aiming to addressvery relevant concerns raised by the media industry today. These concernsinclude, according to FICCI Frames 2008, a shortage of quality institutionsoffering technical training in media and resulting in a huge “shortage ofskilled media professionals.” These concerns also include, according to theNational Skill Development Corporation, that the Indian media and entertainmentindustry will require an additional 3 million trained staff over the nextdecade.
CEO KurtInderbitzin summed up the issue: “India should be a globaldestination for media content production. But unfortunately it is not.. Despite the fact that India is developing world-class studio facilitiesall over the country; despite the fact that labour here is still relativelycheap; despite the fact that the country has extraordinary locations forshooting; despite all of that, relatively little international media is createdin India. And we believe the majorreason for this is the accurate perception that there is a lack of properlytrained people here in media.”.Annapurna Studios, one of South India’s leadingfilm production companies and studios, has taken a giant step towards tacklingthese problems by way of creating access to a 22 acre campus, with 10 soundstages, permanent sets and cutting-edge post production facilities for aspiringstudents at the International School of Film &Media. The institute is affiliating with the world’s best media technologycompanies to provide students with 24 hour access to the latest computers andfilmmaking software and is backed by some of south India’s biggest names in filmmaking,acting, animation and visual effects. These relationships will provide studentswith unparalleled opportunities for internships and placements.
As India’s firstprivate, non-profit film institute, ISFM will strive to help the film and mediaindustry throughout the country byputting students’ quality of education over profits and by encouraging mediacompanies to be involved with the school by offering training input,facilities, equipment and/or donations. Also, as part of the institute’scommitment to giving back to the community, all full-time students will beinvolved in community service, helping other charitable organisations tounderstand and utilise media better.
The institute isalso establishing an endowment fund, managed by an independent board ofdirectors, to provide scholarships to talented students from underprivilegedbackgrounds.
ISFM is built ona model of openness and transparency, with publicly available data postedonline for all to see, and staff and faculty meetings open to the public.
Mr. N AkkineniNageswara Rao, Founder, Annapurna Studios, commented at the event that “Sincetime in memorial, the Akkineni family has made a mark in a variety of ventures.There has always been a discussion within the family on ways to give back tothe industry and community and the country. We strongly felt that the best wayto give back was through education, and specifically, education in media.Hence, a decision was made to develop a non-profit film school to train thenext generation of media professionals.”
CEO Kurt Inderbitzin added: “The mediaindustry in Indiahas not historically embraced professional training. Now, as competition increases in Indiafromdomestic and international media sources, there is a growing realization thatfor Indian media to survive and prosper long into the future, it must havewell-educated professionals to lead the way. And that is what we will beproviding at theInternational School of Film &Media.”
Courses:
Admissions openfrom 1st July for short courses in film-making. These courses have small classsizes and limited seats. Students are requested to apply as early as possible.
Admissions fordegree programs will open in the next six months to a year.
Faculty:
The faculty willbe comprised of experienced filmmakers and media industry professionals. ISFMis currently in talks with potential faculty across India and around the world, and islooking forward to announcing our teachers shortly. The faculty will undergo rigorous training toensure that their teaching methods are top-notch.
Veteran actorNagarjuna commented, “The major force of change is globalisation. Indian filmsare reaching wider audiences around the world and international films areconstantly being released in India.The result is that Indian film, television, and animation has to compete on aglobal stage. Today, there is a greater tendency among the young Indians tocompare Bollywood movies with the latestHollywoodproductions and they expect the same technical and story quality. In order tomatch international standards there is a dire need for well-equipped filminstitutes like ISFM.”
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