Within a society driven by technological dependency, “Survival Family” looks at how the familiar family structure would be disrupted when faced with a complete blackout. Backed by this premise, a family of four is forced to venture out in search of necessities as there seems to be no end or insight into the dire situation. While the family has to face hordes of others in the ...

“Marattam” is a 1988 Malayalam television work by Govindan Aravindan, one of the most singular voices of Indian parallel cinema, adapted from a one-act play by Kavalam Narayana Panicker. Produced for national television rather than theatrical distribution, “Masquerade”, as is its English title, features performers from Kathakali and theatre in a work that is, however, a telev...

Following the excellent but also somewhat distant “Snow in Midsummer”, Chong Keat Aun decided to deal with a more ‘down to Earth’ subject, tackling with “Pavane for an Infant” a major social issue Malaysia is facing nowadays, of people abandoning babies, with the number reaching 100 on a yearly basis.

“Swayamvaram” is a 1972 Malayalam drama that marked the debut of Adoor Gopalakrishnan as a feature director, a moment widely considered the beginning of the Malayalam New Wave. Co-written with K. P. Kumaran and produced by the Chitralekha Film Co-operative, the picture was made on a modest budget of ₹250,000 after years of struggle to secure funding, with partial support even...

After presenting a story based on real events in “Scandal” (1950), Akira Kurosawa drew inspiration for “The Idiot” from a different source. His second movie for Shochiku Company was an attempt to adapt a renowned literary work for the big screen. Years later, in an interview for the “Masters of Cinema” DVD series, he admitted: “I wanted to make “The Idiot” long before “Rashom...