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New York, Feb 7 (IANS) The oldest and most prestigious film festival for Indian cinema in North America, the 13th Annual New York Indian Film Festival, will kick off its week-long festivities with a star-studded opening April 30. Organised by the Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC), the festival will begin with a red carpet premiere at a prestigious new opening venue for the festival, the Skirball Centre for Performing Arts in New York City. Festival screenings will take place throughout the week at Tribeca Cinemas, with the closing night selection to be followed by the annual awards ceremony and after-party at the Skirball Centre, IAAC announced Wednesday. NYIFF's selection committee, led by Film Festival Director and noted film journalist Aseem Chhabra, will consider submissions for narrative and documentary features and shorts. The final submission deadline is Feb 8. Extended deadline for Withoutabox members is Feb 15. In addition, this year marks the launch of a new award at the 2013 Festival that will honour student-created short films (five minute or less). Through open, no-fee submissions from film schools, one student will be selected to receive a special award at the closing night award ceremony. Started in 2001 following the Sep 11 attacks on New York City, the festival creates an awareness and better understanding of the people and stories from the Indian diaspora by bringing the most acclaimed feature films, documentaries, and shorts from that region to America's biggest and most remarkable city, the organizers said. "I am thrilled to entertain, educate and challenge audiences with yet another year of fantastic Independent films from every country in the Indian subcontinent as well as the global Indian diaspora," said IAAC executive director Aroon Shivdasani. Festival director Chhabra added: "We are particularly excited about this year's festival since it marks 100 years of Indian cinema. "As such, we are curating a series of recently restored classics from India, never seen before in this condition. There is no better place for these films to be showcased than at this year's New York Indian Film Festival."
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