Technological revolutions in the field of visual media have
radically changed the role of film as a medium within the
visual culture. In India the liberalization of the economy,
the development of media technology and the establishment
of media infrastructure has lead to a dynamic process of opening
and overlapping of visual spaces in which new permutations
between images and human agencies are occurring. The new situation
calls for fundamental changes in form and format of the interventions.
Film societies were a bit hesitant about the video/digital
revolution in the beginning. But in the later half of the
90s video screenings became popular all over Keralam. Some
of the significant attempts worth mentioning in this area
are that of THIRD EYE [Ernakulam] and Media study centre [Kozhikode].
Film societies struggling due to the lack of proper projection
facilities and availability of quality film prints switched
over to video projection. Not only in projection also in production
humble adventures of experimenting with video/ digital camera
took place. FFSI-SWR established a video library at Thiruvananthapuram
with the help of member societies in 2003. One step further,
a national festival of documentaries and short features titled
SIGNS was launched in 2005 for providing a platform for showcasing
the best of the video/digital productions.
