Open Frame is a film society formed in Payyannur, Kannur Dist, Kerala in May 2005. Even today, Open Frame is functioning according to the wishes and dreams of the eminent personalities who led the film society movement in Kerala itself. Open Frame began its long journey with the highly popular five-day film festival. Open frame film screenings started after acquiring projector, generator, sound system and other equipment for film screening.
Open Frame has been conducting film festivals with emphasis on different themes and directors since the first month. Open Frame also takes care to introduce the face of contemporary world cinema. Award-winning films and new films by renowned directors are regularly screened at major festivals around the world. Open Frame also organizes film festivals based on various themes. Feminist Film Festival in March and Anti-War Film Festival in August are recurring film festivals. Also special festivals are organized for films based on themes like food, environment, music, literature etc.
It is a film festival organized by Open Frame with great importance for the last five years. It is an occasion where ten classic films are screened in public for ten days. Classic films that are timeless works of art in the history of world cinema will be screened in Malayalam subtitles. So far, fifty classic films have been screened open frame in Malayalam subtitles in four festivals.
Open Frame is the film society that has stood with the concept of Malayalam subtitling for world films in practice and theory since its inception. Recognizing the politics of Malayalam subtitling and the awakening it brings to film enjoyment and language activities, Open Frame spearheaded this initiative in Kerala. Along with contemporary films, classic films were continuously being translated into Malayalam. Today more than two hundred films have been given open frame Malayalam translation.
Ever since the inception of Open Frame, an international film festival has been widely organized annually. Organized by films screened at Thiruvananthapuram and Goa Film Festivals, this festival is a treat for film lovers in and around Payyannur who are unable to go to these places to watch movies. Since 2012, this festival has been organized in theaters in and around Payyannur. This is the 9 th international film festival held in theaters.
Cinelog is a publication produced as part of Open Frame monthly fairs, Classic festival and International Film Festival. Cinelog includes synopsis, images, announcements, etc. about the films being screened.
Open Frame Film Society organized several film camps for students. More than 200 one-day workshops have been conducted in various schools. Notable were the two workshops conducted independently by Open Frame in Payyannur for children and two workshops conducted in collaboration with the Film Academy, and the Malayalam subtitling workshops conducted in Thiruvananthapuram and Payyannur in collaboration with the Federation of Film Societies of India were a recognition of Open Frame’s work in this field.
Until now Open Frame Film Society has been able to work continuously and actively as an example for film societies in Kerala.
