PremiumWench Film Festival 2023: Huesera - The Bone Women, Growing and Knit One, Stab Two win big
This was the first time that the festival, founded by Sapna Bhavnani, was held offline
Huesera: The Bone Women, Knit One, Stab Two, and Growing
Last Updated: 02.55 PM, Mar 20, 2023
We had reported earlier about the third edition of India's first horror film festival, the Wench Film Festival, along with its lineup.
The festival, which was founded by filmmaker Sapna Bhavnani, showcases films by BIWOC, LGBTQ+ women, and non-binary filmmakers.
This year, it was held physically for the first time in addition to virtual screenings. The award-winning Mexican film Huesera: The Bone Woman, directed by Michelle Garza Cerver, was the opening film, while The Nightmare, directed by Alice Wadding, was the closing film of the festival.
The film festival had films competing in three different categories. It concluded earlier today, and one winner has been announced in each of the categories.
Huesera: The Bone Women won from the Blood Thirsty (more than 40 mins) category; Growing won from the Dwarves (10–40 mins) category; and Knit One, Stab Two won from the Elves (less than 10 mins) category.
The jury included Annick Mahnert and Shari Frillot (Blood Thirsty), Alexandra Heller-Nicholas (Dwarves), and Namrata Joshi (Elves).
Speaking after the film festival, an elated Sapna said, "We are a horrific festival with the loveliest people, and the response from the community tells us that we are on to something good. We will rise again, bigger and better. No one escapes from life alive."
There was also a special screening of the film Tumbbad, along with panel discussions and music performances.
Apart from this, there was also a writers room by Kaizad Gustad, a masterclass in horror by Vikram Bhatt, and an incredible opening by Anvita Dutt.
The festival screened 23 films in the competition, of which 19 were available to be watched online.