Each year, PSBT organises its annual International Film Festival and Forum, the Open Frame, in partnership with UNESCO and the support of the national public service broadcaster, Prasar Bharati, INPUT (INternational PUblic Television) and the India Habitat Centre. 

We aim to create a space and context for engagement with documentary and reality films from across the world, representing diverse voices and experiences, and providing valuable insights into contemporary documentary films and filmmaking, their role in civil society and international public broadcasting.

The biggest documentary festival in the city, Open Frame showcases some of the most recognised and celebrated national and international films, along with a selection of the best programmes from INPUT. It provides a powerful and stimulating space for engagement with the audio visual medium and significant civil society concerns. It has emerged as a platform for lively and involved dialogue amongst filmmakers, film enthusiasts, media students and practitioners. The Open Frame sees the participation of over 500 media students who register for the Festival.

The hallmark of Open Frame is to move beyond the passive viewing of films and stimulate an active involvement of the audience through discussions and forums triggered by the films that articulate varied realities. These interactions are enormously enriched by the participation of filmmakers from around the world, particularly from the developing world, those who do not ordinarily have the opportunity to present and discuss their work. 

Training is a very significant component of Open Frame and each year we organise Workshops for media students, filmmakers and practitioners to intensively engage with documentary filmmaking practices and techniques, basics of filmmaking, film appreciation, documentary pitching and distribution, etc.

There have been nine editions of the Open Frame till now, each with its unique character, focus and design.

In addition to Open Frame, we also organised the International Film Festival on Gender and Sexuality in 2007, which we hope will be back soon, and other Festivals like Making Migrant and the INPUT Retrospective.

Please click the images below for the Festival programmes.

(2006 onwards)