Jury Boards for CineSparks, the Ultrashort Film Contest 2025

The CineSparks Ultrashort Film Contest held under the auspices of the 6^th Indic Film Utsav was a superhit! The success of the event is owed to the filmmakers certainly! But gratitude is also owed to the credibility, artistic integrity, thoughtful insights, and dedicated efforts of our esteemed Jury Boards.

For the Remote Evaluation and Selection of the Top 8 Ultrashort Films, we were honored to have an accomplished panel featuring filmmaker Bhaskar Maurya, known for works such as Muthayya and Sivarapalli; Kiranmayi Indraganti, filmmaker who made Rallallo Neeru and professor at Srishti Institute of Art, Bangalore; and acclaimed director-writer Kireet Khurana, celebrated for projects including T for Taj Mahal and Invisible Visible. Their collective experience across cinema, storytelling, and the arts brought depth and balance to the evaluation process.

The Grand Finale Live Evaluation and Selection of the Winner and Runner-up was guided by another exceptional panel featuring producer Hari Charana Prasad of Joyland and Kamli, Nikita Hattangady, Head of Programming for Indic Film Utsav, and internationally recognized film critic Kirk Fernwood of OneFilmFan.com. Their live deliberations elevated the finale and encouraged filmmakers with thoughtful appreciation of independent storytelling.

The support of both Jury Boards reflects the spirit of CineSparks, encouraging meaningful, original, and impactful cinema while nurturing emerging voices. Center for Indic Films and 6 Elements Productions extend our heartfelt gratitude, deepest respect, and sincere appreciation to all our esteemed jury members for their time, encouragement, and invaluable contribution to the CineSparks USF Contest.