In this roundtable conversation, the Malayalam filmmaker behind such acclaimed films as “Ariyppu”, “Take Off”, and “C U Soon” talks about the need for having a clear USP in the films meant for the big screen, the conviction of filmmakers leading to successful films, and more…
Edited excerpts:
On the importance of USP in films.
There should be a USP for every film to be watched in a theatre. When you write, there’s an inciting incident, which keeps on changing. Earlier, it used to be in the 20th minute, now it should start in the 5th minute. All the Malayalam films that worked last year had a brilliant USP. Nna Thaan Case Kodu, RDX, Jaya Jaya Jaya Jaya Hey… they had the selling point. The moment you watch the trailer, you get attracted to it; how we project a film, in terms of a trailer and all, matters. The trailers of some successful films like JJJH were so genuine.
On the importance of conviction.
If you take a film like RDX, it is very honest to its core. The filmmaker had the conviction about what he was doing, and everybody had the same conviction on location. They made a film with the real essence. They gave it directly to the audience. To make an action film work, you need to show what happens before the action — the core emotion, and the culmination. That’s really explained well in that film.  Â
Watch the full roundtable at:
