‘The Singing pond’ creates international ripples
View(s):Award winning playwright Indika Ferdinando’s children’s movie ‘Ho Gana Pokuna’ (The Singing Pond) won the Best Feature film award at the recently concluded 38th Lucas International Children’s Film Festival.
The film bagged the best award out of 55 children’s films presented and 11 films representing 10 countries including Belgium, Iran, Sweden, the Netherlands and Finland that entered the final round.
Earlier ‘Ho Gana Pokuna’ won the Teacher’s Choice Prize in the 32nd Chicago International Children’s Film Festival and premiered at the Hanoi International Film Festival and Shanghai International Film Festival.
Later it won the City of Zlin Award at the 55th Zlín Film Festival in the Czech Republic.
A new teacher named Uma, arrives at a school with her piano in a remote village near Dambulla in Sri Lanka. The school has few students, with only the principal (Lucian Bulathsinghala) and Uma as teachers.
With the help of Uma, the pupils gradually start to dream of bigger things than they had ever imagined.
One day Upuli, a blind girl, shares her unseen dream with school friends Sukiri and Ukkun. It gradually becomes the dream throughout the village. The children and Uma encounter perils in their venture to realize this dream.
The children of the school start to focus on something they have never seen before. This target gives rise to a small revolution.
The main cast includes Lucian Bulathsinhala Jayalath Manoratne, Anasuya Subasinghe, Dayadewa Edirisinghe, JayaniSenanayake, Hyacinth Wijeratne, Senate Dikkumbura, Geetha Kanthi Jayakody, Ama Wijesekera, and Jagath Chamila.
Directed by Indika Ferdinando, the film is co-produced by Kusumsiri Liyanarachi, Yashodara Sarachchandra, Dayananda Liyanarachi, Shyama Athukorala, Bimal Fernando, Nirosha Fernando and Geetha Muthumala.
Principal photography was done by Channa Deshapriya and edited by Thissa Surendra.
The musical score was done by young talented musician Dinesh Subasinghe.