Three Jamia Millia Islamia University alumni have been invited to become members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, (AMPAS), USA, which is known for its annual Academy Awards or “The Oscars”.
The academy has offered membership to more than 800 film professionals across 68 countries “to give itself a wider and more diverse representation in terms of gender, race, and ethnicity”, the university said in a statement. The new members include three JMI alumni-- Nishtha Jain, Shirley Abraham, and Amit Mahadesiya
According to an official statement from JMI, this will allow the three alumni members to vote across categories in the Academy Awards or Oscars.
“As an independent filmmaker, I know the value of legitimacy of my voice; of a place at the table. Honored to be invited by Academy to join as a member…A world of work ahead of us and I am so ready,” Shirley Abraham said on social media.
Nishtha Jain, a documentary filmmaker, has won the National Award for the best film on social issues in 2014 for Gulabi Gang. Apart from the National Award, she has won 25 international and national awards and fellowships, the release said.
Travelers, a collaborative work of Shirley Abraham and Amit Mahadesiya, was premiered as an official selection at the Cannes film festival and won 19 awards in different film festivals, including Presidents Gold Medal in India.
Amit Mahedesiya is also an acclaimed photographer whose series of 12 photographs titled `Night Screening of Traveling Cinema in India' received the World Press Photo Award in 2011, the release said.
