Life! Camera Action... is a family-drama film directed, written, edited, produced by Rohit Gupta, in his feature-length directorial debut.[1][2] Starring Dipti Mehta, Shaheed Woods,[3] Noor Naghmi,[4] Swati Kapila,[5] John Crann,[6] this ninety minutes quasi-autobiographical film follows a girl in pursuit of her dreams of becoming a filmmaker against all odds. The film received several awards and nominations.[7][8][9][10][11] Its theatrical release was limited to film festivals. The film received direct-to-DVD release and subsequently on other video on demand (VOD) platforms.[12][13]
| Life! Camera Action... | |
|---|---|
 Movie poster | |
| Directed by | Rohit Gupta |
| Written by | Rohit Gupta Amanda Sodhi |
| Produced by | Rohit Gupta |
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography | Ravi Kumar R |
| Edited by | Rohit Gupta |
| Music by | Manoj Singh |
Production company | Dot & Feather Entertainment |
| Distributed by | Viva Entertainment, USA Flipkart (DVD), India Distrify (online worldwide) |
Release date |
|
Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Languages | Hindi Punjabi English |
Life! Camera Action... is of note for its extremely low filming budget ($4000), production value, philosophical inference, and its message widely praised.[14][15] It made its way to the Limca Book of Records, India's equivalent of the Guinness World Records for being the first full-length motion picture "shot by just a two-member crew".[16][17]
Cast
- Dipti Mehta as Reina
- Shaheed Woods as Mike
- John Crann as Professor Ed
- Swati Kapila as Simi
- Suneet Kochar as Actress[18]
- Chelsi Stahr as producer Teri[19]
- Subodh Batra as Reina's father
- Noor Naghmi[20]
- Prabha Batra as Reina's mother
- Nina Mehta as Actress[21]
- Bhavesh Patel as Patel DVD store owner
Production
Development
Life! Camera Action... started as Rohit Gupta's ten-minute short film assignment at the New York Film Academy. Shortly after he dropped out of the academy to make it into a full-length feature film.[22] Amanda Sodhi, the co-writer of the film, in response to an advertisement had originally submitted a fifteen-page short film script titled "The Last Shot" loosely based on her own life.>[23]
Filming
The film was shot in guerilla style on Panasonic AG-DVX100 in ten days and roughly edited on Gupta's Mac Book Pro.[24] It was filmed on an initial budget of around $4000 with money raised from his savings that was cleaned up with post-production work costing several thousand dollars before its marketing and release. In an interview Dipti Mehta has said that in an informal meeting before the audition, Gupta thought she was not right for the part, although she was invited at the audition where he failed to recognize her at the first sight. Mehta did get the part and it became her debut film as a lead.[25]
Filming locations
Various locations in New York City, New York Film Academy, Jersey City and Newport Waterfront.
Music
The background score and songs were composed by Manoj Singh.[26] The music was produced in Mumbai, India. The following songs are featured in the film and used as a part of the background score.
Soundtrack
The score for Life! Camera Action... features two original songs.
Release
Life! Camera Action... opened in numerous international film festivals beginning with its world premiere at the New York Indian Film Festival.[29] Thereafter the film went on to receive numerous accolades around the world before it received a limited DVD distribution deal on 29 October 2012 by New Jersey-based ViVa Entertainment for the Asian Indian market spanning the North American continent.[30] It was initially released via Facebook on 20 July 2012 by Boston-based idistribute Inc., a new media distribution company.[31] On 29 November 2012, the film received another retail DVD distribution platform via Florida-based Dynasty Records through Trans World Entertainment Corporation's national mall-based stores under the brand name FYE (For Your Entertainment), Suncoast and Wherehouse.com.[32] Flipkart, India's largest e-commerce consumer company released the film on 17 February 2013.[33] On International Women's Day, 8 March 2013 the film was released worldwide through Distrify, a UK-based VOD movie distribution company for online streaming and movie download in any global currency.[34][35] The film was released to other VOD service such as the Amazon Video, BoxTV.[36]
Reception
it's not just good filmmaking, it's real intelligent filmmaking.
Life! Camera Action... received critical acclaim. It was invited at various international film festivals including the New York Indian Film Festival; Williamsburg International Film Festival (WILLiFest) in New York;[38] Mississippi International Film Festival, USA;[39] Cabo Verde International Film Festival (CVIFF), Africa;[40] International Film Festival Antigua & Barbuda;[41] Official World Peace Film Festival, Indonesia;[42] Golden Door Film Festival in USA;[43] Ionian International Film Festival in Greece;[44] Indian International Film Festival of Tampa Bay; Carmarthen Bay International Film Festival in United Kingdom;[45] Treasure Coast International Film Festival, USA;[46] The Social Uprising Resistance and Grass Root Encouragement International Film Festival, in the United States;[47]NFDC Film Bazaar in Goa; Beloit International Film Festival;[48][49] Filums (LUMS International Film Festival), Pakistan;[50] Boston's Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) South Asian Film Series, USA;[51] Heart of England International Film Festival; Dhaka International Film Festival (Cinema of the World section), Bangladesh;[52] Legacy Media Institute International Film Festival, Virginia;[53] Delhi International Film Festival, India;[54] International Youth Film Festival in the UK; Silent River Film Festival, USA;[55] and others.
Awards and nominations
The film received various accolades including some of the highest honors at its festival run, with the nominations categories mainly ranging from recognition of the film itself (Best Film) to its direction, Film editing, music, screenwriting to the cast's acting performance, mainly Dipti Mehta (Best Actress), Swati Kapila (Best Supporting Actress),[56] Noor Naghmi (Best Supporting Actor)[57] and Shaheed Woods (Best Actor).
| Awards and nominations for Life! Camera Action... | ||||
| Festival/Award | Location | Category | Recipients and nominees | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accolade Film Awards[58] |  USA | Award of Excellence – Best Feature Film | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
| Award of Merit for Direction | Rohit Gupta | Won | ||
| Award of Merit for Cinematography | Ravi Kumar R. | Won | ||
| Award of Merit for Dramatic Impact | Life! Camera Action... | Won | ||
| Action On Film International Film Festival[59] | USA | Best Composition | Manoj Singh | Nominated |
| Best Art Direction | Ravi Kumar R. | Nominated | ||
| California Film Awards[60] | USA | Orson Welles Award for Best Narrative Film | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
| Canada International Film Festival[61] |  Canada | Royal Reel Award for Best Feature Film | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
| Carmarthen Bay Film Festival[62] | UK | Best Feature Film | Life! Camera Action... | Nominated |
| Golden Door Film Festival[63] | USA | Best Feature Film | Life! Camera Action... | Nominated |
| Best Director | Rohit Gupta | Nominated | ||
| Best Male Lead | Shaheed Woods | Nominated | ||
| Best Female Lead | Dipti Mehta | Nominated | ||
| 28th Goldie Film Awards[64] | USA | Best feature film | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
| Best Director | Rohit Gupta | Won | ||
| Best Actress | Dipti Mehta | Won | ||
| Best Supporting Actor | Shaheed Woods | Won | ||
| Best Cinematography | Ravi Kumar R. | Won | ||
| Best Song Chalte Jaana Hain | KK (Singer), Manoj Singh | Won | ||
| Best Screenplay | Rohit Gupta, Amanda Sodhi | Won | ||
| Best Editing | Rohit Gupta | Won | ||
| Indie Fest[65] | USA | Award of Merit – Feature film | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
| International World Peace Film Festival[66] |  Indonesia | Best Newcomer film | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
| International Filmmaker Festival of World Cinema[67] |  UK | Best Film of the Festival | Life! Camera Action... | Nominated |
| Best Director | Rohit Gupta | Nominated | ||
| Best Supporting Actress | Swati Kapila | Nominated | ||
| Los Angeles Movie Awards[68] | USA | Award of Excellence for Best Experimental Film | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
| Nevada International Film Festival[69] | USA | Platinum Reel Award for Best Narrative Feature Film | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
| Oregon Film Awards[70] | USA | Grand Jury Choice Award for Best Film | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
| Prestige Film Awards[71] | USA | Gold Award – Originality & Creativity | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
| Gold Award – Leading Actress | Dipti Mehta | Won | ||
| Silver Award – Dramatic Impact | Life! Camera Action... | Won | ||
| Silent River Film Festival[72] | USA | River Pursuit Award for Best Film | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
| Best Actress | Dipti Mehta | Nominated | ||
| River Amulet Award for Best Director | Rohit Gupta | Won | ||
| Sunset International Film Festival[73][74] | USA | Best Female Actor | Dipti Mehta | Won |
| The World Independent Film Festival (TWIFF)[75] | USA | Best Inspirational Family Drama | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
| Toronto Independent Film & Video Awards[76] | Canada | Best Experimental Film | Life! Camera Action... | Nominated |
| World Music & Independent Film Festival[77] | USA | Best Drama | Life! Camera Action... | Nominated |
| Best Director | Rohit Gupta | Nominated | ||
| Best Actress | Dipti Mehta | Nominated | ||
| Best Original Music | Manoj Singh | Won | ||
| Best Screenplay | Rohit Gupta, Amanda Sodhi | Nominated | ||
| Best Actor in Supporting Role | Noor Naghmi | Won | ||
| Best Actress in Supporting Role | Swati Kapila | Nominated | ||
| Yosemite International Film Awards[78] | USA | Grand Jury Choice Award for Best Film | Life! Camera Action... | Won |
Selected Official selections and screenings
| Festival/Event | Location | Country |
|---|---|---|
| New York Indian Film Festival | New York, New York | USA |
| Williamsburg International Film Festival | Brooklyn, New York | USA |
| Toronto International Film Awards | Toronto | Canada |
| Golden Door International Film Festival | Jersey City | USA |
| India International Film Festival of Tampa Bay | Florida | USA |
| Carmarthen Bay International Film Festival | Wales | UK |
| Ioninan International Film Festival | Lefkas |  Greece |
| Treasure Coast International Film Festival | Florida | USA |
| World Peace International Film Festival | Jakarta | Indonesia |
| Social Uprising Resistance and Grass Root Encouragement IFF | Austin, Texas | USA |
| NFDC Film Bazaar | Goa |  India |
| Boston's Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) | Boston | USA |
| Heart of England International Film Festival | Coventry | UK |
| Dhaka International Film Festival | Dhaka |  Bangladesh |
| Legacy Media Institute International Film Festival | Virginia | USA |
| Delhi International Film Festival | Delhi | India |
| International Youth Film Festival | London | UK |
| Silent River Film Festival | California | USA |
| Action on Film International Film Festival | California | USA |
| International Film Festival Antigua & Barbuda | Antigua & Barbuda |  West Indies |
| Nevada International Film Festival | Las Vegas | USA |
| Love Unlimited Film Festival and Art Exhibition | Texas | USA |
| Filums (LUMS International Film Festival) | Lahore |  Pakistan |
| Love Unlimited Film Festival and Art Exhibition | California | USA |
| Sunset International Film Festival | Los Angeles | USA |
| The World Independent Film Festival | San Jose | USA |
| Cabo Verde International Film Festival | Sal Island |  Cape Verde |
| World Music & Independent Film Festival | D.C. | USA |
| International Filmmaker Festival of World Cinema | London | UK |
| Barossa International Film Festival | Tanunda |  Australia |
| Bayou City Inspirational Film Festival | Texas | USA |
| International Film Festival for Peace, Inspiration and Equality | Jakarta | Indonesia |
| Yosemite International Film Festival | Yosemite | USA |
| Indie Fest | San Diego | USA |
Limca Book of records
| Record | Honoring body |
|---|---|
| Film Life! Camera Action... was shot by just a two-member crew consisting of director/producer Rohit Gupta & Ravi Kumar R.[79] | Limca Book of Records |
