03/12/2025
Phare International Film Festival - Official Statement
Embracing the Future of Cinema in a Digital World
Over the past weeks, we have worked diligently to prepare the Phare International Film Festival (PIFF) and deliver the experience we envisioned. However, the external environment, marked by structural and logistical constraints, has presented challenges to holding the physical event as originally intended.
After careful consideration and a commitment to our mission's core values, we have chosen a path that we believe is structurally and philosophically superior:
This year's edition of the Phare International Film Festival will now take place exclusively online, hosted entirely on our proprietary streaming platform: https://ott.pharestories.com/
The Visionary Upgrade
This shift is not a cancellation; it is an expansion of our core philosophy. Instead of showcasing a limited selection of 13 films over a four-hour cinema window, we are using the power of our platform to:
We will stream ALL awarded films on December 11th and 12th, along with exclusive interviews. This results in a total broadcast of 19 hours of content, replacing a limited exposure of 6 hours.
This truly honours our philosophy of bringing local and international filmmakers together in Mauritius, ensuring every story is given the same opportunity to shine its light and achieve global visibility.
We are fully embracing the new era of digital autonomy, offering audiences convenient, stress-free access without the environmental and logistical costs of the old cinema model.
We sincerely thank all filmmakers, partners, and supporters for their understanding. We remain committed to building this new standard for independent cinema and look forward to sharing these powerful stories with audiences worldwide.
