Nepal’s premier short film festival Ekadeshma International Short Film Festival is slated to kick off today with an opening ceremony at QFX Kumari, in Kathmandu. The screening of the films will begin on November 17.

Themed Let There Be Light, the fifth edition of the festival will host the screening of 99 films from 43 nations over the three-day period.

The first day, on Friday, will see the screening of 36 films—notables include The Colors of Life (Sarah Tamang, Nepal); Screamer; Theatres of Reality; and Hope Dies Last.

The organisers said that they also plan to screen the film in open air space around Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Patan Durbar Squares.

“The aim of the festival is to bring together film enthusiasts and help highlight creative works as well as issues that affect our communities so as to develop cinema locally and create dialogue with various stakeholders,” organisers said. The films featured at the festival run from three minutes to 27 minutes.

Alongside screenings, the fest will also bring together filmmakers, critics and enthusiasts and will host discussions among them.

Prior to the screenings, the fest hosted a film lab wherein a team comprising three film experts and 12 filmmakers came together to discuss, develop, and improve select scripts.

The film festival will conclude with an award ceremony where a panel of jury—comprising Manisha Koirala (head of jury), Paolo Bertolin (Italy), and Mostafa Sarwar Farooki (Bangladesh)—will select the best films under different categories.