NEW DELHI: Eminent filmmaker Mike Pandey, who was awarded the V Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award at the inauguration of the Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, short and animation films, feels a filmmaker‘s role in society is to share information that brings about a change and "that is what I constantly aspire to do through my films".

Pandey said during a press meet at the MIFF Media Centre in Mumbai today that "Documentary films are the backbone of a country and the Indian documentary film scene is now finally emerging after overcoming a stagnant period".

He said the government had also realised the importance of documentary films and informed media that a half-hour documentary chunk had been made available on Doordarshan. He said these films need to be supported by the state and central governments, people, as well as media.

Digital technologies had opened a whole new vista of opportunities and had been responsible in broadbasing filmmaking, he said, adding that powerful and informative short films are being made using even the mobile phone camera.

Pandey highlighted the need to make the documentary films entertaining as well, if the viewer‘s interests have to be sustained. He said the docu-drama format has opened many possibilities in this regard, as can be seen from the popularity of the History Channel.

MIFF 2012 Festival Director Shankar Mohan underlined the commitment of the Ministry of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry to promote documentary and short films.

He said the Indian section of the competition has been reintroduced at MIFF 2012 to encourage documentary films by Indian film makers. Mohan also informed that the Prize money had been almost doubled.

International Film Festival of India director Mohan has been asked to step in as Director of MIFF as Films Division Chief Producer Bankim Kapadia retired on 31 January.