The movie ‘The Whole Timers’ received the CNC Production Aid (Aide aux cinémas du monde). According to a press statement released by Media Port, ‘The Whole Timers’ is the first Nepali feature film to receive it.

Although other Nepali films have previously received international grants, ‘The Whole Timers’ is the only one to get an award for production on the basis of its script from Cinémas du monde.

Directed by Bibhusan Basnet and Pooja Gurung, the film captures the final three years of the decade long civil war through the eyes of a young guerilla. “Our primary objective is to create a film that has the formal, artistic and stylistic aspects of a documentary,” said Basnet.

The film is being jointly produced by Media Port and Les Films du Tambour, a French production company. Developed within Jerusalem International Film Lab, and selected in markets like Cannes Cinefondation L’Atelier, Locarno Open Doors Lab and Film Bazaar, this is Basnet and Gurung’s first feature film.

The film has also been a grantee of the Script and Project Development Award: Hubert Bals Fund, The Cam-a-lot and Filmmore Cinema Emerging Talent Prize @ The Holland Film Meeting and NFF+HBF Co-Production Support.

Prior to this, the director duo’s short film ‘Daadya: The Woodpeckers of Rotha’ received the Special Jury Award for Cinematography at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival among other international awards. Their other film ‘The Contagious Aparitions of Dambarey Dendrite’ has also won accolades across various film festivals around the world. 

With the film grants now in place, the film is all set to kick-start its preparations. Right now, the film is hoping to begin screening process for actors. “We want this movie to be a once in a lifetime experience for all those involved, ourselves included. We’re looking for sporty and spontaneous people who are open to new experiences and come with no previous conceptions,” said Gurung.

Calling people from all walks of life, part of the casting call poster reads: ‘We want to meet people doing inspirational work in their own fields’. It calls for various individuals: 13-14-year-old boys, 16 to 19-year-old men and women with proficiency in dancing and singing, 40 to 45-year-old men with great oratory skills and 30 to 35-year-old males who have a liking towards literature, history, and arts.”