The 30th International Film Festival of Kerala opened Friday in Thiruvananthapuram, India, with a politically charged and internationally focused ceremony led by Chilean filmmaker Pablo Larraín, the ambassadors of Palestine and Germany, and Canadian director Kelly Fyffe-Marshall, who received this year’s Spirit of Cinema Award.

Kerala’s Minister for Culture Saji Cherian formally inaugurated the edition, which marked the festival’s three-decade legacy with film launches, book releases and tributes.

Festival executive director C. Ajoy welcomed the guests by tracing IFFK’s journey from its beginnings to what he called “the strongest cultural edifice of Kerala.” He acknowledged the many “unknown names” who had shaped the festival and reaffirmed Kerala’s solidarity with global struggles, including Palestine.

Delivering the inaugural address, Minister Saji Cherian emphasized the festival’s scale and its social purpose, noting the participation of 82 countries and more than 200 films. He underscored cinema’s role in resisting oppressive tendencies and referenced a much-loved Malayalam actor – a sexual assault survivor – as a symbol of that spirit, and positioning her as an emblem of courage. Cherian framed IFFK’s identity as one rooted in solidarity and artistic freedom, calling it “the most important promotion for the film” ecosystem of Kerala.

Larraín, attending IFFK for the first time, praised the selection and the audience. “I’ve never been to India before. I’m very pleased. I’m very impressed seeing all of you beautiful people here,” he said. After reviewing the festival catalog, he singled out the region’s defining openness: “the curiosity that you have for different cultures around the world.” He urged the festival to “stay curious… because cinema is probably the only way to look at the past and the present and eventually, the future.”

German Ambassador Philipp Ackerman commended the festival’s stature and Kerala’s film culture. Calling IFFK “one of the great festivals now,” he highlighted the presence of 25 German productions or co-productions in the program this year, including Fatih Akin’s new World War II-era film “Amrum” and the German-Czech-Polish biographical drama “Franz,” Germany’s Oscar submission. He recalled Kerala’s previous honors for Werner Herzog and Wim Wenders and traced the state’s moniker “God’s own country” to German missionary Hermann Gundert, who developed the first Malayalam-language dictionary.

The evening’s most charged address came from Palestinian Ambassador Abdullah M. Abu Shawesh, who spoke about the significance of opening IFFK with the Palestinian feature “Palestine 36.” “Tonight, through cinema, a small window open into the soul of my people,” he said, thanking Kerala for its “unequivocal support to the cause of Palestine.” He described a long history in which Palestinians were “never given a platform,” arguing that the film represents an essential correction of historical record. “It is not a fiction and not a memory alone. It is a reflection of reality my people endured,” he said, calling the audience’s attention and empathy “an act of solidarity.”

Kelly Fyffe-Marshall received the Spirit of Cinema Award and delivered one of the night’s most impassioned speeches. “Standing here at the International Film Festival of Kerala is an honor that I will carry for the rest of my life,” she said. She described her work as rooted in “standing up against the injustices faced by the Black community across the world,” adding that “an injustice for one community is an injustice for all communities.” She emphasized that “our struggle is interconnected and our liberation is intertwined,” and urged audiences to “make ripples” by creating safety and dignity within their own communities. Calling solidarity “a daily choice,” she said the honor was “one of the greatest” of her life and thanked IFFK “for giving me the space for stories like mine.”

The ceremony also featured the felicitation of filmmaker, writer and IFFK international competition juror Bùi Thạc Chuyên, representing Vietnam as the festival’s Country Focus, and multiple official releases: “Karunayude Camera,” a book on the late filmmaker Shaji N. Karun, one of the pillars of the festival who died earlier this year; the Festival Handbook, released by jury member, Spanish actor Ángela Molina; the Daily Bulletin, released by Indian auteur Adoor Gopalakrishnan; and the festival special issue of “Chalachitra Sameeksha.” Veteran filmmaker Rajeev Nath was honored for completing 50 years in cinema, followed by the release of “Thanal,” a book on his career.

Also present at the opening were international competition jurors, Malaysian filmmaker Edmund Yeo, and British-Indian filmmaker Sandhya Suri. Jury chair, exiled Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof, did not attend due to a delayed flight.

The night concluded with the screening of “Palestine 36,” setting a political and humanistic tone for the week ahead.