Press conference held ahead of National Television Festival of Sports Films and Programs

A press conference has been held as part of the 2nd National Television Festival of Sports Films and Programs.

Established by the National Olympic Committee (NOC), the festival will be held under the motto "In the Name of Victory" (Q?l?b?miz namin?), Azernews reports.

Vice President of the NOC, Chingiz Huseynzade, noted that the festival was first held in 2022 to mark the 30th National Olympic Committee.

"The festival in 2022 was successful, and we decided to hold it regularly, as it promotes sports and a healthy lifestyle, also motivating the activities of federations. The project will be implemented every two years, since the jury accepts only new works, and their creation takes time," said Chingiz Huseynzade.

This year, the opening ceremony of the festival will take place on January 16 at the Rashid Behbudov State Song Theater. The festival will continue until the Day of Physical Culture and Sports, celebrated in Azerbaijan on March 5.

The head of the NOC press service and editor-in-chief of the Olimpiya Dünyas? newspaper Murad Farzaliyev, noted that the festival is designed to provide all social strata with wide access to the values of television and cinematic culture by popularizing various sports and extreme sports, promoting a healthy lifestyle, attracting children, teenagers and youth in sports sections, promoting the principles of the Olympic movement, cultural education, and creating opportunities for a full exchange of experience between authors, producing and organizing the screening of films and programs related to sports.

The general producer of the project, academician of the Academy of Eurasian Television and Radio Arzu Gulamov, said that the winners in five categories - “Z?rif q?hr?man” (Elegant heroine - dedicated to women athletes), “Q?l?c?yin qalibl?ri” (Future winners - dedicated to children's and youth sports), "H?yat namin? idman" (Sport for the sake of life), "Güclü irad?li" (For the will to win), "Reklam, promo çarxlar" (Advertising" and promotional videos) will be determined according to Hollywood Oscar system.

"The festival can include documentaries and feature films, television programs, advertising and promotional videos produced by state and private television channels, production studios, sports federations, and commercial companies in 2022-2024, dedicated to the popularization of sports and athletes," said Arzu Gulamov.

Acceptance of applications started on December 5, 2023 and will end on January 31, 2024. Authors and organizations wishing to take part in the festival must submit their copyrighted films, programs, advertising and promotional videos (DVD, flash card) or send them to the email address [email protected].

More detailed information about the festival can be obtained on the website http://millitvfest.az/, https://www.facebook.com/millitvfest.az/ and on social networks.

The chairman of the festival jury, Olympic champion Zemfira Meftakhetdinova, stressed that there is a very great interest in women's sports in the world.

"Women are now more involved in sports. The International Olympic Committee also aims to ensure that women make up at least 50 percent of the athletes. I hope that the second festival will be even more interesting than the first, which undoubtedly helps to increase the interest of young people in sports," said Zemfira Meftakhetdinova.

In his speech, the jury member, Secretary of the Azerbaijan Union of Cinematographers director Oleg Safaraliyev underlined that projects must meet the main idea of the festival - popularizing and increasing interest in various sports, a healthy lifestyle, understanding its role in modern society, encouraging and providing support for the creators of visual works about sports and athletes.

"When selecting the winners, special attention will be paid to patriotism and the quality of the works presented, which should carry a complete dramatic idea and a professional approach to production," Oleg Safaraliyev noted.

Jury member, actor of the legendary KVN team "Guys from Baku", director and producer Anvar Mansurov, emphasized the importance of joint fruitful activities of various structures and organizations, federations, and the media.

"Behind every victory of athletes there is many years of hard work. And the film adaptation of ongoing processes and events, the creation of new films and programs, promotional videos dedicated to various sports and athletes is an important factor in education in the spirit of patriotism and love for one's Motherland," he said.

Jury member, founder of the NGO Vatan Children's Creativity Center Zahra Guliyeva stressed the significance of the films and programs dedicated to the development of children's and youth sports, which is very important for attracting the younger generation to sports and promoting a healthy lifestyle.

"As a rule, we provide brief information about the victories of children and youth in various sports arenas. And in this area, widespread propaganda is needed, it is necessary to show the child’s path to this success, which will become a motivational factor, the key to even greater victories in world arenas," said Zahra Guliyeva.

Then, the jury members and the organizing committee answered questions from media representatives.

The partner of the 2nd National Television Festival of Sports Films and Programs is the NGO Judo Club 2012.

Media partners of the event are Azernews.Az, Trend.Az, Day.Az, Milli.Az, Turkic.World, Idman.Biz, as well as AZTV, AZTV Idman, CBC SPORT, ARB, SPACE, Olympic.az, OlimpiyaDünyas?, Sportsman.