This image was posted on Facebook by Ava Duvernay
Hollywood filmmaker Ava Duvernay, best known for directing Oscar-nominated film
Selma, based on the life of Martin Luther King Jr, is set to head the international competition jury at the upcoming 17th MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, which begins on October 29.
Ms DuVernay, 43, said she is thrilled to be invited for the film festival and is looking forward to celebrate the work of various directors during the eight-day movie carnival.
"I'm thrilled to have been invited to head the international jury for MAMI and look forward to celebrating the work of a diverse array of filmmakers with energetic, engaged audiences in the dynamic city of Mumbai," she said in a statement. (Also Read:
Selma's Ava DuVernay Might be First Woman Director For Marvel)
Besides
Selma, which chronicled Martin Luther King Jr's leadership in the historic 1965 voting rights campaign, Ms DuVernay in 2010 wrote, financed, produced and directed her first movie,
I Will Follow.
She previously wrote, produced and directed the dramatic feature,
Middle Of Nowhere, which earned her the 2012 Sundance Film Festival best director award.
Filmmaker Hansal Mehta's film
Aligarh has been selected to open the film festival.
Aligarh will become the second Hindi film to open the festival since its foundation in 1998. Veteran actress Jaya Bachchan's
Hazar Chaurasi Ki Maa opened the festival in 1997.
The 17th MAMI's Mumbai Film Festival will be held in Mumbai from October 29 to November 5.