Read the full article on Film Companion, here: https://www.filmcompanion.in/cannes-2018-pushpa-ignatius-pournami-interview-baradwaj-rangan/
Pushpa Ignatius talks about ‘Pournami’, which had its world premiere on 14 May, at the Cannes Short Film Corner.
Since her Visual Communications degree from Loyola College, Pushpa Ignatius has been surrounded by films – and film people. Her batch mates were Pushkar-Gayatri, Thiagarajan Kumararaja and Vishnuvardhan. She is married to the cinematographer, PS Vinod. She assisted Rajiv and Latha Menon, and went on to do her own ad films (Akshaya Homes, Mirinda, Chennai Silks). “But an ad filmmaker is never taken seriously,” she laughs. So she wanted to make a feature, “something to show that I am a real filmmaker. Pournami is my first short film. Actually, it’s my first film of any kind.”
Pushpa, who is 39, started writing a feature during what she calls the breaks in her life: “marriage, raising my two daughters.” She narrated it to a few actors, who showed interest, but were taking their time committing to it. Meanwhile, Pournami – which means full moon, and which runs 12 minutes, 18 seconds – happened. “Pournami is not connected to that feature film,” Pushpa says. “My executive producer, Basak Gaziler Prasad, and I were thinking about a smaller film, and I began fleshing out a story about two characters. It had flashbacks that took us through their respective stories. It even had an interval block, where the connection between the two characters is revealed. Then, Basak suggested making it a short film.”
Pushpa submitted Pournami in the Short Film Competition section, at Cannes, but it was not selected. But it got a screening slot at the Short Film Corner, which, as the Festival says, “will increase the chances of seeing your film selected by international festivals, as well as revealing your talent to potential partners and diffusers.” The story is about a sorrowful priest and a young woman he meets on a full-moon night, in the vicinity of a temple. Or as the Cannes catalogue has it: “The wishes and hopes of two characters – a young girl and a temple priest. They cross paths on the auspicious full moon night. Will the girl get what she hopes for and will the priest find redemption? These are the questions that base the core of the film.”
There’s a major element of coincidence in the story – but it’s balanced out by the “divine” aspect, with the full moon as a witness.
Yes, it’s almost like it’s the goddess’s way of resolving the situation. Pournami is a major event, when you let go of negatives and pray for positives. I guess I could have brought about the divine element even on the new moon, but the full moon has more magic and drama. It’s more cinematic.
Continued at the link above.
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Baradwaj Rangan 
Pavan
May 15, 2018
“I guess I could have brought about the divine element even on the new moon, but the full moon has more magic and drama.”
Why new moon? Is it because Tamilians follow Suryamanam and hence find it more auspicious than full moon day?
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Devarsi Ghosh
May 15, 2018
Sir, how is the Von Trier film?
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Madhu
May 16, 2018
Pavan: Because, New moon signifies the start of “Valarpirai” (waxing phase, moon grows), whereas Full moon signifies the start of “Thaeipirai” (waning phase, moon diminishes). So, it is more auspicious to be in the waxing phase than the waning phase according Tamil panchankams. This is what I understood after talking to my paati when she used to go on and on about starting things on New moon day.
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