With Oasis ’26 just around the corner, the Oasis English Press sat down with Devansh Butan, the Coordinator of the Film Making Club (FMaC), to learn more about their events and work for the fest.

Devansh explained that FMaC was founded in 2014 with the aim of producing their own short films as well as promoting film culture on campus. This year, the club would  host six events under its Film Festival banner, with some events in collaboration with various literature, entertainment and media clubs. Metamorphosis, a short film-making competition, would be their flagship event. Last year, the competition received around 215 entries from over fifteen countries. This year, the top eight teams would be invited to campus to screen their films in front of four judges, including screenwriter Neeraj Pandey, film scholar Dr Parichay from IIT Jodhpur, and two alumni who run a motion design school.

Talking about the other events conducted by FMaC, Devansh mentioned that Hypercut would be an ad-making competition where participants would create advertisements based on a sponsor’s product. Unlike some of the other contests, Hypercut would be entirely online this year. FMaC had also collaborated with the Mathematics Association for a cinema-based Escape Room, which would combine mathematics and films with themes centred around movies like Good Will Hunting and The Man Who Knew Infinity. They have also partnered with the English Language Activities Society (ELAS) for a cinema game show. Building on last year’s KBC: Kaun Banega Cinephile quiz, the event has been expanded into a two-round competition. Lastly, the club would also be screening films every day from 4 AM to 8 AM. 

When asked about the work that went into organising the events, Devansh explained that the pre-fest work, which included contacting other departments, judges and sponsors, was relatively less hectic compared to the actual fest. During Oasis, FMaC would be responsible for shooting and producing the official Aftermovie, which involved renting professional cameras and covering events happening across campus. To manage this, the team divided a blackboard in their room into four sections, one for each day of the fest, and listed the events that need to be covered. This helped them assign members to different events based on their priority. He also mentioned that the club did not follow a very strict hierarchy, with second-year Points of Contact (POCs) helping delegate work to the newly recruited first-years.

Reflecting on his experience as Coordinator, Devansh mentioned that the role had taught him a lot about communication and management. He expressed gratitude towards his seniors, wingies, and Sem Coordinator, Amal, for their constant support throughout the preparations. He added that while the main events have remained similar to previous years, their formats have been changed to make them more interesting. On a parting note, Devansh said that the main purpose of any non-academic activity was to have fun and hoped that everyone involved in Oasis, including the organising batch, juniors, participants, and attendees, would enjoy the fest and have a memorable experience.