Sandalwood sees spurt in shoots; many say locations not available

BENGALURU: The nationwide success of KGF and Kantara has inspired many to venture into film production.
While nobody knows just how many Kannada films are on the shooting floor, the consensus is that there is a severe scarcity of everything related to film production. From shooting floors to locations, everything seems to be jam-packed.
Veteran producer Rockline Venkatesh (TN Venkatesh) who has two films on the floor, said, "I cannot find carpenters to prepare sets, I do not see caravans to house actors during shooting and directors cannot even find empty locations.I wonder how many films are being made."
For the record, a total of 332 Kannada films were certified by the Regional Censor Officer (RCO) Bengaluru of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) in 2022. The total number, including dubbed films, was 403 during the same period. However, nobody keeps a tab on how many films are being made at any given time.
In recent years, the growth of alternate film chambers like the Kannada Film Chamber of Commerce (KaFCC) has come on the back of new producers entering the industry. Of the 332 films certified in 2022, 179 were through the relatively new KaFCC. The older Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) has been pushed to the second spot. While the number of film titles registered in each of the film chambers run into thousands, those in various stages of productions are estimated to be just around 400.
Actor Kishore, who has non-stop shooting schedule said, "Post the pandemic, they are making films with a vengeance." Film publicist Sudheendra Venkatesh said, "I find it hard to accommodate dates for press meets of films. This is the busiest time in my entire career spanning more than two decades."
Not all blame for the scarcity of film workers and technicians can be attributed to the increase in number of films. Kannada Film Workers' Federation, a union of 13 departments of film production, has seen its membership numbers dwindle from over 4,000 to less than 2,000 in the last three years.
Chennaveerappa, a union leader said, "Wages were last revised in 2016 and the next revision was scheduled for 2019. But it has not been done till date. Skilled workers have left for other professions. The producers encouraged the alternate Kannada Film Workers' and Artistes' Union which has unskilled workers who can be paid lower wages. Thus you have a shortage of skilled professionals and a glut of poor quality productions."
The Kannada Film Producers' Association (KFPA) president Umesh Banakar said, "We cannot stop anybody from making films. This is the only business where lack of demand does not reduce supply." He said the producers' body did not keep count of the numbers. The same goes for the Kannada Film Directors' Association (KanFIDA). Its president, Nagendra Urs, said, "The audiences are updated. But the film-makers aren't. Except for a formal release in theatres, most of these films hardly reach the audience. Who will bell the cat is a question that needs to be answered first."
While all the film industry bodies acknowledge the problem, none seems to have an idea on how it can be tackled immediately.