MUMBAI: The 4th edition of the Bangalore International Film Festival (BIFFes) goes underway on 15 December and all preparations are being made to extend an exclusive cinema experience to over 2,000 attendees on nine screens.

Organisers of the film fest, the Karnataka Chalanachitra Academy is striving to make the festival starting on Thursday a memorable one for film buffs, students of cinema, technicians from the film industry and the critics.

The festival that will screen over 180 films from 40 countries will be inaugurated by the Karnataka chief minister DV Sadananda Gowda. Iranian filmmaker Dariush Mehrjui, artistes Ananth Nag and Om Puri will also grace the ceremony.

South African film Lucky that features theatre personality and Rajya Sabha member B Jayashree in the lead role will open the film festival. Jayashree, incidentally, won the Black Pearl Award for best actor at the recent Abu Dhabi International Film Festival.

Department of Information secretary Basavaraj said in a statement that the Government is trying to make BIFFes a global event that will further the cause of cinema and those associated with it.

"We have a very good collection of films (for screening)," said as the festival was being held simultaneously in Chennai and Thiruvananthapuram, it had become difficult to schedule the films.

"While some films will be screened thrice, only one screening of a few films will be possible. Though 180 films are being screened in the festival, you can watch only 35 films and you have to make the selection of films carefully," said BIFFes artistic director HN Narahari Rao.

Curtains to the festival would be wrung down on 22 December.