Shadows of the Moonless Nights, a short film by a student of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), has been selected for La Cinef Competitive section of the 2026 Cannes Film Festival. A still from the Cannes-bound film, Shadows of the Moonless Nights. FTII student film goes to Cannes The 24-minute film, directed by Mehar Malhotra, is part of a lineup of 14 live-action and 5 animated shorts for the segment, which is dedicated to showcasing film school fiction and animated films. For this year’s edition, the organisers received 2,750 entries from film schools worldwide, the Cannes Film Festival said in a statement. The selected films are directed by 12 women and nine men and represent 15 countries and 4 continents, it added. Malhotra’s film will compete for three La Cinef prizes, which will be awarded by a jury during a ceremony on May 21 in the Bunuel Theatre. Malhotra is a student of direction and screenplay writing course at the prestigious Pune-based institute. About Shadows of the Moonless Nights Shadows of the …