Brad Pitt drama "Moneyball" kicks off the 13th Mumbai Film Festival on Thursday with organisers hoping to raise the profile of the event and bring it on par with other film festivals.More than 200 films from 50 countries will be screened at the eight-day festival, including George Clooney’s directorial venture “The Ides of March”.“We are also having a special screening of films from Cannes Critics Week and also debut Indian films which won National Awards,” festival director Srinivasan Narayanan told Reuters.Apart from Pitt's baseball drama, Lars Von Trier's “Melancholia” and “The Whistleblower” starring Rachel Weisz are also a part of the festival line-up.British director Hugh Hudson, best known for "Chariots of Fire", heads an international jury that includes Indian actress Sarika. Hudson will also conduct a masterclass session at the festival.Narayanan said the Mumbai film festival is gaining both popularity and credibility.“We are working at making the Mumbai film festival a world-class festival and we are very happy with the selection of films we have got this time," he said.Prize money of $200,000 is up for grabs in the competition section.Tributes will be paid to actor Shammi Kapoor, artist M F Husain and director Mani Kaul, all of whom died this year. Director-lyricist Gulzar will be honoured with a lifetime achievement award.Narayanan said the Mumbai film festival will also have a film market, with buyers from non-traditional markets like South Korea also in the fray.
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