Samir Sarkar(I)

Samir Sarkar is a National Award-winning film producer and the founder of Magic Hour Films, an award-winning production company established in 2008. Over a career spanning more than 30 years, he has produced 100+ productions across feature films, television commercials, brand films, documentaries and international production services, creating work that ranges from independent cinema to large-scale commercial campaigns and global productions.

Samir has produced ten feature films, several of which have travelled widely on the international festival circuit. His films have screened at major festivals including the Toronto International Film Festival, Busan International Film Festival, International Film Festival Rotterdam, Shanghai International Film Festival, among many others, and have received numerous international awards.

Among his internationally recognised films is Nasir, which won the FIPRESCI Grand Prix and was nominated for the Tiger Award at the International Film Festival Rotterdam. His animated feature Schirkoa received the NETPAC Award on the international festival circuit. Other notable productions include Paka, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival; Jonaki, which won the Silver Gateway Award at the MAMI Mumbai Film Festival; Kalla Nottam, which won the National Film Award for Best Malayalam Film; and No Ground Beneath My Feet, selected as Bangladesh’s official submission to the Academy Awards.

Alongside his work in cinema, Samir has produced an extensive body of television commercials and brand films for multinational companies and premium brands, with particular specialisation in automotive films and luxury hospitality storytelling. His commercial work also spans sectors including beauty, lifestyle, FMCG, and design and furniture brands. He has also produced documentaries for several reputed international broadcasters, including National Geographic, Discovery Channel, Channel News Asia, and ARTE.

Samir has provided production services and consultancy on more than 50 international productions, including feature films, television commercials, documentaries, corporate films and music videos shot across India. Among these projects, he was closely associated for over eight years with Ang Lee’s Academy Award-winning film Life of Pi, contributing production services and consultancy services to the project.

He has been involved in several international co-productions and is well versed in navigating the global festival and co-production ecosystem. Samir is a visiting faculty member at several film institutions, including the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI), and is frequently invited to speak at industry panels and forums at film festivals worldwide, including the Cannes Film Festival. He has also conducted the Producers’ Workshop at Film Bazaar in Goa.

Born in Singapore and raised in Pondicherry, Samir studied at the Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education before receiving a scholarship to study film production at La Fémis, the prestigious French National Film School in Paris.

Through Magic Hour Films, Samir continues to collaborate with filmmakers, brands and international studios, producing cinema, documentaries, television commercials, luxury brand films and global productions across India and beyond.