DOHA: Doha Tribeca Film Festival (DTFF), the annual cultural celebration of Doha Film Institute (DFI), yesterday announced the juries to select the winners of the Arab Film Competition, the only competition at any regional film festival dedicated wholly to honouring Arab cinema talent.
The members of the four juries, drawn from across the world, include internationally acclaimed film professionals, authors and cultural thought leaders. They will evaluate the Arab Film Competition’s three segments – Feature Narrative, Feature Documentary and Short Film – as well as the ‘Made in Qatar’ segment of the festival, devoted to films made by Qatar-based talent. The awards have total prize money of over US$440,000.
The Feature Narrative jury will be headed by renowned Tunisian actress Hend Sabry. The other jury members are Indian director Ashutoush Gowarikar (Lagaan, Jodhaa Akbar); Dr Emad Amralla Sultan, Deputy General Manager of Cultural Affairs of Katara Cultural Village; renowned Turkish filmmaker Yesim Ustaoglu; and critically acclaimed Algerian author Mohammed Moulessehoul, who writes under the pen-name Yasmina Khadra.
The jury for Documentary Narrative comprises: Syrian documentary filmmaker, producer, and scriptwriter Hala Al Abdalla; Qatari director Hafiz Ali Ali and renowned Iranian artist and filmmaker Shirin Neshat. The short films at the competition will be evaluated by Joana Hadjithomas, Tahani Rached, and Nadir Mokneche.
Appraising the ‘Made in Qatar’ showcase, which features the largest line-up yet this year with 19 films including 15 world premieres, are, acclaimed Qatari author Waded Al Kuwairi; Saudi Arabia’s first female filmmaker, Haifaa Al Mansour; and founder of the Qatar Fine Arts Society and renowned visual artist Faraj Daham.
The Arab Film Competition this year makes a marked evolution in the cinematic sensibilities and approaches of the region’s filmmakers, representing Egypt, Qatar, Tunisia, Algeria, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Jordan, Palestine, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and Syria.
The centrepiece of DTFF, the Arab Film Competition has a total of 27 films including seven documentaries, seven narrative features and 13 shorts from 10 Arab countries including first time entries to the competition from Qatar and Saudi Arabia. The Arab Film Competition for narrative features and documentaries has five world premieres and two international premieres; the Arab Short Film Competition has eight world and international premieres. The Peninsula
