Over 50,000 film enthusiasts are expected to attend the five-day Doha Tribeca Film Festival (DTFF) which opens on October 25, organisers said during a press conference at the Doha Film Institute headquarters yesterday.
More than 50 films from 35 countries will be screened at the festival which this year has added an Arab Documentary Film competition.
The increase in the number of Arab films participating at this year’s festival reveals a growing film industry in the region and the presence of various festivals apart from DTFF is a good sign of a vibrant film industry in the Arab world, according to the organisers.
“Compared to last year when we started the Arab film competition, we witnessed an increase in the number of Arab films, a substantial representation of what’s happening in the Arab world and how filmmakers choose to express it in an artistic way so we divided it into narrative and documentary,” said Hania Mroue, Chief Arab Programmer.
The big number of international (four) and Mena (26) premieres at this year’s festival also speaks of the growth of the Arab film industry, according to Mroue.
“These filmmakers believe the audience and media are interested in their films so they decide to show their films here for the first time,” she said.
Amanda Palmer, Executive Director of DFI, said more than the awards and the opportunity to get discovered, filmmakers come to DTFF because of the audience.
Last year, a total of 43,000 people came to the festival from which 14,000 came during the Family Day, that’s why this year, DFI decided to expand it into three days.
This year, there is also an increase in the number of films by women and according to Mroue is not coincidence as DFI is keen on empowering women.
In the same way, a considerable number of filmmakers have entered in the Arab Short Film competition which Chadi Zeneddine, Resident Filmmaker and Programmer, says is very significant as it is a big step for filmmakers before venturing into feature films.
Zeneddine also announced the Made in Qatar section which is for the first time being introduced in the ever expanding DTFF programme. “Made in Qatar section is very important because we try to open the festival to the local community, both for amateur and established filmmakers here,” he said adding, sixteen films have joined in the inaugural edition of the section.
Apart from screenings, other events at the five-day celebration of films include the Doha-Giffoni Experience for young aspirant film jurors; the publicly accessible, interactive ‘Doha Talks’ series; an evolved Brigitte Lacombe multimedia exhibition; the ‘Doha Projects’ mentoring programme for DFI grantees; educational workshops, masterclasses and exhibits; and the festival’s highlight Family Day program, which will provide a specially curated family-friendly film slate, as well as arts & crafts, performances workshops, games, stage performers and more.
More than $500,000 in prizes is up for grabs for the various categories including Arab Narrative Film Competition, Arab Documentary Film Competition, Arab Short Film Competition and Audience Awards.
Box office at Villaggio, City Centre and Katara Building 26 open today. Tickets can also be bought online at www.dohafiminstitute.com/filmfestival.
(Source: The Peninsula)
More than 50 films from 35 countries will be screened at the festival which this year has added an Arab Documentary Film competition.
The increase in the number of Arab films participating at this year’s festival reveals a growing film industry in the region and the presence of various festivals apart from DTFF is a good sign of a vibrant film industry in the Arab world, according to the organisers.
“Compared to last year when we started the Arab film competition, we witnessed an increase in the number of Arab films, a substantial representation of what’s happening in the Arab world and how filmmakers choose to express it in an artistic way so we divided it into narrative and documentary,” said Hania Mroue, Chief Arab Programmer.
The big number of international (four) and Mena (26) premieres at this year’s festival also speaks of the growth of the Arab film industry, according to Mroue.
“These filmmakers believe the audience and media are interested in their films so they decide to show their films here for the first time,” she said.
Amanda Palmer, Executive Director of DFI, said more than the awards and the opportunity to get discovered, filmmakers come to DTFF because of the audience.
Last year, a total of 43,000 people came to the festival from which 14,000 came during the Family Day, that’s why this year, DFI decided to expand it into three days.
This year, there is also an increase in the number of films by women and according to Mroue is not coincidence as DFI is keen on empowering women.
In the same way, a considerable number of filmmakers have entered in the Arab Short Film competition which Chadi Zeneddine, Resident Filmmaker and Programmer, says is very significant as it is a big step for filmmakers before venturing into feature films.
Zeneddine also announced the Made in Qatar section which is for the first time being introduced in the ever expanding DTFF programme. “Made in Qatar section is very important because we try to open the festival to the local community, both for amateur and established filmmakers here,” he said adding, sixteen films have joined in the inaugural edition of the section.
Apart from screenings, other events at the five-day celebration of films include the Doha-Giffoni Experience for young aspirant film jurors; the publicly accessible, interactive ‘Doha Talks’ series; an evolved Brigitte Lacombe multimedia exhibition; the ‘Doha Projects’ mentoring programme for DFI grantees; educational workshops, masterclasses and exhibits; and the festival’s highlight Family Day program, which will provide a specially curated family-friendly film slate, as well as arts & crafts, performances workshops, games, stage performers and more.
More than $500,000 in prizes is up for grabs for the various categories including Arab Narrative Film Competition, Arab Documentary Film Competition, Arab Short Film Competition and Audience Awards.
Box office at Villaggio, City Centre and Katara Building 26 open today. Tickets can also be bought online at www.dohafiminstitute.com/filmfestival.
(Source: The Peninsula)
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