For the first time in history, UAE filmmakers can see a familiar golden statuette gleaming back at them from the end of the tunnel.
This year, one UAE film will be submitted to the Oscars for consideration in the Foreign Language category in 2018. The title will be decided in three weeks by a 14-member strong committee of regional industry professionals.
The committee, approved by the Academy Awards, met for the first time at Dubai International Film Festival’s (Diff) headquarters on Wednesday afternoon. They spoke for just under two hours, though no films were discussed.
“Most of us didn’t see the films as of yet,” explained Abdul Hamid Juma, Diff chairman.
“Everybody has a lot of homework to do — we’re going to watch a lot of films in the next three weeks, so we [can] get together, talk about the films, and come up with a final decision,” added Butheina Kazim, co-founder of independent theatre platform, Cinema Akil.
The committee plans to make its choice by August 23, and must submit the chosen film to the Academy by October 2, at 5pm PST.
Juma predicted there are less than 10 films that qualify for this year’s round of submissions. He could not divulge any names.
Eligible films must be over 40 minutes, and must show in a commercial theatre for a period of at least seven consecutive days. They should primarily be in a non-English language — that could be Arabic, Hindi, Farsi, etc — and have clear English subtitles. They must not have been distributed on television or through online or VOD channels, such as Netflix.
Films that could potentially qualify this year are Ali Mostafa’s survival thriller The Worthy, and Abdulla Al Kaabi’s family drama, Only Men Go to the Grave.
The latter will screen this month at Diff365@Vox in Mall of the Emirates, along with Cinema Akil, a single-screen theatre located in a warehouse in Al Quoz.
ON THE MAP
Front Row Filmed Entertainment’s Gianluca Chakra summed up what they’re looking for from a film in one word: “Quality.”
“You know when a film has it and it doesn’t. You know if a film is commercial, you know if it’s a festival film, you know if it’s not. Watching a film like [the four-time Academy Award-winning British drama] The King’s Speech, you know that’s an Oscar film, right before it even won,” he explained.
The features must be created by UAE citizens or residents. The race is not restricted to Emirati nationals.
“It could be a film by a filmmaker based here, from anywhere in the world, but considers themselves a resident of the UAE and is making a film here,” said Kazim.
Films must have been released between October 1, 2016, and September 30, 2017 to be considered. Only one film will be submitted.
The UAE’s eligibility for a Foreign Language award will encourage further funding and distribution deals, the committee believes.
“It’s about how the world will then perceive the UAE film industry. Jordan had a shake-up because of [the 2014 Oscar-nominated film] Theeb. People started noticing Jordan. Same thing with Iranian films — you have an Iranian film that was financed by the UK, Under the Shadow,” said Chakra.
This year, the Oscar for the Best Foreign Language Film went to the Iranian title, The Salesman.
LOOKING FORWARD
The committee, which may grow or shrink over the years, consists of the above-quoted members, as well as director and producer Abdullah Hasan Ahmad, poet and scriptwriter Ahmad Salmeen, ImageNation’s Ben Ross, culture writer Hind Mezaina, Dubai Film and TV Commission’s Jamal Al Sharif, MBC television executive Lina Matta, filmmaker Mohammed Al Otaiba, film critic Mohammad Rouda, composer Taha Al Ajami, film critic and curator Antiona Carver, and chairman of Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority Mohammad Khalifa Al Mubarak.
If any conflict of interest arises — for instance, if an ImageNation- or Enjaaz-funded film enters the running — the associated member will not be able to vote for that film.
“It’s very important that we emphasise that this committee is absolutely independent of [Diff], or any government or non-government or private entity,” said Kazim. Each committee member represents only themselves.
A website will be launched to facilitate filmmaker submissions for committee consideration in the coming years, Kazim added.
The UAE’s official submission will go through several rounds of voting by Academy members. The 2018 Oscar nominations will be announced on January 23, and the ceremony will take place on March 4 in Hollywood.
QUOTE/UNQUOTE
To date, male directors in the UAE have dominated the creation of full-length feature films (non-fiction films excluded). Film critic Mohammad Rouda, on the committee to submit a UAE film for Oscar consideration, said: “I think the quality is the thing that we go back to. There’s a quality of ideas and thoughts and the director’s creativity... and whether it has good enough elements to present it very clearly to another culture. Whether it is a female director or male director, is not going to play a big role.”
