Catch a movie

The Gulf Film Festival is being held this week and the good news is that screenings are free. A number of students are also showing their work. Rania Moussly reports.

The second edition of the Gulf Film Festival (GFF), Dubai's annual cultural event, will run from April 9-15 at the Grand Cinemas in Dubai Festival City. All screenings are free except those being shown on opening night.GFF is organised by Dubai Culture. It aims to "discover the unknown, offering filmmakers of the region an environment in which to screen their work and share their images and ideas with each other," Masoud Amralla Al Ali, director of GFF, told Notes.

Around 230 films have been entered this year, an almost 50 per cent increase over last year.

All competing admissions must have been directed by a Gulf national or have a story centred on the Gulf region, history or culture.

"Arab cinema is improving, some films are doing very well at the box office, but [generally] Arab cinema has been absent on the international movie circuit," said Al Ali.

GFF hopes to change this. "We will have two to three generations of filmmakers gathering in one place to share their art," Al Ali added.

The film festival is showcasing films of social, political and historical natures. There are substantial entries from young people "but the whole movement itself is still young". The festival will feature two main competitions: The 'Film Competition' and 'Script Competition'. The two categories in the Film Competition are 'Official' and 'Students'. The latter showcases short films and documentaries made by student filmmakers from the Gulf region. It provides a platform for them to show a work produced or made by them over the course of their academic studies or as part of a university project.

There is no age limit for entries. "I've just heard we've had an entry of a short animation film by a 13-year-old girl," Al Ali said.

The director believes that "cinema is a medium of expression which allows you to portray traditional stories and communicate with other for a better understanding of each other".

Students' competition awards:

Documentary Films:
First Prize - Dh20,000
Second Prize - Dh15,000
Third Prize - Dh10,000

Short Films:
First Prize - Dh20,000
Second Prize - Dh15,000
Third Prize - Dh10,000
Special Jury Prize for Documentary or Short Film - Dh15,000