Helping hand

Running a film festival is a busy job and its the volunteers who are ensuring the event runs smoothly.

With a total theatre capacity for more than 2,000 hungry film-goers it's no surprise the Middle East International Film Festival organisers required a bit of help when it came to delivering a first-class event.

And rather than employ people from around the world, the executive team decided to offer volunteer roles to people of all ages and nationalities from Abu Dhabi — the home of the first festival.

The Middle East International Film Festival (MEIFF) has been actively seeking a team of enthusiastic volunteers, fluent in Arabic or English, for a number of weeks now and today, all the training and preparation will be put into place.

An enthusiastic team of volunteers has been enlisted across various departments including media, guest relations, venue coordination, hospitality, special events, box office and promotions.

New in town

Jane Ali-Knight, 41, is working as a media co-ordinator and says she is enjoying every minute of her experience.

The mother-of-two has lived in Abu Dhabi for just six weeks and says the opportunity has been a great way to meet people and learn about the city she has recently moved to.

She said: "I heard about the festival and applied to be a volunteer online. I am really pleased I was placed in the media and press office because in my previous jobs, in the UK, I have always worked closely with the press but have never worked in a press office — it is a great insight and I am learning a lot.

"My main roles and responsibilities are to make sure the media and press representatives have everything they require, make up press packs and help produce a daily newsletter when the festival gets underway.

Ambitious

"It has been a real challenge and I have been given lots of responsibilities which has been good.

"So far I have been working anything up to eight hours a day but I think this will increase now the festival has begun. Today will probably be our busiest day as all the members of the press arrive today.

"My children are still very young but I think they think I am watching Snow White on DVD all day because all they understand is that I am helping at a film festival!

"It has been a wonderful, eye-opening experience so far and a truly ambitious project to be a part of. I would already love to get my name down to help next year. I'm sure it will be a success."

Have you heard?

Here's what the people of Abu Dhabi think of the new film festival:

The red carpet has been swept, the theatres cleaned and the trophies polished, ready for the doors to open later today for the first Middle East International Film Festival. But just who will walk through the doors?

tabloid! took to the streets to ask the people of Abu Dhabi if they had heard about the glamorous event and whether or not it was something they would visit:

Yu Wei, 42, visiting Abu Dhabi from Taiwan, said she had heard about the film festival and was disappointed she would was leaving before it began. She said: "The line-up looks really good and it is definitely something I would have wanted to experience — especially as it's being held in such a fantastic location."

Eddie Wang, 43, also from Taiwan, said he was surprised to see such a great film schedule for a first-time festival. He said: "I have been to a few film festivals in my time, including a big event we have in Taiwan each year, and I am amazed at the impressive film calendar here in Abu Dhabi, considering it is a debut event."I'm sure it will be a major success and I am very disappointed that we are not staying a little bit longer so we can actually get a taste of the atmosphere."

Padma and Siva Prasad Bojje, 49 and 58 respectively, have lived in Abu Dhabi for more than 25 years.

The couple, originally from Hydrabad, India, were visiting the Emirates Palace to plan which films they wanted to catch during the festival. Padma said: "There has been lots of hype around the city about the film festival and we are really looking forward to it.

"You can tell there is a buzz around the place and it's all very exciting. I don't know how many famous people will come here but just to experience the glitz of a red carpet gala should be wonderful.

"I would like to watch Rendition the most."

Bassam Abuelsoud, 40, his wife Arwa Younis, 42 and daughter, 5-year-old Noor, were visiting Abu Dhabi for Eid from Dubai.

Bassam said: "It is such a shame we will miss the festival because we leave for Dubai today. We have watched the preparations and it looks like it will be a festival to remember. We are not really into the film world but we have heard a lot about this festival."