Saturday nights are reserved for movie lovers at the Louvre Abu Dhabi starting January 19.
‘Desert Seas’ (2011), ‘Nearby Sky’ (2014) and ‘Theeb’ (2014) will screen for one evening each as part of Roads of Arabia, a programme of films curated by Emirati artist Hind Mezaina.
The free screenings are inspired by an ongoing exhibition, Roads of Arabia: Archaeological Treasures of Saudi Arabia.
Nature historian David Attenborough leads the first film, an English-language documentary titled ‘Desert Seas’, which delves into the underwater realms of Saudi Arabia. At 46 minutes long, the film was directed by Mark Wheeler, Simon Nash and Dominic Weston. It will screen on January 19 at 5pm.
Emirati documentarian Nujoom Al Ghanem is behind the second film, ‘Nearby Sky’, which spotlights the first Emirati female camel owner, Fatima Al Al Hameli, who enters her camel into a beauty pageant competition and participates in camel auctions despite resistance from society. The non-fiction film runs for 85 minutes in Arabic with English subtitles. It will screen on January 26 at 5pm.
‘Theeb’, an Oscar-nominated feature film directed by Jordanian filmmaker Naji Abu Nowar, is set in the Ottoman province of Hijaz during the First World War. It centres on a young Bedouin boy who has to survive the desert alongside a British officer on a mysterious mission. The film, which runs for an hour and 40 minutes, will screen in Arabic with English subtitles on February 2 at 5pm.
All screenings are free, though pre-booking is required. Pre-booking is available online, via telephone or at the museum’s ticketing desk.
Those who wish to visit the Roads of Arabia guided exhibition tour may do so daily at 3pm until February 16. The one-hour tour is Dh52.50 per person.
