Thursday, October 16, 2008

2008 Middle East International Film Festival Lineup -Update


This fest will run from October 10 to 19 in Abu Dhabi, UAE. This festival has one of the richest prizes on the fest circuit; for example the Black Pearl awards US$200,000 for the best narrative.

Here are the films in competition at the Narrative section.

Dokan Bela Nar (Beirut: Open City), Samir Habachi, Lebanon
Disgrace, Steve Jacobs, Australia and South Africa, 2008
Eid Milad Laila (Laila’s Birthday), Rashid Masharawi, Palestine, Tunisia and Netherlands
Frygtelig Lykkelig (Terribly Happy), Henrik Ruben Genz, Denmark
Gulabi Talkies, Girish Kasaravalli, India
Hasiba, Remon Butros, Syria
Henna, Saleh Karama, UAE
Khaltet Fawzia (Fawzia: A Special Blend), Magdi Ahmed Ali, Egypt
Novaya Zamlya (Terra Nova), Alexander Melnik, Russia
O’Horten, Bent Hamer, Norway
Rusalka (Mermaid), Anna Melikyan, Russia
Sanguepazzo (Wild Blood), Marco Tullio Giordana, Italy (“dying” to see it!)
Yellow Handkerchief, Udayan Prasad, USA
Zaman Al Rifaq (Time of Comrades), Mohamed Chrif Tribak, Morocco
Zara, Ayten Mutlu Saray, Switzerland, Austria, Netherlands and Kurdistan
Zay el Naharda (On a Day Like Today), Amr Salama, Egypt

There are many stories about women in this selection that unfortunately most movies are really difficult to see if you do not live in that region of the world. But there are some that are more accessible that seem quite interesting.

If you want to check the complete list that includes docs and shorts in competition go here and if you want to check all the programs in the fest go here. I can’t help but to think that is peculiar that so many films deal with women issues and that one of the programs is a retrospective in celebration of cinematic achievements of Arab women called Arab Women Directors.

They haven’t listed all the films in the fest, but soon they will and I’ll be checking them and post if I find any relevant news.

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