Dubai film fest announces 2012 edition

The ninth Dubai International Film Festival (Diff) will be held from December 9 to 16, 2012, announced on Sunday at the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival.

The ninth Dubai International Film Festival (Diff) will be held from December 9 to 16, 2012, announced on Sunday at the 62^nd Berlin International Film Festival.

The festival, held under the patronage of His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, recorded strong growth in 2011 across parameters including number of films, number of premieres, number of Arab films, capacity, attendance at galas, sales, admissions, industry activity and the number and quality of industry and media delegates.

Additionally more than four of the Diff 2011-supported films, including Death for Sale by Morocco’s Faouz Bensaidi, Diff-award winner The Last Friday by Jordan’s Yahya Alabdallah, “Gate #5” by Lebanon’s Simon El Habre and “The Rif Lover” by Morocco’s Narjiss Nejjar are currently at the 62^nd Berlinale, one of the world’s leading festivals.

The latter three films were supported by the Dubai Film Market’s post-production support programme, Enjaaz; the first by its co-production market, Dubai Film Connection. Other films screened at Diff, including Egypt’s ½ Revolution and Palestine’s Cinema Jenin, are also included in the festival’s Panorama, Forum or European Film Market sections, highlighting Diff’s success in developing its talent.

As part of its commitment to nurturing talent, the festival also awarded more than US$600,000 to filmmakers from the UAE, the Arab world, Asia and Africa via its competitions, in addition to hundreds of thousands of dollars in co-production and post-production support to Arab filmmakers via its Dubai Film Market components. — news@khaleejtimes.com

• UAE