Entries to the third Gulf Film Festival, the annual event celebrating Gulf cinema, held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Majid Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Culture & Arts Authority, is now open for all films that depict life in the Arabian Gulf region.
Filmmakers of all nationalities can submit their entries online at www.gulffilmfest.com until February 25, 2010. Winners will be announced at the film festival to be held from April 8-14, 2010.
GFF Festival Director Masoud Amralla Al Ali said that opening submissions for the Gulf Film Festival to directors across the world provides a larger window for showcasing Arab creativity. “This is an era of global collaboration and Gulf Film Festival aims to celebrate the solidarity that is expressed through the medium of films.”
“The Gulf region opens a goldmine of opportunities for cinematic expression. Filmmakers from around the world are inspired by the region, and make films that are centred on life in the Arab world. The Gulf Film Festival wants to showcase all such artistic expressions that further contribute to strengthening the local film industry,” Masoud added.
With the introduction of modern infrastructure that supports filmmaking, the Gulf region led by Dubai, is increasingly serving as a magnet for local and international filmmakers. From the George Clooney-starrer Syriana to City of Life, shot entirely in Dubai by an Emirati filmmaker using an international cast and crew, the region has taken bold steps in film production over the years.
The Gulf Film Festival will boost creativity in filmmaking through the Film Competition for professionals and students and the Script Competition for Emiratis, together with total prize money of AED 485,000.
The Festival features two main competitions, the Film Competition and the Script Competition.
The Film competition has 2 categories: Official and Students and is open to filmmakers and students from the GCC (including Iraq & Yemen), or filmmakers from across the globe with a film that showcases the region and its landscape. Entries in the Official Competition are invited in three categories: Feature Films, Short Films, and Documentaries. Students compete in short films and documentaries only.
The Script Competition is open to Emirati short film entries from UAE Nationals exclusively. All prize money goes towards producing the three winning scripts in the UAE.
More details on the prize money offered in various categories are available online at www.gulffilmfest.com.
The second edition of the festival, screened 169 films from 32 countries, and featured 47 world premieres and 18 international premieres.
GCC national filmmakers as well as directors of films that depict life in the Arabian Gulf region can make their submissions online at www.gulffilmfest.com until February 25, 2010. GFF is presented by Dubai Culture & Arts Authority in association with Dubai Studio City.
