DIFF collaborates with Beirut DC to support Arab filmmakers

Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) is partnering once again with Beirut DC, a Lebanon-based organisation that provides help and support to Arab filmmakers. During the inaugural edition of the Beirut Cinema Platform (BCP), organised by Beirut DC, DIFF’s Enjaaz committee selected Syrian filmmaker Afraa Batous to receive post-production financial support for her documentary film Skin.

Skin follows Batous’s personal journey through vivid memories of two of her closest friends, Hussein and Soubhi, young men living in politically and socially trying times. Batous documents their gradual collapse which, as she realises later, reflects her own inner collapse.

The BCP jury also presented the Dubai Film Market Award to Meyar Al Roumi with his feature-length film project in development The Return. The prize will give Al Roumi the opportunity to present his project at this year’s edition of the Dubai Film Market which is DIFF’s industry arm that helps raise the visibility of Arab cinema at an international level. The market runs concurrently with the festival, which is scheduled to take place from the 9^th to the 16^th of December, 2015.

Shivani Pandya, DIFF Managing Director, said: “Many remarkable Arab films in post-production stages never see the light of day due to the shortage of funding and support available to regional filmmakers. Through collaborations with committed organisations such as Beirut DC, we can reach out to the creative community and help them realise their dreams thanks to the financial backing provided by DIFF’s Enjaaz programme.”