The Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) closed its 12th edition on a high announcing a 10 per cent increase over 2014 with 55,782 members of the community attending the eight-day event.
The return of the Festival for 2016 has been confirmed to take place December 7 – 14 at Madinat Jumeirah, the home of DIFF.
With 134 films showcased from 60 countries, including 55 world and international premieres, 46 Mena premieres, 11 Middle East premieres and 17 GCC premieres, the 12th edition cemented its status as one of Conde Nast World Traveller’s Top 10 Film Festivals with overwhelmingly positive feedback from attendees.
The exceptional slate of films screened at DIFF’s 12th edition has received 21 Oscar nominations for the upcoming 88th Academy Awards and has won 1 Golden Globe, 8 Critics Choice Awards and 2 Screen Actors Guild Awards.
"The 12th edition of the Festival was an exciting event in which over 55,000 filmmakers and festival goers came together to share their love of film,” said DIFF's Chairman Abdulhamid Juma.
“The line-up of innovative and powerful films from the perspectives of filmmakers from over 60 countries touched our hearts, educated us, and provided a window into what makes people different, and also what makes people the same. Now more than ever cinema is the most powerful art form - an ideal catalyst for change, it plays a significant role to develop a better understanding and mutual respect for people from different cultures around the world.”
Marking a new level of industry engagement, the Dubai Film Market, the leading industry platform for Arab cinema and business epicenter of the Festival, saw more than 3,300 industry representatives, media and film professionals from 62 countries attend its panel sessions.
At the same time the Dubai Film Connection (DFC) returned to award $80,000 in funds and partnership opportunities to help regional filmmakers bring their work to the silver screen. It witnessed an impressive 336 meetings over three days and more than 1,400 attendees participating in forum sessions. – TradeArabia News Service
Dubai film festival sees 10pc rise in attendance
Ezzat Al Alayli receives the Lifetime Achievement Award
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