DIFF collaborates with Beirut DC to promote independent filmmaking in the region

Syrian filmmaker Afraa Batous’s feature Skin receives support from DIFF’s post-production programme Enjaaz

Dubai, 25 March 2015: The Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) is partnering once again with Beirut DC, a Lebanon-based organization that provides help and support to Arab filmmakers. During the inaugural edition of the Beirut Cinema Platform (BCP), organized 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 realizes 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 9th to the 16th 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 organizations such as Beirut DC, we can reach out to the creative community and help them realize their dreams thanks to the financial backing provided by DIFF’s Enjaaz programme.”