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Abu Dhabi Film Festival Opens Call for Entries for Its Fifth Edition
The Abu Dhabi Film Festival has opened its call for entries for
the fifth edition of the festival, to be held October 13-22,
2011. The festival accepts feature-length narrative and
documentary films for a variety of competitive and
non-competitive sections, as well as short narratives
and documentaries to be shown in competition.
While the total of its cash prizes remains at over $1 million,
ADFF's fifth edition will feature some changes in the awards
in its Narrative, Documentary, Afaq Jadida (New Horizons) and
Short Films competitions.The new awards structure will reinforce
one of ADFF's central aims of presenting the work of
international and Arab filmmakers together in competition on
equal footing. At the same time, Arab filmmakers
will have a greater chance of winning awards with more prizes
specifically for Arab films as well as additions to the
categories for which all competing films are eligible.
Among the additions in the above competitions are awards for
"Best Producer from the Arab World" and "Special Jury Awards."
The awards for producers aim to recognize and bring
attention to an extremely important component of filmmaking
that is still widely underappreciated in Arab cinema, the work
of creative producers. The jury awards will offer
a broader palette for the festival's juries to express their
views and celebrate achievements in filmmaking.
The new "Best Producer" award in the Shorts Competition
also acknowledges the significance of creative and daring
producers who take on the challenges of making short
films.
The Afaq Jadida (New Horizons) Competition, which was launched
in 2010 for first- and second-time narrative and documentary
features, will also see a modification to its format.
The competition will now include only narrative films in
order to make room for more fiction filmmaking from new Arab and
international directors. First- and
second-time documentary filmmakers, however, will still have a
place in the ADFF program with an award in the Documentary
Competition for Best New Documentary Director.
ADFF's environmental section What in the World Are We Doing to
Our World? will also become a competitive section with a prize
of $15,000, awarded to the film that shows the best potential
to broaden public awareness of environmental issues.The
Emirates Film Competition for short films from the UAE and
GCC countries will again present some of the Gulf's leading
filmmaking talent with an array of awards aimed at helping to
support the continued development of the local film
industry.
Additionally, the Showcase section, a panorama of outstanding
recent narrative and documentary features competing for the
Audience Choice Award ($50,000), will highlight important
contributions to filmmaking around the world today with
screenings of some of the best examples of international
cinema.
Films in the Special Programs section will include restorations
and retrospectives, as well as specially curated programs and
presentations focusing on exciting developments and trends in
filmmaking around the world.
Abu Dhabi Film Festival Awards
Narrative Competition
• Best Narrative Film ($100,000)
• Special Jury Award ($50,000)
• Best Director from the Arab World ($50,000)
• Best Producer from the Arab World ($25,000)
• Best Actor ($20,000)
• Best Actress ($20,000)
Documentary Competition
• Best Documentary ($100,000)
• Special Jury Award ($50,000)
• Best New Director ($50,000)
• Best Director from the Arab World ($50,000)
• Best Producer from the Arab World ($25,000)
Afaq Jadida (New Horizons) Competition
• Best Film ($100,000)
• Special Jury Award ($50,000)
• Best Director from the Arab World ($50,000)
• Best Producer from the Arab World ($25,000)
• Best Actor ($20,000)
• Best Actress ($20,000)
Short Films Competition
• Best Narrative ($25,000)
• Best Documentary ($25,000)
• Best Animation ($20,000)
• Best Film from the Arab World ($25,000)
• Special Jury Award for a Narrative Short ($15,000)
• Best Producer ($10,000)• Best Producer from the Arab World
($10,000)
Emirates Film Competition
• Short Narrative Competition
- 1st Prize (30,000 AED)
- 2nd Prize (25,000 AED)
- 3rd Prize (20,000 AED)
- Special Jury Award (25,000 AED)
- Best Emirati Film (25,000 AED)
- Best Script (10,000 AED)
- Best Cinematography (10,000 AED)
• Short Documentary Competition
- 1st Prize (30,000 AED)
- 2nd Prize (25,000 AED)
- 3rd Prize (20,000 AED)
- Special Jury Award (25,000 AED)
• Student Short Narrative Competition
- 1st Prize (20,000 AED)
- 2nd Prize (15,000 AED)
- 3rd Prize (10,000 AED)
• Student Short Documentary Competition
- 1st Prize (20,000 AED)
- 2nd Prize (15,000 AED)
- 3rd Prize (10,000AED)
What in the World Are We Doing to Our World?
• A prize of $15,000 will be awarded to the film that shows the
best potential to broaden public awareness of environmental
issues.
Showcase
• The Audience Choice Award ($50,000)
Submissions are now open for the fifth edition of ADFF, to be
held October 13 - 22, 2011, in Abu Dhabi. Narrative and
documentary features as well as short films in all genres will
be accepted until July 1, 2011, when entries close.
Complete information regarding eligibility is available at
www.adff.ae/submissions.
SANAD, the development and post-production fund of the Abu Dhabi
Film Festival, is also accepting applications for grants until
July 1, 2011.
Full information is available at www.adff.ae/sanadfund.
ABOUT THE FESTIVAL
The Abu Dhabi Film Festival (formerly the Middle East
International Film Festival) was established in 2007, with the
aim of helping to create a vibrant film culture throughout the
region. Presented each October by the Abu Dhabi Authority for
Culture and Heritage (ADACH) under the patronage of H.E.
Sheikh Sultan Bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, Chairman of Abu Dhabi
Authority for Culture and Heritage, the event is committed
to curating exceptional programs to engage and educate the
local community, inspire filmmakers and nurture the growth of
the regional film industry.
With its commitment to presenting works by Arab filmmakers
in competition alongside those by major talents of world
cinema, the Festival offers Abu Dhabi's diverse and
enthusiastic audiences a means of engaging with their own and
others' cultures through the art of cinema. At the same time,
a strong focus on the bold new voices of Arab cinema connects
with Abu Dhabi's role as a burgeoning cultural capital in
the region and marks the Festival as a place for the world to
discover and gauge the pulse of recent Arab filmmaking.
For questions regarding entries email entries@adff.ae or call +971 2
556 4000.
To contact the Press Office, email press@adff.ae or call +971 2 556
4590.
Contact thePress Team