By Raynald C Rivera
DOHA: Eighty films from 36 countries are taking part in the third annual Ajyal Youth Film Festival organised by the Doha Film Institute (DFI) from November 29 to December 5 at Katara.
Majority of the participating films comprise feature and short films vying for six awards in three categories namely Mohaq, Hilal and Bader. They will be judged by over 500 young jurors including 24 from 12 countries who will travel to Doha for the event.
Speaking at a press conference yesterday, DFI CEO and Festival Director Fatma Al Remaihi underscored the crucial role the festival plays in promoting critical thinking and deeper understanding of the world among young people by providing intern access to international cinema.
“We are very proud of this year’s programme and look forward to sharing this outstanding selection of films with our jurors. Each section is carefully curated based on the themes and cinematic language we feel will resonate with each age group. Our competition films are also part of our public programme and I am certain that Doha’s film-lovers will find a wealth of choices to entertain, enlighten and inspire,” she said. Around 60,000 people attended the event last year, Al Remaihi said, adding they have ensured this edition will provide greater content to the public.
Mohaq, which means ‘New Moon’ in Arabic, will see youngest jurors, aged 8 to 12 watch one programme of short films and four feature-length films including Celestial Camel(Russia), The Greatest House in the World(Guatemala, Mexico), Paper Planes(Australia) and Phantom Boy (France, Belgium).
Ajyal’s jurors aged 13 to 17 will choose the winning films in the Hilal (Crescent Moon) section which comprises a programme of short films and five feature films which includes Lamb (France, Ethiopia, Germany, Norway, Qatar), Landfill Harmonic (USA), Mina Walking(Canada, Afghanistan), Scarecrow (The Philippines) and Wolf Totem(China, France).
In Bader (Full Moon’) section jurors aged 18 to 21 will select their favourite films from two programmes of short films from five features including An (Japan, France, Germany), The Second Mother (Brazil), Taxi Tehran (Iran), Very Big Shot (Lebanon, Qatar), and Walls (Spain).
There is also the Bariq section which will see audiences under the age of 8 years vote for their favourite film with the help of their parents for the Parents’ Choice Award.
This year’s programme will also include an outdoor cine-concert on the Katara Esplanade by the Festival Tout-Petits Cinéma from Paris, with four films accompanied by live music by pianist Anthony Boulc’h and saxophonist FanchMinous.
Other features of the festival are ‘Made in Qatar’ section, SONY Cinema Under the Stars, family weekend, the Doha Giffoni Youth Media Summit, special events and exhibitions;,the Sandbox interactive digital playground and school screenings.
The Peninsula
