مؤسسة الدوحة للأفلام | |
![]() Doha Film Institute logo | |
Formation | 2010 |
---|---|
Founder | Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani |
Type | Nonprofit |
Purpose | Celebration and support of the film industry, especially in Qatar |
Location | |
Services | Film mentorship, funding, film festivals |
CEO | Amanda Palmer (2010-2012) Abdulaziz Al-Khater (2012-2014) Fatma Al Remaihi (2014-present) |
Website | Official website |
Doha Film Institute (DFI) is a nonprofit cultural organisation established in 2010 by Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani to support the growth of the Qatari film community and to provide funding and international networking opportunities to creators. [1] [2] DFI hosts two major film festivals, Ajyal Film Festival and Qumra, each year. [3] Since its inception, DFI has financially supported more than 600 projects from development through post-production. [4]
Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani founded DFI in 2010 to support the Arab film industry, especially in Qatar, as well as creators abroad. [5] [1] [6] [7] [2] In support of the organisation's mission, Al Remaihi, CEO of DFI beginning in 2014, said: "I believe that film as a medium is strongly related to the rich storytelling tradition of the Arab world." [2] Sheikha Al-Mayassa remains involved by being a chairperson for the organisation. [8] Amanda Palmer was DFI's first CEO until stepping down in July 2012 [9] to start a talent and production company. [10] DFI board member Mansour Ibrahim Al-Mahmoud served as acting CEO until banking executive Abdulaziz Al-Khater became CEO that October. [11] [6] [12] Under Al-Khater, DFI split from its partnership with the Tribeca Film Festival, thus ending the Doha Tribeca Film Festival (DTFF). [13] The organisation also saw major reductions in both cultural activities and staffing due to financial problems. [14] The Ajyal Film Festival (2013) and Qumra Film Festival (2014) were launched to replace the DTFF. [3] Fatma Al Remaihi became Acting CEO in August 2014 following his resignation, and permanent CEO in December. [15] [16] [17] [2] [18] Al Remaihi joined DFI in 2009 and was cultural advisor to the first DTFF, as well as DFI's Director of Programmes. [17] In May 2022, she received the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres award from the French government in recognition of her work with DFI. [17] [19]
In 2012, students from Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q) were invited to create short films for the Made in Qatar segment of the DTFF. NU-Q faculty, such as Joe F. Khalil, Tim Wilkerson, Khaled Hroub, Justin Martin, and Scott Curtis, led discussions and panels at the event. [12] In 2013, DFI announced the creation of a $100 million feature film fund in collaboration with Jeffrey Skoll's production company Participant Media though no films were supported and the fund was later cancelled. [7] [14] In 2019, DFI collaborated with the Mumbai Academy of the Moving Image to host the Qatar-India Year of Culture event. [20] In 2022, to celebrate the FIFA World Cup being held in Qatar, DFI and the Qatar Football Association started the Football Filmmaking Challenge, which invited creators ages 18 to 25 to make short films about football. [21]
In 2009, a pre-launched DFI teamed up with Tribeca Enterprises to start the Doha Tribeca Film Festival. [10] [22] Then-CEO Amanda Palmer was program director for the first three festivals. [10] [23] This festival aimed to continue developing Qatar's film industry. [7] [22] The Made in Qatar series present at the DTFF was later shifted to the Ajyal Film Festival. [12] [18] The session at the 2012 DTFF saw the largest number of films yet presented in this series, including 15 world premieres. [12] The final edition of the festival took place over eight days in 2012 just prior the partnership between the two organisations ending following Palmer's departure from DFI and its replacement with the Ajyal and Qumra festivals under Al-Khater. [7] [6] [14] [24] [22]
The Ajyal Film Festival was launched in November 2013 to showcase family-friendly films from around the world "designed to nurture minds across generations and support the development of thoughtful future leaders." [25] [1] [3] [26] Ajyal takes places over six or seven days in October or November each year. [25] [26] [1] Amid shutdowns and increased safety measures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 edition was conducted in a hybrid format with both online and in-person film screenings. [27] [26] The festival is unique in that its film jury consists of DFI members between ages 8 and 25 who take part in post-viewing discussions and vote for each year's winning films. [28] Those chosen by the jury are given funding for their next film. [25] Jurors themselves are divided into three groups: Mohaq (ages 8–12), Hilal (ages 13–17), and Bader (ages 18–25). [25] In 2021, more than 500 jurors from more than 40 countries participated. [25] In addition to evaluating each film in general, the jury looks specifically at how the film's message can "bring about social change." [2] Ajyal has annual themes as well that lend inspiration to its filmmakers. The 2021 theme was "Press Play," which focused on "mov[ing] forward out of pause mode and rekindl[ing] people's passion for play, exploration, and discovery through shared cultural experiences." [26] The festival also has a Made in Qatar session that showcases short films by Qatari creators. [18] In 2020, Made in Qatar was held drive-in style in Lusail. [29] In addition to the film screenings, Ajyal hosts several special events, including exhibitions, concerts, workshops, installations, live performances, panels, and family activities during the festival. [1] [30]
The Qumra film platform started in March 2014 as a way to showcase up-and-coming filmmakers. [3] [31] In addition to screenings, the festival holds masterclasses and discussions with industry professionals who help guide new filmmakers to making the content of their film internationally accessible. [32] Since its inception, Qumra has evolved beyond the event itself into an "online portal, digital event space, and resource hub, and a unique incubator intended to assist first- and second-time filmmakers from around the world." [2] The 2022 edition of Qumra was held virtually. [33] After being held online from 2020-2022, the 2023 Qumra Film Festival was held in Person again and featured 44 films of which 13 were from Qatar itself. [34] [35]
Focus on Qatar was a 3-day festival meant to showcased films and filmmakers from Qatar. The festival was held at the MIA, featured over 15 short movies and was opened with a screening of Clockwise, which was Qatars first feature-length movie. [36] The festival was held again in 2016 and showcased seven short documentaries by Qatari filmmakers at the MIA. [37]
In 2021, the youth jurors from the Ajyal Film Festival [38] started the free-to-join Ajyal Film Club for people ages eight to 25. [28] [39] Following a viewing of the selected films, which are available on at least one popular streaming platform for accessibility, jurors discuss the films. [39] The club was established to "put the spotlight on pressing global concerns and rally youth dialogue around them through the medium of film." [28] Previous topics include environmental concerns seen through the lenses of The Lorax , Chasing Coral , and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind , and the Israeli–Palestinian conflict with a focus on Palestine through The Present , My Neighbourhood, and 200 Meters . [28]
In addition to its film festivals, DFI hosts workshops, labs, and masterclasses for creators, including courses focused on screenwriting and producing. [40] [41] Classes are mentored by industry professionals such as Annemarie Jacir, Fx Goby, Patrick Doyle, Richard Peña, Julie Goldman, Ghassan Salhab, Sebastián Sepúlveda, Ahmad Abdalla, Hisham Zaman, Rithy Panh, Kamal Aljafari, Marietta von Hausswolff von Baumgarten, and Ryan O'Nan, who can help students move through the steps of film creation, from screenwriting and development to post-production and marketing. [42] [40] [18] Other events include Cinema Under the Stars, family-friendly outdoor film screenings. [43]
The DFI Grants program biannually awards creators with funding in both the spring and fall, aiming to "support initiative that identifies and nurtures first- and second-time filmmakers globally." [44] [45] As of May 2022, DFI has given financing to more than 650 films in 74 countries. [45] [4] Funding is granted through two arms: the DFI Grants Programme, which "provides development, production and post-production funding to filmmakers from Qatar" and new filmmakers globally, and the Doha Film Institute Co-Financing programme, which "invests in film production through strategic partnerships with film projects." [44] In 2020, DFI announced it would be funding a television show, Oddity Tales from a Strange Land, for the first time. [46] The same year, about half of the spring grants were given to women directors. [46] In 2022, ten films funded at least partially by DFI were chosen for that year's Cannes Film Festival. [15] Backstage, one of the five DFI backed movies shown at 80th Venice Film Festival in 2023, [47] won the Cinema & Arts award, [48] while at the Cannes Film Festival the same year, the lead actress of another DFI backed film, About Dry Grasses , was awarded the Best Actress award. [49]
Examples of films financed or co-financed by the DFI are Loving Vincent , The Prophet , The Reluctant Fundamentalist , The Salesman , Black Gold , Kanye West's Cruel Summer , The Attack , Capernaum , It Must Be Heaven , and Of Fathers and Sons. [2] [7] [50] [10] [51] [4]
On 18 February 2024, DFI announced a short film event, featuring films produced by local directors, under “The Made in Qatar Film Competition” banner. The two day competition began 20 February, with the awards being presented the next day. The event was open to the general public for four days following the announcement of the winners. [52]
Middle Eastern cinema collectively refers to the film industries of West Asia and part of North Africa. By definition, it encompasses the film industries of Egypt, Iran, Bahrain, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Palestine, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. As such, the film industries of these countries are also part of the cinema of Asia, or in the case of Egypt, Africa.
Amanda Palmer is an Australian-English media and film executive and international journalist, whose 18-year-career in film and media entertainment, content creation and entertainment platforms has spanned Australia, Britain, United States and the Middle East.
Arab cinema or Arabic cinema refers to the film industry of the Arab world. Most productions are from the Egyptian cinema.
QatarDebate, a member of Qatar Foundation and the National Debating Organisation for Qatar, is a civic engagement initiative which aims to develop and support the standard of open discussion and debate among students and youth in Qatar and the broader Arab world.
Doha is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the country's population. It is also Qatar's fastest growing city, with over 80% of the nation's population living in Doha or its surrounding suburbs, known collectively as the Doha Metropolitan Area.
Katara Cultural Village, also called Katara, is a cultural and commercial complex in Doha, Qatar, located on the eastern coast between West Bay and the Pearl.
Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani is the sister of Qatar's ruling Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and daughter of the country's former Emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and his second wife Sheikha Moza bint Nasser Al-Missned. Al-Mayassa was declared the most influential person in art on Art+Auction's top-10 list and ArtReview's Power 100, and prominently appears on the Time 100, and Forbes' The World's 100 Most Powerful Women. She was listed in the 'Top 100 most powerful Arabs' from 2014 to 2017 and 2021 by Gulf Business. Al-Mayassa serves as Chairperson of Qatar Museums, and it was reported by Bloomberg that her annual acquisition budget on behalf of the organization is estimated at $1 billion.
The Doha Tribeca Film Festival (DTFF) was an annual five-day film festival that was organised from 2009 to 2012 to promote Arab and international films, and to develop a sustainable film industry in Qatar. One of Qatar's largest entertainment events, it attracted over 50,000 guests in 2010.
Qatar Museums is a Qatari government entity that oversees the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA), Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, MIA Park, QM Gallery at the Katara Cultural Village, ALRIWAQ DOHA Exhibition Space, the Al Zubarah World Heritage Site Visitor Centre, and archaeological projects throughout Qatar, as well as the development of future projects and museums that will highlight its collections across multiple areas of activity including Orientalist art, photography, sports, children's education, and wildlife conservation.
Ashiq Khan
A growing number of film festivals are held in the Arab world to showcase films from the region as well as international standouts. In addition, institutions and organizations in other parts of the world are increasingly honoring the new generation of filmmakers in the Arab world with Arab film festivals.
The mass media in Qatar relays information and data in Qatar by means of television, radio, cinema, newspapers, magazines and the internet. Qatar has established itself as a leading regional figure in mass media over the past decade. Al Jazeera, a global news network which was established in 1996, has become the foundation of the media sector. The country uses media to brand itself and raise its international profile.
Qatar has been accused of allowing terror financiers to operate within its borders, which has been one of the justifications for the Qatar diplomatic crisis that started in 2017 and ended in 2021. In 2014, David S. Cohen, then United States Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, accused Qatari authorities of allowing financiers who were on international blacklists to live freely in the country: "There are U.S.- and UN-designated terrorist financiers in Qatar that have not been acted against under Qatari law." Accusations come from a wide variety of sources including intelligence reports, government officials, and journalists.
Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum is a privately owned museum located in the municipality of Al-Shahaniya in Qatar. Encompassing an area of 530,000 m2, the three-building museum was opened in 1998 by Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim Al Thani.
Iran–Qatar relations refer to the bilateral relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the State of Qatar. Iran has an embassy in Doha while Qatar has an embassy in Tehran. Qatar and Iran have close ties.
Qatar Sports Investments (QSi) is a Qatari-government operated shareholding organization founded in 2005 and based in Doha, Qatar. Revenues generated from ventures of QSi are reinvested into Qatar's sport, leisure and entertainment sectors. QSi is led by Chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi and Vice Chairman Adel Mohammed Tayyeb Mustafawi, and its board of directors has three additional members. According to Una Galani, QSi "is thought to be owned by the [Qatar] finance ministry and the Qatar Olympic Committee." QSi is subsidiary of Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), the state-run sovereign-wealth fund in Qatar.
Cinema in Qatar is a relatively young industry that evolved as part of the country’s plans to develop different local sectors with the aim of accumulating international recognition and status. Many major steps were taken to implement a long-term plan to develop the infrastructure as well as giving opportunities to local talents to have a platform that establishes their presence within the film industry with the support of the Doha Film Institute, and their various grants, workshops and festivals. The Qatar National Vision 2030 has three major pillars to development: human, social economic and environmental; this vision provides frameworks that enable the development of different elements within Qatar and its society; one of which is the high importance put on developing and cultivating artistic talents to represent and define Qatar on a global scale. Another important element in developing the movie industry is the influence and vision of Sheikha Al Mayassa who founded Doha Film Institution; the establishment of film as a mode of storytelling was imperative because it serves the purpose of granting Qatar a global presence through the talents that are supported and cultivated because of her initiative. The film industry plays a role in amplifying the Qatari national identity alongside the identity of the Arab world as a whole.
Al-Sit is a 2021 Sudanese drama short film directed by Suzannah Mirghani and co-produced by the director herself with Eiman Mirghani for Suzannah Mirghani Films. The film stars Mihad Murtada and Rabeha Mohammed Mahmoud with Mohammed Magdi Hassan, Haram Basher, and Alsir Majoub in supporting roles. The film is about Nafisa, a 15-year-old young woman, who is faced by an arranged marriage in a cotton-farming village in Sudan. The film qualified to enter the competition category for short films at the Academy Awards (Oscars), after winning the Grand Prix award at the Tampere International Film Festival 2021 in Finland. It has won 23 international awards, including three Academy Award qualifying prizes in 2021.
Suzannah Mirghani, is a Qatar-based Sudanese-Russian scriptwriter, researcher, and independent filmmaker. She is best known for the award-winning 2021 short film Al-Sit. Currently, Mirghani is an Assistant Director for Publications at the Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS) at Georgetown University in Qatar.
Giant Pictures is an American independent film distribution company founded by Nick Savva and Jeff Stabenau with offices in New York City and Los Angeles. The company releases feature films, documentaries and series on streaming platforms, with an emphasis on flexibility and customization for filmmakers. Giant Pictures owns and operates specialty theatrical label, Drafthouse Films. Giant is the distribution and technology partner of the Tribeca Festival.