It’s only March, but already 2014 is turning out to be a vintage year for French cinema in the UAE. The successful Cine 13 has brought thousands through the doors of Ibn Battuta Mall with its daily screenings of French films including Möbius and the Oscar-nominated animation Ernest et Célestine. Tonight, a second event is set to join the fray as the Francofilm Festival brings the best of French, francophone and world cinema to both Abu Dhabi and Dubai until Saturday.
This is the fourth edition of the Francofilm Festival in the UAE, although only its second time under the Francofilm banner.
“My aim is to promote French cinema and promote cooperation between Gulf filmmakers and French production companies,” says Mohamed Bendjebbour, the French Embassy’s regional audiovisual attaché for the Gulf region.
“I’m also dedicated to promoting francophone culture, because there are a lot of shared values across the francophone world.”
Local shorts showcase
Bendjebbour says that there are currently 75 countries in the Organasition Interntionale de la Francophonie. This, he adds, includes nations where French isn’t the main language but a significant French-speaking population exists, such as Egypt (hence this year’s inclusion of the Egyptian film Chaos, Disorder, in Arabic), as well as observer nations such as the UAE.
By way of reinforcing the fact that the aims of this festival go far beyond simply spreading French culture, Bendjebbour has another piece of exciting news about this year’s event to share. “For the first time, we are showing a locally produced short before every single film. It’s an opportunity to get the work of Gulf filmmakers out there to bigger expat audiences. We are about bridging cultures and that’s a two-way street, not just showing French movies.”
Linking France and the UAE
Warming to the subject, Bendjebbour adds: “More and more Emiratis are showing movies in France at the World Arab Institute. There are already two main festivals and a third one has just been created. I’m working on developing the shooting of French films in the UAE and attracting films here because the facilities are here.
“I’m also talking with [the Emirati director] Nawaf Al Janahi about a project he’s working on with a French link that I hope could become a French co-production – I think co-productions are a great way forward for this kind of cultural exchange – and just today I’ve been helping Emirati filmmaker Nujoom Al Ghanem to arrange a visit to Paris to screen at the Arab Film Festival.”
Screening highlights
As for the Francofilm Festival itself, the screenings will take place at Vox Cinemas in Mall of the Emirates in Dubai and Marina Mall in Abu Dhabi. These two cities will be featuring identical programmes of the nine main films (save for the opening night regional premiere of the Senegalese Des étoiles, which takes place in Dubai only).
Each city will have its own programme of Gulf shorts. The festival partner Abu Dhabi Film Festival has selected the Abu Dhabi programme, while Dubai International Film Festival has made the Dubai selections.
Today’s line-up features the premiere at 10pm, while films from Switzerland and Chad will screen tomorrow at 6pm and 9pm. Friday and Saturday will then add a 3pm screening, while special daytime school screenings of the French documentary On the Way to School, which follows the different journeys to school of children around the world, will take place throughout the festival. This acclaimed film is screening to the public during the Friday 3pm slot.
Bendjebbour says he is particularly pleased with this year’s programme as all the films are no more than one year old. All films have English subtitles and many have Arabic, and all public screenings are specially priced at Dh25.
[ cnewbould@thenational.ae ]
