During the activities of its 10th session, which will be held from October 22 to 28 at VOX Cinemas – City Center Al Zahia, the Sharjah International Film Festival for Children and Youth will present 81 films from 37 countries in the world, including cinematic performances from countries participating for the first time in the event. They are: the Kingdom of Bhutan, the Republics of Montenegro, Malta, Togo, and Vietnam.
The festival – organized by the Fan Foundation – will witness screenings of three films being presented for the first time in the world, in addition to 43 films being shown for the first time in the Middle East. It will also host the “Green Carpet” platform, which gives the audience the opportunity to meet and talk with filmmakers, etc. In addition to screenings of four cinematic films: “Exodus,” “Little Nicholas,” “She is from Another Planet,” and “Valley Road.”
This came during a press conference held by the “Fan” Foundation at Bee’ah Group’s headquarters in Sharjah, yesterday, during which Sheikha Jawaher bint Abdullah Al Qasimi, Director of the “Fan” Foundation and the festival, the theater director Mohamed Haji, and the First Vice President of Crescent Projects, Ghada Abdul Qader, spoke in the presence of a number of Journalists and representatives of media institutions.
In addition to an elite group of Emirati and international artists and directors, the festival will host speakers specialized in the field of the seventh art, who will present eight dialogue sessions discussing issues of the film industry directed at children and youth.
15 directors and film experts are participating in the festival, the most prominent of whom are Mohamed Haji, Ahmed Shawky, Cho Sung Ko, and Ghadeer Al-Sabti, to undertake the task of evaluating the films participating in the various categories of the festival.
Twenty promising arbitrators participate in judging the works submitted for the “Films Made by Children and Young Adults” category, including children and youth arbitrators participating for the first time from Syria and the Sultanate of Oman.
During this session, “Fan” celebrates the festival’s ambassadors, who constitute an inspiring role model for motivating children to discover the masterpieces of cinema. The list of ambassadors includes 17 children and youth, including: Alia Deaifis, Abdullah Al-Taweel, Majed Jumaa, Nour Saleh, and others.
Sheikha Jawaher bint Abdullah Al Qasimi stressed that the 10th edition of the festival promises the audience to go beyond what they expect, through a selection of the best films in the world and creative initiatives that enrich children’s knowledge and bet on their talents, as it succeeded in attracting more than 1,710 entries from 90 countries around the world. Some of them are participating for the first time in the festival, which reflects their status and influence on the global map.
Sheikha Jawaher bint Abdullah announced the launch of the “Sharjah Film Days” initiative, to celebrate the first decade of the Sharjah International Film Festival for children and youth, and it is designed exclusively for cinema lovers. The event includes a mix of film-inspired art installations, film screenings, workshops, panel discussions and accompanying events.
• 46 films shown for the first time in the Middle East.
• 3 films presented for the first time in the world.
