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META Film Fest to showcase 70 movies from 25 countries in Dubai

Oct 7, 2022

META Film Fest, a new international festival launched by META Cinema Forum, the pioneering cinema convention for Middle East and Africa, will feature more than 70 films from 25 countries on October 27-29 at VOX Cinemas – Nakheel Mall at Palm Jumeirah, Dubai.

The award-winning curation for the UAE audience is composed of 9 world premieres, 43 Middle East premieres and 12 UAE premieres, and several special screenings, with numerous feature, animation and documentary and short films being screened having received multiple nominations and awards from other international film festivals.

District Terminal, an Iranian dystopian film, has received three nominations at the Berlin International Film Festival and “Best Film” nomination at the Festival du nouveau cinema and Sao Paulo International Film Festival. The Iranian crime thriller Holy Spider received a 15-minute standing ovation at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for Palme d’Or and MORE awards. Emily, a film depiction of the life of English writer Emily Bronte, has also been nominated at the Toronto International Film Festival and Sitges – Catalonian International Film Festival. French feature film Hard Shell, Soft Shell (Fragile) has received four nominations, including “Best International Feature Fiction” in the Beirut International Women Film Festival and “Best Feature Film” at Buzz IFF.

“META Film Fest is a platform to showcase quality local, regional and international films, as well as a catalyst for a larger film industry based out of our home ground in Dubai,” said Leila Masinaei, Festival Director and Managing Partner of Great Minds Event Management.

Great Minds Event Management, the organisers of META Film Fest, and VOX Cinemas, its festival partners, have announced an action-packed three-day global festival which will include international premieres, regional feature films, red carpet events with stars and talents from the Arab World, Hollywood, Bollywood and Nollywood, celebrity meet and greets, a Film Fund launch, an awards ceremony, afterparties, content markets and much more.

META Film Fest was first announced in May this year, welcoming submissions from film makers across the UAE, Middle East and the world. It is expected to play an enabling role in revamping the regional film industry and position it in the global entertainment map as a vital platform in which diverse content is presented to an even more diverse consumer market – a vantage point of the festival being held in Dubai.

A selection committee composed of film industry experts and critics has selected the best movies from all over the world. The 56 shortlisted films will then be judged by a jury of 7 to receive one of the 10 prestigious awards at the events Awards Ceremony on 29th October 2022. The Jury is headed by Nujoom Al Ghanem, an award-winning Emirati director, poet and artist. Supporting her is the Oscar-winning Spanish producer, Andrés Vicente Gómez and award-winning Iranian producer Kaveh Farnam with winning films from multiple international festivals including Berlinale. The other jurors are Iranian actress and director Pegah Ahangarani, award winning Turkish actress Neslihan Yeldan, Marta Svecova Lamperova and Elon D. Johnson. Tickets for META Film Fest screenings will go on sale on October 7 at voxcinemas.com.

Highlights of META Film Festival