Signalling the vibrancy of a strong national film industry, the 7th Ajyal Film Festival, presented by the Doha Film Institute (DFI), began yesterday at Karata Cultural Village with great fanfare. The film festival is designed to bring Qatari citizens and residents and their communities together through screenings and film-related events. Over 450 jurors from 45 countries are part of the internationally acclaimed jury program to view, discuss and evaluate the films showcased at the festival and discover cinema as a medium of global positive change.
Addressing the assembled jurors on Sunday, H E Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad Al Thani, Chairperson of the Doha Film Institute, said: “Ajyal is more than just films. It is a journey that will stay with you forever - the people you meet and the things you see will not end with the festival, but in fact, encourage you to continue to carry forward the spirit of what you learn over the next six days. Qatar’s film industry will rise with our youth, so I encourage you to rise to this occasion and take this opportunity to learn together and become part of a global movement of youth that are making a difference.”
In all, 96 films from 39 countries that demonstrate the power of storytelling to transform minds will be featured at the film festival under the theme “Find Film, Find Life”. Fatma Hassan Alremaihi, Festival Director and Chief Executive Officer of DFI, said: “Films allow us to escape our daily lives to visit fascinating new worlds. As we discover ourselves in characters and stories and find more similarities than differences, we find the great value of our own realities. Ajyal 2019 captures this very spirit of self-discovery with the theme ‘Find Film, Find Life’ to ignite a resounding celebration of cinema.”
The festival has been designed to give visibility to talented young filmmakers in the growing cinema industry in Qatar, showcasing their work and offering them exposure on the regional and international stage. The 2019 Made in Qatar programme will shine the spotlight on Qatari talents with 22 films, including the world premieres of next completed projects from the Qatari Film Fund recipients.
This year’s Ajyal Creativity Hub will include Qatar’s largest and one-of-its-kind pop-culture event Geekdom, Ajyal Talks which gathers leaders from film, art, television and technology for inspiring and insightful discussions, the new Ajyal Tunes which will shine the spotlight on the country’s underground music scene; and the ARC Exhibition celebrating the art of storytelling.
Marking the Qatar-India 2019 Year of Culture will be a Made in India section comprising a selection of short films curated by Mumbai Academy of Moving Images. Ajyal 2019 is expanding its public screenings beyond Katara to include screenings at Novo Cinemas in The Pearl Qatar, VOX Cinemas at Doha Festival City and the Museum of Islamic Art Park.
