Expo 2020 Dubai: Maha Adel
Anasi Media organized a panel discussion for the Emirati short film “Athel”, in cooperation with the Women’s Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai, as part of the activities and events of the cultural embassy of the United Arab Emirates to the Arab Organization for Education, Culture and Science (ALECO) of the League of Arab States.
The film is produced by Toster and Anasi Media Company, directed by Al Yazia bint Nahyan Al Nahyan, starring Hala Shiha and artist Mansour Al-Faili, and co-starring Ahmed Al Hosani and Haider Al-Lami, and filming by Alex Martella, producer of Afraa Al Marar outlet and Haifa Al Haidari. The film is distributed by MAD Solutions.
The panel discussion “Athel between Intuition and Empowerment” was moderated by Zikra Wali, director of photography, Alessandro Martella, producer Afra Al-Marar, assistant director Khadija Al-Qudsi, Alaa Karkouti, film distributor and chairman of MAD Solution Company, Dr. Ayat Makki, human development trainer and podcast maker, and Dr. Reem Metwally, Founder of the Zee Initiative, Curator of the Expo 2020 Women’s Pavilion.
The discussion dealt with the film “Athel” and the challenges it faced, in particular, the challenges facing female filmmakers in the Arab world in general, and the efforts and initiatives to support female filmmakers.
Producer Afra Al-Marar said about “Athel”: “This film is important because it originates from the Emirates, and brings together a multinational crew, and here it is going through international tours and experiences through festivals and competitions, which is an honorable matter.”
Assistant director Khadija al-Qudsi said: “It is important to revive our Arab heritage among the younger generations. Before we started shooting, we worked a lot on writing and researching the smallest details.”
Alessandro Martella, director of photography, explained that the weather was one of the biggest challenges he faced in shooting the movie “Athle.” He said: “Filming this movie was a somewhat different experience, and I can say in general that filming in the desert is a blessing, but it is very difficult.”
He added, “The film industry is undergoing rapid change nowadays, and what I like most is that art has far-reaching horizons. There is no specific time for filming. You can shoot any story from 200 years ago, and even 200 years onwards.”
Alaa Karkouti, Chairman of the Board of Directors of MAD Solution Company, reviewed the recent successes that women have achieved in the Arab film industry, through his experience in distributing and marketing more than 350 films, about a third of them by women directors. And the company’s role in distributing short films.
Dr. Ayat Makki said: “Women in cinema need someone to push them to highlight this creativity, as a human development coach and podcast maker: Women are creative by nature, giving life to others.”
Poetry to communicate the idea
On the sidelines of the press conference held on “Athel”, the film’s distributor, Alaa Karkouti, said: “The film is characterized by an experimental character and carries a subjective vision, and the traditional form of commercial films does not apply to it, in addition to that it uses poetry as an important tool for communicating the idea, and dominates the film crew. The female character, directed and produced by the Emirati, and its main feature in the self-vision of the director of the work, Sheikha Al-Yazia bint Nahyan, where she filmed in the desert of the Emirates.”
special choice
Khadija Qudsi, a filmmaker, who is the assistant director of the film, says about the scenes of the work and the choice of filming locations: “The choice of filming locations was distinguished, and we made a great effort in choosing the right place and the right color for the sand.”
The film’s producer, Afra Al-Marar, expressed her happiness with her participation in the film, saying: “The duration of the film is 15 minutes, and it gathers creative talents in front of and behind the screen from different Arab countries, and the desert element brings together all Arabs.”
prize
The film “Athel” has won several international awards, the most important of which are the Achievement Award at the Berlin Flash Festival, the Golden Remy Award at the Houston Film Festival in America, the Best Film Award in the “Emirati Falcon Short Competition” at the Al Ain Film Festival, and the Independent Short Film Award in Los Angeles. In America, an award from the Calcutta International Film Festival in Calcutta, India and many others, for presenting a new proposal in the form of a light fantasy drama about the story of the famous pre-Islamic poet Tarfa Ibn al-Abed, or the murdered boy, as he became known throughout history.
The events of the film revolve around the poet Tarfa and Salma, a famous presenter, who was chosen to present a program about the poet Tarfa bin Al-Abd.