Malmo Arab Film Festival - festival report 2014

 ”Malmo Arab Film Festival has become a part of the history of our city Malmo”

With these words Kent Andersson, chairman of the municipal executive board, greeted everyone welcome to the closing ceremony with the invitation by the city of Malmö, on September 30th at the Town Hall, of the fourth edition of Malmo Arab Film Festival - MAFF. 

Malmo Arab Film Festival 2014 took place between 26-30 September and gathered over 90 international guests from all over the Arab world, and presented more than 120 features, shorts and documentaries - an amazing number, which we even hope to raise in our fifth festival edition. Malmo Arab Film Festival is an unique festival - the only festival in Scandinavia for Arabic cinema and culture, and since 2013 the biggest and most acknowledged in Europe. 

The festival opened September 26 with Red Carpet ceremony at Cinema Spegeln, Malmo. Arabic film celebrities like Khaled Abou Naga, Diamand Abou Abboud, Hesham Abdel Hamid and Farida Benlyazid walked along the Red Carpet to attend the Nordic premiere of ”Factory Girl” (2013, Mohamed Khan). Click here to watch pictures from the Red Carpet. Swedish National Television (Sveriges Television) broadcasted the Red Carpet ceremony live at their website, click here to watch it. After the screening the festival held an honoree ceremony opened by the cultural director of the city of Malmö, Elisabeth Lundgren, and the festival director, Mouhamad Keblawi, at Scandic Triangeln for the festivals three honoree guests, Mohammed Malas, Jihad Abdo and Touria Alaoui. 

This year's edition of MAFF introduced a number of new film sections in the program. ”Immigration Films”, with focus on exile, migration and integration, as well as ”North Films” with focus on Arabic film makers from Scandinavia and questions about Arabic culture and identity in the Nordic context, is two of our new festival selections. MAFF 2014 altogether presented 7 official film selections. 

The festival even introduced two workshops - Hear Our Voices and Films from North. In Hear Our Voices a number of Jordan young female filmmakers met Swedish young female filmmakers with the premise to create a platform for democracy, equality and especially the position of women in the film market and culture. In Films from North a number of Nordic young filmmakers met with the premise to fortify their belonging and their knowledge about the film market, distribution and screening. The workshops crystallized into a number of short films which will be screened during the upcoming events of Malmo Arab Film Festival.

Parallell with the main festival in Malmo, we also presented altogether four film festivals outside of the city in Helsingborg, Kristianstad, Landskrona and Rosengård. Most of our international guests visited the surrounding festivals and were very intrigued to experience the Swedish countryside and the Region of Scania.

MAFF now glances back at altogether four successful editions of the festival, and forward towards an upcoming eventful year. Over the next twelve months MAFF goes on a nationwide festival tour to twelve Swedish cities with the project Arab cinema on tour - for diversity and tolerance. The tour started with Helsingborg, Kristianstad and Landskrona, and will visit Borås and Göteborg 20-23 October, and Växjö and Norrköping 21-24 November. 

We have once again experienced the power of the film medium and the Arabic film in the festival context of Malmo Arab Film Festival - a medium that can cross all borders and be a cultural tool for tolerance and diversity and a better world. Malmo Arab Film Festival is a part of the city of Malmo, and will continue to make history.

Welcome back next year!

MAFF 2014 proudly presented 14 awards for features, shorts and documentaries. Awards were handed out by Kent Andersson, chairman of the municipal executive board and the festival director Mouhamad Keblawi. The following films, actors and filmmakers received a MAFF Award at the Awards Gala and closing ceremony at the Town Hall of the city of Malmo, September 30th 2014. Click here to watch photos from the Award Gala.

Best Feature film Award: ”Adios Carmen” directed by Mohamed Amin Benamraoui from Morocco

Special Jury Award for Feature Film: ”Stable Unstable” directed by Mahmoud Hojeij from Lebanon

Best Director Award: Hani Abu Assad film ”Omar” from Palestine

Certificate of Appreciation: Director Ayten Amin´s film ”Villa 69” from Egypt

Best Actor Award: Adam Bakri for his role in ”Omar” film directed by Hani Abu Asaad from Palestine

Best Actress Award: Yasmin Raeis for her role in ”Factory Girl” film directed by Mohamed Khan from Egypt

Best Scenario Award: Diamand Abou Abboud, Nicolas Khabbaz, George Khabbaz for (Void) from Lebanon

Best Director of Photography Award: Joud Gourani for ”Ladder to Damascus” directed by Mohamed Malas from Syria

Best Documentary Film Award:

Documentary ”War Reporter” directed by Amin Boukhris from Tunisia

Special Jury Award for Documentary Film:

Documentary ”Wahdon” directed by Fajer Yakoub from Palestine and Lebanon

Best Short Film Award: ”Troubled Waters” directed by Toufic khreich from Lebanon

Special Jury Award for Short Film: ”Get Married” directed by Ismahane Lahmar from Tunisia

Certificate of Appreciation: ”Cotton” directed by Luay Fadel from Iraq

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Alarabi Documentary Award: 

Documentary 

”Scheherazade’s Diary”directed by Zeina Daccache from Lebanon

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MAFF TOUR DATES

Arabisk film på turné

-för månfald och tolerans

• Arab Film Festival Borås  20-21 october at Brygghuset + Röda Kvarn
• Arab Film Festival Göteborg 22-23 october at Bio Roy + Bio Capitol
• Arab Film Festival Växjö 21-22 november at Palladium
• Arab Film Festival Norrköping 23-24 november at CNEMA

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