Dubai International Film Festival stars Hollywood greats, Bollywood icons

Hollywood greats, Bollywood icons, Arab superstars and all else in between will make their way to these shores as yet another edition of the Dubai International Film Festival (Diff) rolls out the red carpet for a celebrity-driven week.

The 12th edition of Diff, which kicks off today and runs until December 16, boasts a cinematic celebration of 134 films from 60 countries – including 55 world and international premieres, 46 Mena premieres, 11 Middle-East premieres and 17 GCC premieres.

Star-studded affair

What is a film festival without the stars?

Leading the way will be Hollywood biggies, including Oscar nominee Jake Gyllenhaal for an ‘In Conversation’ session on December 16, along with ‘Jaws’ star Richard Dreyfuss, Eva Longoria, Melanie Griffith, British actor Rupert Everett, ‘Creed’ star Michael B Jordan, ‘Suicide Squad’s’ Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Dev Patel and Jacob Tremblay are also expected to make their presence felt across the eight days.

Tremblay will represent his Opening Night film ‘Room’ at the Madinat Arena.

Meanwhile, Bollywood legend Naseeruddin Shah will also be joining Tremblay on the Opening Night red carpet to receive his Lifetime Achievement award, along with French-Tunisian actor Sami Bouajila, veteran Egyptian actor Ezzat Al Alayli and the Grande Dame of French cinema, Catherine Deneuve.

Later during Diff, Shah will be joined by Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Varun Dhawan, Kriti Sanon, Rohit Shetty, Bappi Lahri and Fawad Khan at a special felicitation event on December 12, while filmmaker Deepa Mehta serves as jury member, while Kalki Koechlin will represent her film ‘Waiting’ that she stars in alongside Shah.

Arab celebrities set to grace the red-carpet include Hend Sabry, Maged Al Masry, Menna Shalaby, Hala Khalil, Mahmoud Hamida, Assad Fouladker, Darine Hamzeh, Rodrighue Soleiman, Mohammad Khan, Maged El Kedwany, Hana’ Shia, Ahmad Dawood, Rami Sabry and many more.

Red carpet galas

Following opening night film ‘Room’, the screenings at Madinat Arena will kick off with the highly anticipated neo noir thriller ‘Zinzana’, from Emirati director Majid Al Ansari, on Thursday 10th December, and will be followed by Ayman Jamal and Khurram H. Alavi’s animated creation ‘Bilal’, a visually stunning action-adventure film.

Friday 11th welcomes a triple bill of galas beginning with a Children’s Gala for Steve Martino’s ‘The Peanuts Movie’, which brings Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the rest of the gang to life on the big screen.

This will be followed by Peter Landes’ dramatic thriller ‘Concussion’, starring Will Smith, and Larry Yang’s Chinese drama ‘Mountain Cry’, which will close the day.

Taking place on Saturday 12th, Diff’s second Children’s Red Carpet Gala begins proceedings with Thale Persen’s festive family film ‘Valley of Knights; Mira’s Magical Christmas’.

Director Matt Brown’s inspirational biopic ‘The Man Who Knew Infinity’, starring Dev Patel and Jeremy Irons will follow, and the day will be brought to a close by the suspenseful and dramatic award-winning film ‘The Clan’, by Argentinian director Pablo Trapero.

‘Halal Love’ – a compelling tragic comedy from Lebanese director Assad Fouladkar – will screen on Sunday 13th followed by the comedy drama ‘Family Fang’, from acclaimed actor and director Jason Bateman, whose all-star cast includes Nicole Kidman, Christopher Walken and Bateman himself.

On Monday 14th, movie buffs will enjoy two screenings: ‘The Daughter’, a dramatic family thriller from director Simon Stone, starring Academy Award winner Geoffrey Rush; and the searing drama ‘Spotlight’ from Oscar nominated director Thomas McCarthy, starring Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton and Rachel McAdams.

Australian actor, director and writer Jeremy Sims’ heartwarming epic ‘Last Cab to Darwin’ and gripping drama, ‘Truth’, starring Robert Redford and Cate Blanchett from American director James Vanderbilt, will showcase on Tuesday 15th.

Special events and screenings

Diff also returns with free public screenings at The Beach, opposite JBR, that will include all the action of the silver screen and red carpet with eight nights of movie magic under the stars.

As well as screening a wide range of films from across DIFF’s line-up, the community will also play witness to cinema brought to life with live performances and interactive sessions from ‘Jaws’ director Richard Dreyfuss, Palestinian singer Mohammed Assaf – winner of the second season of Arab Idol and musicians from ‘Song of Lahore’.

Continuing its collaboration with VOX Cinemas, films from the festival’s 12 th programme will be screened from Thursday, 10 th December onwards until the Festival’s close across eight screens at Mall of the Emirates.

Diff also partners with Dubai Cares for the fifth year in a row to present the Global Gift Gala as the official Charity Gala of DIFF, with honorary Chair Eva Longoria and Founders Alina Peralta and Maria Bravo.

The Global Gift Gala will be supporting The Eva Longoria Foundation, Sunrise K Foundation and the Global Gift Foundation and takes place on December 12 at the Four Seasons Hotel, which will see ‘Empire’s’ Terrence Howard and Rupert Everett walk the red carpet too.
 
Business of cinema

In a statement, DIFF’s Chairman, Abdulhamid Juma, commented on the ongoing importance of the festival and the crucial individual contributions that aid in fostering the growth of cinema within the UAE and across the globe.

He stated: “To be celebrating the 12th edition of DIFF is an incredible achievement and a testament to how much the festival has progressed on a global scale since its inception.

“Diff also strives to nurture and foster growth in the industry and the festival has come to be recognised as a pillar for Arab cinema in the region.”

Dubai Film Market (DFM), the region’s industry platform, which runs throughout Diff, also returns to create new opportunities for filmmakers and film professionals to share their knowledge, make new connections and develop partnerships, enabling them the support they need to bring their projects to the big screen.

This year, film fans and festival-goers will have the opportunity to attend panel discussions and masterclasses at DFM, including a conversation with Netflix Chief Content Officer, Ted Sarandos.

Further highlights include the IWC Filmmaker Award, which offers a $100,000 cash prize to one winning filmmaker at an event hosted by ‘Supported By’ Sponsor and ‘Festival-Time’ Partner IWC Schaffhausen on Thursday, December 10.

Also carrying a $100,000 cash prize is the Ministry of Interior’s Cinema Award, which was established to identify and encourage talented scriptwriting that shines the spotlight on societal issues.

The award will be presented at the Muhr Awards ceremony on December 16 at the Madinat Theatre, which is held to reward the region’s pioneering Arab filmmakers.

Film fans can buy tickets from the Diff box office, which is open online at Diff.ae and at the box office at VOX Cinemas, Mall of the Emirates.

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