(MENAFN- Arab Times) In the latest twist in the ever-changing Middle East film fest scene, the Dubai Film Festival has backpedalled on its recent decision to scrap the Dubai Film Connection, which is the only bona-fide co-production platform in the Middle East.
So, after skipping an edition last year, the Dubai Film Connection, which started in 2007, will return to the Dubai Film Market, organizers announced.
The announcement follows recent news of the shocking shuttering of the nearby Abu Dhabi Film Festival. Abu Dhabi's closure will certainly boost Dubai's role as a springboard for Arab Cinema, and may also strengthen the Cairo Film Festival, which is being relaunched.
"We're very excited to reinstate the Dubai Film Connection. The filmmakers and industry professionals wanted it back, and we listened," said DIFF managing director Shivani Pandya in a statement.
"By offering the right networking and support opportunities, the DFC opens doors for Arab talent to promote and develop their film projects, and it becomes a platform for producers and funds to find the best Arab projects ready for production," she added.
The statement did not specify whether new execs will be brought on board to run the Dubai Film Connection.
The event's market side is managed by Dubai Film Market manager Samr Al Marzooqi.
Industry expert Jane Williams, who set up the Dubai fest's Industry Office in 2009 and then grew the Dubai mart into the world's main mart for Arab cinema, and also a prime platform for Asian and African pics, left last year when Dubai Film Connection was scrapped. The Dubai mart's onetime chief, Pascal Diot, also left at that time.
Deal
Dubai recently zeroed in on local distribution woes for Arab pics by forging a deal with some of the region's biggest distributors, including Gulf Film, Empire, Front Row and Vox, under which they will release at least one locally produced film unspooling at the fest.
Also, reflecting a burst of promising new Arab productions at the Cannes market, Dubai and Cannes teamed this year on an Arab pics-in-post showcase which features five titles, comprising Jordanian first-timer Rifqi Assaf's VW minibus road movie "The Curve," co-produced by Rula Nasser's Imaginarium Films talent hub, and Film Clinic.
Also selected for the "Dubai Film Market Goes to Cannes" showcase is "Eclipse" (aka "Full Moon Night"), a drama about a disintegrating marriage, backed by Habib Attia's Cinetelefilms, one of Tunisia's top indie production shingles and directed by first-timer Fares Nanaa.
Image Nation Abu Dhabi has come on board to fully finance the Tom Hanks thriller "The Circle." "The Spectacular Now" director James Ponsoldt is helming the adaptation of Dave Eggers' novel.
IM Global is handling international sales on the film, which will be shopped at Cannes. UTA Independent Film Group and CAA will jointly rep US rights.
The film will be presented by Image Nation in association with Parkes MacDonald Productions. Hanks, Gary Goetzman for Playtone, Anthony Bregman for Likely Story, and Ponsoldt will produce.
Alicia Vikander ("Ex Machina") will also star alongside Hanks, with shooting starting this August in California.
Eggers' novel focuses on a young woman who's hired for a big job in an online monopoly called the Circle, which links users' personal emails, social media, banking and purchasing with their universal operating system.
The novel turns into a thriller about the perils of life in a digital age where privacy is obsolete.
Image Nation and Parkes Macdonald have also partnered on the upcoming feature documentary "He Named Me Malala," directed by Davis Guggenheim and to be released worldwide by Fox Searchlight.
Ponsoldt is repped by Brillstein Entertainment Partners and attorneys Andrew Hurwitz and Alan Sacks at Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz. Vikander is repped by UTA, Tavinstock Wood Management and Actors in Scandinavia.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.