(MENAFN- The Peninsula) By Raynald C Rivera / The Peninsula
A record 103 films from 43 countries are participating in the fifth Ajyal Youth Film Festival, which will open with The Breadwinner — a film executive produced by Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie— Doha Film Institute (DFI) announced yesterday.
This is the largest number of films taking part in Ajyal since it started in 2013. The number of young jurors has also seen an increase from 300 in 2013 to 550 this year coming from more than 45 countries.
The six-day event, to be held from November 29 to December 4 at Katara Cultural Village, will feature 36 public screenings of the films, 18 screenings dedicated to the Ajyal jury, interactive panel discussions, red carpet events, and community-oriented activities for all ages.
Ajyal 2017 will open with the Middle East premiere of The Breadwinner by Nora Twomey and executive produced by Angelina Jolie. It is an animated Afghan tale of a young girl's will and determination and is based on the best-selling novel by Deborah Ellis.
Announcing the line-up, Fatma Al Remaihi, Chief Executive Officer of DFI, said: 'From its inception, the Ajyal Youth Film Festival has viewed film not just from the perspective of entertainment but as a medium that can bring about social change and transformation, especially among the youth. We had to address this important constituency, with young people aged 15 to 25 making up a fifth of the world's population.
'Through cinema, young people get a world-view of the times we live in, and gain fresh perspectives to examine humanity with greater understanding and empathy. Ajyal is a festival of cinema for the community, for all generations, she added.
Other highlights of Ajyal 2017 include the MENA premiere of Looking for Oum Kulthum from celebrated visual artist and filmmaker Shirin Neshat, Qatar premiere of Loving Vincent the world's first fully painted feature film, among others, along with world premieres of the next completed projects from the 2015 and 2016 Qatar Film Fund, Aisha Al-Jaidah's 1001 Days and Hamida Issa's Elevate respectively.
Among other features of this year's festival are a tribute to the late Kuwaiti actor Abdulhussain Abdulredha and a Made in Kuwait section as well as the Ajyal Creativity Hub which includes among others Geekdom a hub for music, games, competitions, talks and films and Ajyal Talks intimate and in-depth dialogues on relevant issues that impact youth across the globe.
Tickets for are available for purchase from November 15 for QR25 for general screenings online at www.dohafilminstitute.com and from Ajyal FNAC Ticket Outlet at FNAC (Doha Festival City). From November 18 tickets are available for purchase from the Ajyal Katara Box Office in Katara Building 12.
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