Passing the torch: A film festival that brought Qatar global recognition evolves

One of Doha’s more visible efforts to enhance its reputation as a hub for media and entertainment was, until recently, the Doha Tribeca Film Festival (DTTF). Established in 2009 as a vehicle to promote Arab and international films, the festival was staged in partnership with Tribeca Enterprises, the New York-based global media company founded by Robert De Niro in 2003. The presence in Qatar of star power such as De Niro and Kevin Spacey each year helped to place Doha on the film festival map. The partnership proved a fruitful one from the outset. In 2010, the DTTF showed 51 films from 35 countries over five days, and attracted 50,000 guests to its various screenings and events. By 2012, its programme had been extended to eight days, with both indoor and outdoor screenings and 87 films showcased. The festival was by then the premier event of the Doha Film Institute (DFI), a non-profit organisation established in 2010 by Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani.

Local Industry

While globally recognised stars did much to raise Qatar’s profile, the DTTF’s establishment derived from a more local ambition – the creation of a sustainable domestic film industry. Among the DFI’s founding principles, incarnated in the festival, is the nurture of local film talent. “Through the past four editions of the DTTF...we achieved our fundamental goals of creating a vibrant grassroots film industry in Qatar. We are thankful to [Tribeca] for their invaluable insights that helped elevate the film festival initiative of DFI to a truly global level,” Abdulaziz Al Khater, CEO of DFI, told the press in April. With the torch thus lit, the partnership between the DFI and Tribeca Enterprises has come to an amicable end. The DTTF will now give way to a new festival programme that aims to build on its success and increase the focus on local and regional production. “We are defining a new niche for the film festival,” said Al Khater. “It will serve as a platform for strengthening a home-grown film industry as well as continue to build our international relationships to promote Qatar as a cultural hub.”

New Festivals

The DFI used the Cannes Film Festival 2013 as a platform to announce details. Two new festivals jointly replace the DTTF. The first, Ajyal Youth Film Festival, took place November 26-30, 2013, and builds on the DFI’s work in community-based programming. It is intended to provide opportunities for younger filmmakers to interact and hold discussions.

The second, the Qumra Film Festival – which draws its name from the putative root of the word “camera”, itself coined by the inventor of camera obscura, Ibn Al Haytham – will follow in 2015. New talent is a theme. A festival “committed to exploring the imagination and visions of upcoming directors,” the eight-day event centres on international competitions for first- and second-time filmmakers. “In Qatar, the desire among the young to showcase their ideas through film is increasing. There is a hunger present now we have not seen before, and we will continue to nurture the people who want to be a part of the filmmaking process,” Khater told OBG. Awards are adjudicated by international panels. The “Made in Qatar” category is central, and carries on the DTTF’s tradition of allotting space specifically for local productions. The out-of-competition sections will include the works of contemporary filmmakers of both new and established talent. Festival days will include master classes, workshops and panels, and the Doha Projects Initiative will bring in the winners of DFI grants to mingle with producers and other industry players.

Other Activities

The DFI’s other activities continue apace. It runs education programmes, facilitates film financing, links industry professionals for co-production activity and helps form cultural partnerships with organisations such as Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Foundation. Much of the attention of the regional film industry, however, will be focused on its new festivals. Like their predecessor, their potential to grow the GCC’s film industry is vast.