Mohannad Al-Bakri has been instrumental in rousing the country’s film industry from its slumber since assuming his position in 2009 through his development of the commission’s funding and training programs, as well as building local production capacity with the opening of Jordan’s first dedicated film studio complex. Under his guidance, Jordan has become a competitive and enticing destination for filmmakers through a combination of extraordinary landscapes, universally praised production services and its cost-effectiveness as a shooting location.
Mohamed Keblawi is a Palestinian Swedish director and producer, who has worked in television and documentary film production. In 2011, he founded the Malmö Arab Film Festival in Sweden, which is set on encouraging Arab filmmakers to find more opportunities to tell their stories and support Arab film projects. He also launched the MAFF Market Forum as part of the festival with the aim of supporting Arab film projects and helping them come to light. Keblawi is also the founder of Arab Cinema in Sweden — a company that works on the distribution of Arab films in Sweden.
Chiraz Latiri has greatly contributed to the development of the Tunisian film industry during the three years she served as General Director of the Centre National du Cinema et de l'Image. Latiri founded the SENTOO Program and created the Arab Film Platform, which launched as part of the Manarat Mediterranean Film Festival. The Arab Film Platform seeks to encourage and support film production in the region by offering networking and co-production opportunities to develop feature film projects made by emerging and professional filmmakers from the Arab world. She also created the Creative Digital Lab — a unique platform dedicated to young Tunisians involved in digital and creative industries. Additionally, she is the former Tunisian Minister of Cultural Affairs.
Mohamed Hefzy is an Egyptian screenwriter and producer with an evolving filmography of more than 40 feature films, including worldwide acclaimed titles such as CLASH, SHEIKH JACKSON, and YOMMEDINE. He is also the founder of Film Clinic and Film Clinic Indie Distribution and co-founder of Meem Creative Circle. Moreover, he served as the president of the Cairo International Film Festival for four years, presiding over its 40th, 41st, 42nd, and 43rd editions.
In their time managing the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF), Abdelhamid Juma and Masoud Amralla Al-Ali were constantly adapting along the way to create an indispensable Arab marketplace, project forum, and glittering showcase willing to shine a spotlight on films that ask controversial questions, while also showcasing Arab entertainment at its finest. In its heyday, the DIFF held the largest film market in the Arab World, attracting regional and international distributors and sales agents from across the globe.
