15 Partners

Accompanied by 15 partners (institutions, companies and film festivals), Arab Cinema Center (ACC) sets off at the 75th edition of Cannes Film Festival, with numerous activities that include screenings, awards for film projects, discussion panels and Happy Hours.

The partners who joined ACC at the Festival include: (in alphabetical order): Arab Radio & Television (ART) (Saudi Arabia), Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) (Egypt), El Gouna Film Festival (Egypt), Film Clinic (Egypt), Film Lab: Palestine (Palestine), IEFTA (Monaco), Iraqi Cinema (Iraq), Lagoonie Film Production (Egypt), MAD Solutions (Egypt, UAE, Lisbon), NEOM (Saudi Arabia), Telescope Film (USA), The Film Verdict website (USA), The Imaginarium Films (Jordan) The Royal Film Commission (Jordan), and Tripoli Film Festival (Lebanon).

The Critics Awards For Arab Films

During the events held on the sidelines of Cannes, ACC announced the winners of the 6th Critics Awards for Arab Films in a ceremony held in partnership with IEFTA and MAD Solutions.

Best Film: Feathers | Director: Omar El Zohairy | Egypt

Best Actor: Ali Suliman | Film: Amira | Palestine

Best Actress: Maisa Abd Elhadi | Film: Huda’s Salon | Palestine

Best Director: Omar El Zohairy|Film: Feathers| Egypt

Best Screenplay: Ahmed Amer – Omar El Zohairy | Film: Feathers | Egypt

Best Documentary: Little Palestine: Diary of A Siege | Director: Abdallah Al-Khatib | Palestine/ Lebanon

The Achievement Award For Film Critics

In parallel to The Critics Awards For Arab Films ceremony, ACC presented the Achievement Award for Film Critics to Ziad Khuzai And Jay Weissberg, in appreciation of their inspiring careers in film criticism.

Arab Cinema Magazine

ACC will also revealed its 15th edition of the Arab Cinema Magazine, which includes the 101 Most Influential Personalities in the Arab Film Industry (Cannes 101), 75 Years of Palestinian Cinema, and Women in Film Industry campaigns.

Cannes 101

Arab Cinema Center has released the 101 Most Influential Personalities in the Arab Film Industry (Cannes 101) through its official website, which will be presented at the new edition of Arab Cinema Magazine as part of the center's hectic schedule during the Cannes Film Festival. The list celebrates and recognizes the year's most prominent people in the Arab film industry.

Neom Keynote

As part of Cannes Next, Neom gave a keynote, on May 21, about the shooting locations in the Arab world. Neom is the first of its kind futuristic city in Saudi Arabia. With practical and breath-taking locations, highly competitive production incentives and a seasoned team of industry production professionals, it offers a center for entertainment and artistic creativity with focus on films, TV series, games and digital publishing.

IEFTA Screenings

IEFTA organized screenings that shed light on refugees worldwide. Followed by a Q&A session with the film’s directors and the UN representatives, the first screening was held on Saturday, May 21, while the second one was on Sunday, May 22.

Hefzy in a Panel Discussion

Organized by the Saudi Film Commission Conference, Producer and Screenwriter Mohamed Hefzy (Film Clinic) participated in a panel about Arab cinema on May 21. Moderated by Film Analyst Liz Shackleton, the panel included Producer, Director and Writer Aymen Khoja and Producer, Director and Writer Lotfy Nathan.

Arab Cinema Center sends three producers to Rotterdam Lab.
Continuing to support Arab cinema, the Arab Cinema Center revealed selecting Saudi film producer Mohammed Alhamoud, the Jordanian Rand Beiruty and the Iraqi Ali Raheem to be part of the Rotterdam Lab (1- 5 February) held within the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR).

Six ACC Partners Present Awards at El Gouna Film Festival

Six partners of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) have presented awards at the El Gouna Film Festival during its fourth edition this year, and here is the list:

ART:

USD 10,000 prize went to Hajj to Disney by director Maha Al-Saati (KSA)

Lagoonie Film Production:

USD 10,000 prize went to the film project Seeking Haven for Mr. Rambo by director Khaled Mansour (Egypt)

iProductions:

USD 10,000 prize went to Bye Bye Tiberias by director Lina Soualem (Palestine)

Rotana:

USD 10,000 prize went to the film project Seeking Haven for Mr. Rambo by director Khaled Mansour (Egypt)

IEFTA:

IEFTA (International Emerging Talent Film Association) provides an opportunity for the winning projects to join its Global Film Expression initiative for the development and financing through an open access to its film development workshop and labs. The award went to Hamlet from the Slums by director Ahmed Fawzy Saleh (Egypt), and The Day of Arafah by director Ala'a Al Qaisi (Jordan).

MAD Solutions-Ergo:

The joint award offers distribution services across the Arab world with a guarantee of $30,000 for the filmmakers. The award went to Goodbye Julia by Mohamed Kordofani (Sudan).

ACC Partners’ Awards at Malmo:

MAD Solutions Award (USD 5,000 distribution minimum guarantee and USD 15,000 marketing services) for the "Communion" project directed by Nejib Belkadhi and produced by Imed Marzouk.

Elgouna Film Festival Award (USD 5.000) for the project "The Maiden's Pond", directed by Bassem Breche and produced by Jana Wehbe.

ACC Partners’ Awards

During Final Cut in Venice, MAD Solutions has announced that Algerian-French feature film project SOULA by director Salah Issaad won its award at the Final Cut in Venice, held on the margins of the Venice International Film Festival. The award offers marketing and distribution services across the Arab world to the winning film.
THE BLUE INMATES by Zeina Daccache won El Gouna Film Festival award, which is $5,000 and an invitation to participate in the industry platform CineGouna.

The Arab Cinema Center (ACC), The Royal Film Commission (RFC) and Telescope Film joined the virtual market of Shanghai International Film Festival

Through a virtual ceremony through Zoom platform, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) revealed the winners of the fourth edition of its Critics Awards for Arab Films during the Virtual Marché du Film. The award is submitted based on the voting of a jury of 141 members from across 57 countries. The critics have viewed Arab feature and documentary films produced in 2019 on Festival Scope.

An Initiative By The Arab Cinema Center And Telescope Film

Within the Virtual Cannes Market's events, and aiming to expand the scope of the Arab cinema's exposure internationally, Telescope Film announces the launch of ACC's microsite: https://telescopefilm.com/arabcinemacenter The site is a film guide for the Arab and international film audiences in the US to locate which Arab films are streaming on what platforms across the US.

For the sixth consecutive year, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) engaged in a wide-range of activities at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) accompanied by 15 of its partners that vary between film organizations and international film festivals. The ACC marked its sixth year at the Berlinale, which witnessed its first launch in 2015.

15 Partners

The partners who accompanied the ACC to the 2020 Berlinale (in alphabetical order): Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) (Egypt), Cinema 70 (Saudi Arabia), El Gouna Film Festival (Egypt), Eventival (The Czech Republic), Film Clinic (Egypt), Iraqi Cinema (Iraq), Lagoonie Film Production (Egypt), MAD Solutions (Egypt-UAE), Malmö Arab Film Festival (MAFF) (Sweden), Misr International Films (MIF), Rotana Group (Saudi Arabia-Egypt), Rowad Media (Saudi Arabia), The Imaginarium Films (Jordan), The Royal Film Commission-Jordan (RFC) (Jordan), and Tripoli Film Festival (Lebanon).

Arab Cinema Magazine the 13th

During the festival, the ACC released the 13th issue of its Arab Cinema Magazine, which features a section listing the Arab films selected at the 70th Berlinale, and a list of the 19 most important events in the Arab film industry in 2019, as well as an entire section covering everything about the upcoming edition of the Critics’ Awards For Arab Films and its jury committee that brings together 142 film critics from 57 countries.

Chiraz is the Arab Cinema Personality of The Year

The Arab Cinema Center selected Chiraz Latiri, former General Director of the Centre National du Cinema et de l'Image (CNCI), to receive the Arab Cinema Personality of The Year award, presented by The Hollywood Reporter. The award is part of the ACC’s strategy of promoting the Arab film industry internationally and supporting Arab filmmakers.

Screenings at the Market

During the festival, three films distributed by the ACC’s partners will screen within the European Film Market (EFM); Blue Elephant: Dark Whispers by director Marwan Hamed, which is distributed worldwide by MAD Solutions and Misr International Films (MIF), Between Heaven and Earth by director Najwa Najjar and Beyond the Raging Sea by director Marco Orsini, which are both distributed by MAD Solutions, in addition to a 25-minute screening featuring a sneak-peak of the Arab world's finest lineup, presented by Rotana Group, owner of the largest library in the Arab world, in cooperation with MAD Solutions.

Rotterdam International Film Festival

ACC Invited the producer and director Karim Rahbani to attend Rotterdam Lab 2020 as the ACC award for his film project Shameem at Cairo Film Connection in the Cairo International Film Festival 2019.

For the second year in row, ACC sponsored CID!

Cairo Film Connection (CFC) is held as part of the festival's Cairo Industry Days in partnership with Arab Cinema Center. Cairo Industry Days provides an important space for discussions, networking sessions, meetings, workshops, masterclasses and partnership opportunities between Arab talents and regional and international key industry professionals to further support Arab Cinema.

List of awards offered by Arab Cinema Center and its partners at the Cairo Film Connection (CFC):

Arab Cinema Center

Invitation to the winning project's producer to attend Rotterdam Lab 2020 went to Shameem by Karim Rahbani

Arab Radio and Television (ART)

$10,000 cash award for a feature-length project in development went to Leila and I by Maggie Morgan, produced by Shady Habashy

Iraqi Cinema

$5,000 cash award for a feature length project in development or post-production went to A House for Expats by Naji Ismail

MAD Solutions and Ergo Award

Distribution in the Arab World with $30,000 Minimum Guarantee for feature-length project in development or in post-production went to The Life and Times of Omar Sharif by Mark Lotfy and Axel Petersen, produced by Muhammad Taymour and Sigrid Helleday

Rotana Group

$10,000 cash award for a feature-length project in development or in post-production went to About Her by Islam El Azzazi, produced by Dina Farouk and Rina Khoury

Six Awards from Arab Cinema Center's Partners to CineGouna SpringBoard Projects

Six partners of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) presented monetary awards to the projects participating in the CineGouna SpringBoard, one of the initiatives organized by the CineGouna Platform within the 3rd El Gouna Film Festival, which is also one of the partners of the ACC. The six partners: Arab Radio and Television Network (ART), Lagoonie Film Production, iProductions, Ergo Media Ventures, Art City, and Rotana presented their awards to projects that are in the development phases.

ART:

$10,000 to the film project Daughters of Abdul-Rahman, by director Zaid Abu Hamdan

Lagoonie Film Production:

$10,000 to the film project Severed Head, by director Lotfi Achour

iProductions:

$10,000 to the film project Straight to the Goal, by director Tamer Ashry

Ergo Media Ventures:

$10,000 to the film project Straight to the Goal, by director Tamer Ashry

Rotana:

$10,000 to the film project Daughters of Abdul-Rahman, by director Zaid Abu Hamdan

Art City:

$5,000 to the film project Looking for Sa'adah, by director Areen Omari

Give Up the Ghost Wins El Gouna Star for the Best Arab Short Film

The Jordanian short film Give Up the Ghost won El Gouna Star for the Best Arab Short Film at the closing ceremony of El Gouna Film Festival. The award was received by the film's director Zain Duraie. This marks the festival's Arab premiere following its world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival.

You Will Die at Twenty Wins El Gouna Golden Star for Narrative Film

You Will Die at Twenty by Sudanese director Amjad Abu Alala has won El Gouna Golden Star for Narrative Film ($50,000).

Talking about Financing!

Rula Nasser (The Imaginarium Films) participated in a panel discussion about the art and science of financing which explored alternative sources of funding, and ways to build financing from several different sources.

The First-ever Arab Stand at the Toronto

Continuing to visit the world’s top film festivals and markets for the fifth year in a row, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) reserved its own stand at Toronto International Film Festival, marking the first-ever Arab stand at the history of the festival. Among 40 organizations representing their countries at the festival, the ACC’s stand at TIFF was sponsored by Lagoonie Film Production, Rotana Media Group, The Imaginarium Films, and MAD Solutions.

Arab Cinema Magazine

After being released at Venice international Film Festival, the latest issue of the Arab Cinema Magazine hit the stand's racks at the festival for the third year in row.

For the fourth year in a row, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) attended the Venice International Film Festival, along with nine of its partners. The 76th edition of the festival (August 28-September 7) witnessed extensive activities by the ACC and its partners.

The partners that accompanied the ACC to this year's Venice International Film Festival were (in alphabetical order): Arab Radio & Television (ART) (Saudi Arabia), ElGouna International Film Festival, Ergo (Egypt), Film Clinic (Egypt), MAD Solutions (Egypt, UAE), Sudan Film Factory (Sudan), Sudan Independent Film Festival (Sudan), The Imaginarium Films (Jordan), and WIKA for Film Production and Distribution (Egypt).

New Edition of Arab Cinema Magazine

During the festival, the ACC released the latest edition of its Arab Cinema Magazine at the 76th Venice International Film Festival. The new issue includes a special list of Top 50 Arab Screenwriters, in addition to a huge detailed profile on the history and the future of the horror genre in the Arab world.

Venice Production Bridge Reception

As part of the activities of the Venice Production Bridge, a reception was organized to welcome the festival's guests. The reception is sponsored by Connect4Climate, World Bank Group, Eurimages and the Arab Cinema Center.

Film Screenings and Awards

Furthermore, some of the ACC's partners screened their films in the festival's different competitions and sections. Arab Radio & Television (ART) screened its films A Son by director Mehdi Barsaoui in the Horizons section and its lead Sami Bouajila won the Best Actor Award, All This Victory by director Ahmad Ghossein in the Critics' Week section and won the Grand Prize and the Audience Award, in addition to the Best Technical Contribution award after transforming the sound into a sixth lead alongside the five main leads, that is in addition to You Will Die at Twenty by Amjad Abu Alaa in the Venice Days section, which is co-produced by Film Clinic and Sudan Film Factory another partners of the ACC, and the film won the Lion of the Future - "Luigi De Laurentiis" Venice Award for a Debut Film and the Advantage Award for being the most influential African film in the festival, in addition to a USD 100,000 grant by Filmauro.

MAD Solutions and El Gouna Awards

For the fifth year in a row, MAD Solutions offered its marketing and distribution award to one of the Arab film projects participating in the 7th Final Cut in Venice, and the lucky winner was Mica (Morocco) by Ismaël Ferroukhi, which also won El Gouna Film Festival a monetary award of 5000 USD and granted it a participation at its Cine Gouna Platform.

As part of its activities at international film festivals and markets, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) took part in the Manarat Mediterranean Film Festival in Tunisia, which ran from July 1-7, 2019. On Wednesday, July 3, the ACC held an event titled Circulation and Distribution of Arab Films in the World.

The event started at 02:30 PM and lasted for 4 hours. With the participation of several professionals, the ACC will present the Arab film industry market, its strengths and weaknesses as well as the existing opportunities in two panel discussions moderated by Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti (Arab Cinema Center and MAD Solutions).

The event opened with a presentation of the most remarkable figures of the film industry in the Arab world, followed by a panel discussion titled: Distribution of Arab Films in the Arab World that will bring together actors and producers Mahmoud Hemida and Elham Shahin, film distributor Lassaad Goubantini, distributor and producer Habib Belhedi, producer Habib Attia, distributor Ahmed Sobky, Jo Muhlberger (European Film Promotion), and Yahya Mguarrech (Artify).

The second panel discussion, held under the title: Support and Funding of Arab Films, brought together Chiraz Latiri and Mathieu Fournet (Centre National du Cinéma et de l'Image), director Yousry Nasrallah, producer Sarim El Fassi (National Centre of Cinema Morocco), Roberto Stabile (ANICA), producer Rashid Abdelhamid (Palestine Film Institute), producer Jad Abi Khalil (Beirut Cinema Platform), Nada Doumani (The Royal Film Commission Jordan),and director/ producer Marianne Khoury.

AT CANNES FILM FESTIVAL FOR THE FIFTH YEAR IN A ROW

For the fifth year in a row, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) launched its wide range of activities at the Cannes Film Festival in its 72nd edition. Accompanied by 15 of its partners, the ACC's activities varied between a film screening within one of the festival's competitions, the Annual Critics Awards ceremony, the Achievement Award for Film Critics and others.

The partners accompanying the ACC to the Cannes Film Festival (in alphabetical order): Arab Radio & Television (ART) (Saudi Arabia), Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) (Egypt), Centre National du Cinéma et de l'Image (CNCI) (Tunisia), Festival Ciné Palestine (FCP) (France), Film Clinic (Egypt), FilmLab: Palestine (FLP) (Palestine), Iraqi Cinema (Iraq), Lagoonie Film Production (Egypt), Ma3aml 612 Think Factory (Jordan), MAD Solutions (Egypt, UAE), Malmö Arab Film Festival (MAFF) (Sweden), Rotana Group (Saudi Arabia, Egypt), The Imaginarium Films (Jordan) The Royal Film Commission-Jordan (RFC) (Jordan), and Tripoli Film Festival (Lebanon).

LAUNCHING THE GOLDEN CANNES 101

For the second year in a row, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) launched The Golden Cannes 101: Global Arab Industry Names Who Matter in a Nutshell in its new issue of the Arab Cinema Magazine, which will be released at the 72nd Cannes Film Festival. The list has also been published online through acc.film.

The 100 Most Important Names in the Arab Film Industry includes names that either represent themselves or entities they work for. The names were all chosen for their contributions to Arab-language cinema in the past 12 months, which is why Arab names who participated in international films/TV series are not on the list. They are ordered alphabetically by first names, and grouped together alongside their immediate peers.

THE 11TH EDITION OF ARAB CINEMA MAGAZINE

The 11th issue of the magazine includes two sections highlighting the ACC's achievements in the past five years, as well as the 10 successful years for MAD Solutions.

The new issue also offers the list of nominees for the 3rd edition of the Annual Critics Awards, whose winners will be announced on the sidelines of the Cannes Film Festival. The winners were selected by 75 film critics from 34 countries from all over the world. The critics viewed Arab feature and documentary films produced in 2018 on Festival Scope, one of the ACC's partners. This issue also includes two sections about film critics Ibrahim Al Ariss and Deborah Young, who were announced as winners of the Achievement Award for Film Critics and will receive their awards at a ceremony held on the sidelines of the Cannes Film Festival. The section also features an article written by Ibrahim Al Ariss.

THE CRITICS AWARDS

ACC has announced the winners of its 3rd Annual Critics Awards, which were selected by 75 film critics from 34 countries from all over the world. The critics viewed the Arab feature and documentary films produced in 2018 on Festival Scope.

Winners of the 3rd Annual Critics Awards:

Best Actress |Maha Alemi | Sofia | Morocco
Best Actor |Mohamed Dhrif | Weldi | Tunisia
Best Screenplay |Meryem Benm'Barek | Sofia | Morocco
Best Documentary | Of Fathers and Sons | Director: Talal Derki | Syria
Best Director |Nadine Labaki | Capernaum | Lebanon
Best Film | Yomeddine | Director: Abu Bakr Shawky | Egypt

AND THE ACHIEVEMENT AWARD FOR FILM CRITICS

The Arab Cinema Center (ACC) has announced that the recipients of its Achievement Award for Film Critics this year are Lebanese Film Critic Ibrahim Al Ariss and American Film Critic Deborah Young for their inspiring careers in film criticism in the Arab world. Al Ariss and Young received their awards at a ceremony that was held on the sidelines of Cannes Film Festival.

Beirut Cinema Platform (BCP)

The ACC Award Went to ONCE UPON A TIME IN TRIPOLI – EL BASTARDIYA Film Project

As part of the 4th Beirut Cinema Platform (BCP) within its Fiction Film Projects in Development competition, Maher Diab, Creative Director and Co-founder of MAD Solutions and the Arab Cinema Center (ACC), presented the ACC Award to the film project Once Upon a Time in Tripoli - El Bastardiya by director Abdullah El Ghaly and producer Miftah Saeid. The award is an invitation given to the winning project’s producer to attend the Venice Production Bridge, held on the sidelines of the Venice International Film Festival.

Málaga Film Festival

Two Arab Film Projects Got Selected!

After it had announced call for submissions to Arab film projects for participating in the MAFF - Málaga Film Festival Fund & Co-production Event and the Málaga Work In Progress through its website, the Arab Cinema Center and Málaga Film Festival have selected the feature film project MONTREAL GIRLS by Canadian director Patricia Chica for the MAFF - Málaga Film Festival Fund & Co-production Event, and the documentary film project NOOM EL DEEK by Egyptian-American director Seif Abdalla for the Málaga Work In Progress.

Berlin International Film Festival

For the fifth year in a row, Arab Cinema Center (ACC) engaged in a wide-range of activities at the 69th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) accompanied by 20 of its partners that vary between film organizations and international film festivals. This year, the Berlinale witnessed the ACC's five-year anniversary, where it was first launched to the world back in 2015.

The partners who accompanied ACC to the Berlinale (in alphabetical order) are: Arab Film & Media Institute (AFMI) (USA), Arab Radio & Television (ART) (Saudi Arabia), Art City For Cinema and TV Production (Iraq), Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) (Egypt), Centre National du Cinema et de L'image (CNCI) (Tunisia), Eventival (Czech Republic), Festival Ciné Palestine (FCP) (France), Film Clinic (Egypt), FilmLab: Palestine (FLP) (Palestine), Lagoonie Film Production (Egypt), MAD Solutions (Egypt-UAE), Malaga Film Festival (Spain), Malmö Arab Film Festival (MAFF) (Sweden), Rotana Group (Saudi Arabia-Egypt), Rowad Media (Saudi Arabia), The Imaginarium Films (Jordan), The Producers (Egypt), The Royal Film Commission-Jordan (RFC) (Jordan), Tripoli Film Festival (Lebanon), and WIKA For Film Production and Distribution (Egypt).

Arab Cinema Magazine

During the festival, the ACC released the 10th edition of the Arab Cinema Magazine, which covers the ACC's achievements in the past years, along with a special section offering details on the Arab movie theater industry, including box-office statistics and the biggest movie theater chains. Besides, the new issue features an entire section covering everything about the upcoming edition of the Annual Critics Awards and the jury that is joined by new members, bringing 76 film critics from 34 countries together.

Arab Cinema Personality of the Year

The Arab Cinema Center gave the Arab Cinema Personality of The Year award to Screenwriter and Producer Mohamed Hefzy, President of the Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF), presented by The Hollywood Reporter. The award comes as part of the ACC's strategy of promoting the Arab film industry internationally and supporting Arab filmmakers.

Rotterdam International Film Festival

Arab Cinema Center (ACC) selected producer Amir El-Shenawy to attend the Rotterdam Lab after his feature documentary project The Fountain of Bakhchisarai by director Mohamed Taher won the ACC Award at the Cairo Film Connection (CFC). The award is an invitation given to the winning project's producer to attend the Rotterdam Lab.

Carthage Film Festival

The Arab Cinema Center (ACC) through the website, opened submissions to Arab film projects to take part in the 3rd LatinArab Co-Production Forum, held within the 29th Carthage Film Festival (JCC).

The LatinArab Co-Production Forum announced that 13 film projects have been selected to take part in its third edition. The final list of projects includes seven film projects from the Arab world, which will compete in the Forum's three categories: Fiction Pitch, Documentary Pitch and Work in Progress.

The selected Arab film projects in the Fiction Pitch include the Palestinian project Khsara by director Suha Araj, L'enfant Du Village by Lebanese-Brazilian director Daniella Saba, My Name Is Clara by Tunisian director Sarra Abidi and We Must Grow Tough, But Without Ever Losing Our Tenderness by director Samir Salem, who produces his project with Rula Nasser (The Imaginarium Films).

The two Arab documentary projects Beirut - Machu Picchu by Lebanese director Soula Saad and Supply Chains by Lebanese directors Mary Jirmanus Saba and Elizabeth Saleh got selected in the Documentary Pitch,while The Journey of the Others by director Jaime Villarreal Izquierdo was selected for the Work in Progress category.

Malmo Arab Film Festival

For the fourth year in a row, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) took part in the 8th Malmö Arab Film Festival (MAFF) in Sweden. Accompanied by 13 of its partners, the ACC gave its partners the opportunity to participate in the festival's different activities.

The partners who accompanied the ACC to the MAFF are: Arab Cinema in Sweden (ACIS), Iraqi Independent Film Center (IIFC), Centre National du Cinéma et de l'Image (CNCI) (Tunisia), Carthage Film Festival (JCC) (Tunisia), Bastille Tayran Film (Iraq-France), Beirut DC (Lebanon), Film Clinic (Egypt), WIKA for Film Production and Distribution (Egypt), iProductions (Egypt), The Imaginarium Films (Jordan), MAD Solutions (Egypt, UAE), Pan East Media (Jordan) and The Producers (Egypt).

ACC Partners Awards at MAFF Market Forum:

The $5,000 award offered by Arab Cinema in Sweden (ACIS) was given to the Palestinian documentary film The Smuggled Sperm by Sawsan Qaoud, while the $3,000 award by The Imaginarium Films was offered to the Egyptian feature film When We're Born by Tamer Ezzat. Additionally, the MAD Solutions Award, which offers marketing and distribution services in the Arab world to the winning film project, was granted to Fataria by Walid Tayaa.

And in MMF Jury:

The ACC's partners also joined as jury members for the festival's MAFF Market Forum. Chiraz Latiri,CEO of the Centre National du Cinéma et de l'Image (CNCI), and Producer Hani Osama, Founder and Managing Partner of The Producers, joined the jury of the MAFF Development Fund, while Abdallah Al Shami, Managing Partner and GCC Representative at MAD Solutions, served as a jury member of the MAFF Post-Production Platform.

Films by Partners:

The 8th MAFF witnessed the screening of six films distributed by MAD Solutions in its different sections. Besides, the festival will also screen several films produced by the ACC's partners, including Gunshot by iProductions and Film Clinic, The Guest: Aleppo-Istanbul by Pan East Media, The Journey by Iraqi Independent Film Center (IIFC), and Kiss Me Not by WIKA for Film Production and Distribution.

Toronto International Film Festival

9th Issue of ACC Magazine at Tiff!

Ahmed Malek represented our partner MAD Celebrity in TIFF and selected as one of TIFF's 2018 Rising Stars Programme!

Spotted! Special thanks from TIFF to Alaa Karkouti co-founder of Arab Cinema Center & CEO of MAD Solutions!

CIFF and Screen Buzz in Variety Dailies at TIFF!

ACC and 12 partners at Venice International Film Festival

As part of its strategy to promote Arab cinema internationally, Arab Cinema Center (ACC) joined Venice International Film Festival (29 August - 8 September) with extensive activities, in cooperation with 12 of its partners.

The participating ACC partners in Venice are: ART (Saudi Arabia), Cinema 70 (Saudi Arabia), Film Clinic(Egypt), Film Lab: Palestine (Palestine), iProductions (Egypt), Iraqi Cinema (Iraq), Lagoonie Film Production (Egypt), MAD Solutions (Egypt-UAE), Pan East Media (Jordan), Rotana (Saudi Arabia), The Imaginarium Films (Jordan), and The Producers (Egypt).

The Waiting Bench Film Projectby Suhaib Gasmelbari Wins MAD Solutions Award at the Final Cut in Venice

The Waiting Bench documentary film project by Sudanese director Suhaib Gasmelbari won the MAD Solutions Award at the 6th Final Cut in Venice workshop, held on the margins of the 75th Venice International Film Festival. The award offers marketing and distribution services across the Arab world to the winning film project.

The Waiting Bench tells the story offour Sudanese filmmakers, who have been close friends since more than 45 years, trying to inspire the love of cinema in a wounded country. One of their last heroic acts is to resuscitate a cinema theatre in Khartoum.The project is co-produced by Goi Goi Productions and Agat Films & Cie.

And Lagoonie Film Production Award goes to Certified Mail Film Project

While attending the Venice International Film Festival as one of the partners of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC), Lagoonie Film Production announced the feature film project Certified Mail by director Hisham Saqr as winner of its monetary award, €5000, within the festival's Final Cut in Venice workshop. Lagoonie's award offers support to the film through its upcoming production stages.

Certified Mail follows Hala, who has been living with the fear of abandonment since her father passed away when she was 18. She suffers from clinical depression, which leads her to several suicide attempts.

Written and directed by Hisham Saqr, Certified Mail stars Basma, Passant Shawky, Mohamed Sarhan, Lobna Asal and Rafal Abdelkader. The film is co-produced by Mohamed Hefzy's Film Clinic and Hisham Saqr's White Feather.

Mohamed Hefzy selected as jury member of the Horizons (Orizzonti) section

The organizers of the 75th Venice International Film Festival (August 29 - September 8) announced the selection of Producer/Screenwriter Mohamed Hefzy as a jury member of the Horizons (Orizzonti) section a few months before the launch of the 40th Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF), where he serves as President.

The Orizzonti section offers the awards for the Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Screenplay and Best Short Film, along with a Special Jury Prize.

The 9th Arab Cinema Magazine Highlights the Tunisian Film Industry at the Venice International Film Festival

While carrying out its wide-ranging activities at the 75th Venice International Film Festival, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) has released the newest issue of its Arab Cinema Magazine. The new issue is set to accompany the ACC to international film festivals until the end of the year, including the Toronto Film Festival, Malmö Film Festival, Carthage Film Festival, Cairo International Film Festival and the Mar del Plata International Film Festival, in addition to the International Film Festival Rotterdam held in early 2019, among others.

The 9th issue dedicated an entire section to the history of the Tunisian film industry casting light on the Centre National du Cinéma et de l'Image (CNCI) and its role in transforming the Tunisian film industry since its creation in 2011 through its various activities that include supporting national film festivals, such as the Carthage Film Festival (JCC) and the Manarat Mediterranean Film Festival, in addition to developing the Creative Digital Lab (CDL), the Gaming Lab and La Cinémathèque Tunisienne (Cinémathèque Tunisia), which encompasses an extensive archive preserving Tunisia's film heritage.

The new issue also featured articles about Tunisian stars who took the international circuit by storm, popular films shot in Tunisia, and an overview of Tunisia's film co-productions.

MAD 3ARABI (Arab Flow) in Prague

Within the activities of the 53rd edition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF), the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) unveiled the news on launching the MAD 3ARABI (Arab Flow) in Prague, Czech Republic. The news was highlighted by the Screen Daily and Hollywood Reporter magazines as a festival which activities include programmes to introduce the Arab culture and focus on the film and TV industry flowing Arab entertainment and culture onto European shores, and also providing an extension for Arab filmmakers and content creators in the entertainment industry to reach new shores.

MAD Solutions Attends the Europa Distribution's Programme

Under its partnership with the Arab Cinema Center (ACC), MAD Solutions has attended the 53rd KarlovyVary International Film Festival to participate in the Europa Distribution's programme as one of its members.Europa Distribution is an association of independent film distributors.

The programme's activities vary between panel discussions, which focus on the analysis of film scripts in general, film screenings, workshops and interactive meetings.

Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, Co-founder of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) and CEO of MAD Solutions, is represented MAD Solutions at the Europa Distribution's programme. Karkouti is participated in two panel discussions: the "Artificial Intelligence and Script Analysis: Predicting Commercial and Critical Success for European and Independent Film" on Monday, July 2, followed by another one that took place on Tuesday, July 3 under the title: "Europa Distribution Script Evaluation Workshop: How to Evaluate a Film and Its Potential by Reading the Script?"

The 71th Cannes Film Festival witnessed a strong presence from the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) for the fourth year in a row!

Arab Cinema Magazine’s 8th Edition

The Arab Cinema Center (ACC) has released the eighth issue of the Arab Cinema Magazine. The new issue casts light on the Arab films selected at the Cannes Film Festival, offers a directory for the Arab films that toured the international festival circuit through May 2017/2018, in addition to other topics related to the festival and the Arab film industry.

The new issue of the Arab Cinema Magazine is featuring an entire section dedicated to the new edition of the Cannes Film Festival covering its key selections, activities, updates and highlights as well as prominent names that contributed to the festival's success. Besides, it offers a list of the most important international and Arab filmmakers that the festival helped discover since their first or early works.

The eighth issue also offers a detailed directory of the Arab films that toured international film festivals during May 2017/2018 and important films that won awards and received international recognition.

Second Annual Critics Awards

On the margins of the 71st Cannes Film Festival, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) announced the winners of its 2nd Annual Critics Awards, who were selected by 62 film critics from 28 countries around the world through voting, at a special ceremony. The critics viewed Arab feature and documentary films produced during 2017 on the digital platform of Festival Scope, a partner of the Arab Cinema Center.

Winners of the 2nd Annual Critics Awards:

Best Actor: Mohamed Bakri | Wajib | Palestine (Accepted by Producer Ossama Bawardi)
Best Actress: Mariam Al Ferjani| Beauty and the Dogs |Tunisia (Accepted by Mariam Al Ferjani)
Best Screenplay: Wajib | Annemarie Jacir | Palestine (Accepted by Annemarie Jacir)
Best Director: Ziad Doueiri | The Insult | Lebanon (Accepted by Distributor Hiam Saleeby)
Best Documentary: Taste of Cement | Ziad Kalthoum | Lebanon, Syria (Accepted by Distributor Aleksandar Govedarica)
Best Film: Wajib | Annemarie Jacir | Palestine (Accepted by Producer Ossama Bawardi)

Besides, Film Critic and Media Figure Youssef Cherif Rizkallah received the Achievement Award for Film Critics whereby the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) seeks to highlight the profession of film criticism by honoring one of the Arab or foreign film critics annually at the Cannes Film Festival.

The awards ceremony witnessed the attendance of a big number of the Annual Critics Awards jury members including Ibrahim Alariss, Ahmed Shawky, Olivier Barlet, Pamela Biénzobas, Jay Weissberg, Husam Asi, Hassouna Mansouri, Khaled Mahmoud, Dragan Rubesa, Deborah Young, Ziad Khuzai, Sydney J. Levine, Tarek El Shinnawi, Abdul Sattar Naji, Erfan Rashid, Gautaman Bhaskaran, Massimo Lechi, Mohammed Boughalleb, Mohammed Rouda, Houda Ibrahim and Youssef Cherif Rizkallah.

The sponsors of the awards ceremony who attended are Producer Mohamed Hefzy (Film Clinic) and Producer Daniel Ziskind Film Clinic's European representative, whose film Yomeddine is competing in the festival's official competition; Antoine Khalife, Special Advisor to the Arab Radio & Television (ART) network and former director of the Arab Programme at the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF); Mouhamad Keblawi, Founder and Festival Director of the Malmö Arab Film Festival; Zaid F. Jawad, CEO of Iraqi Cinema; along with MAD Solutions' team: Alaa Karkouti, CEO of MAD Solutions and Co-founder of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC), Maher Diab, Creative Director and Co-founder of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) and MAD Solutions, Colin Brown, Managing Partner and Director of International Operations at MAD Solutions, Abdallah Al Shami, Managing Partner and GCC Representative at MAD Solutions, Kareem Samy, Manager of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC), Meriame Deghedi, Distribution and Sales Manager at MAD Solutions, and Aliaa Zaky, Project Manager at MAD Solutions.

MEET & GREET

The ACC has invited all of its partners to be present at the ACC Stand for the program’s starter

Tripoli Film Festival Happy Hour

 

The ACC hosted a Happy Hour event for its partner Tripoli Film Festival at the ACC stand, to mingle and network with potential key names in the film industry, and introduce the new date of the festival and its upcoming events and activities.

Networking Sessions

1-The ACC has organized a networking session titled ‘Co-Producing with Europe & Beyond’ at the ACC Stand, to explore the opportunities of future network with ACC partners along with International and European production companies.

2-The ACC has managed to organize a networking session with its partner Malmo Arab Film Festival, to promote the festival, the industry side and demonstrating the accreditation process. Choosing a format of delivering a presentation to guests of around 10 to 20 people (Arabs and International) who did not attend the festival.

‘Producers on the Move’

For the first time, The European Film Promotion (efp) has partnered up with The ACC. During the round table, the ACC Co-founder Alaa Karkouti has introduced key Arab producers, in order to find potential collaborations with key European producers.

The Cannes 100

A first-of-its-kind event in the Arab world, the new issue introduces The 100 Most Important Names in the Arab Film Industry. The list included directors, screenwriters, actors/actresses, producers, festival directors and festival presidents, distributors, platform directors, funders, key names in Arab governmental film commissions, international sales agents, and directors of film institutions and organizations.

Malaga Film Festival

Málaga Film Festival Opens Doors to Arab Films

For the first time, the ACC has attended the first round of the Malaga Film Festival.

Through an open call on its website, the ACC enabled Arab filmmakers to apply for participating in Málaga Film Festival and recently the selected Arab films have been announced. The films are IN BETWEEN by director Dalyah Bakheet, and CHENTIAN by director Suha Arraf that will be part of the MAFF- Málaga Film Festival Fund & Co-production Event.

The two winning film projects of the MAFF - Málaga Film Festival Fund & Co-production Event are going to have the opportunity to connect with the international funding institutions attending the festival and producers from Spain and other European countries. On the other hand, the Málaga Work In Progress focuses on financing film production, facilitating its completion and international distribution.

In addition, there are two Arab films that will be part of Málaga's Work In Progress, names; GUNSHOT by director Karim El Shenawy, and Lebanese documentary film UNDERDOWN (Taht Al Taht) by director Sarah Kaskas, that was revealed during Beirut Cinema Platform (BCP).

Beirut Cinema Platform

Sending a BCP Film to the Málaga Work In Progress

During the latest edition of Beirut Cinema Platform (BCP), ACC and Málaga announced the selection of Lebanese documentary film UNDERDOWN (Taht Al Taht) by director Sarah Kaskas and producers Liliane Rahal and Ines Meier from among BCP's film selections to participate in the events of the Málaga Work In Progress that will be held on the sidelines of the festival in Spain.

68th Berlin International Film Festival

As the bear goes back to hibernation after the 68th Berlin International Film Festival, the Arab Cinema Center has got a lot to celebrate after its 4th Berlinale!

The Arab Cinema Center Teaming Up with the Hollywood Reporter!

In cooperation with The Hollywood Reporter, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) announced that Abdulhamid Juma, Chairman of the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF), and Masoud Amralla Al Ali, Artistic Director of the DIFF, are the winners of the Arab Cinema Personality of the Year award. This was the first time that an award of this nature was given to the directors of a film festival.

The 7th Arab Cinema Magazine is Finally Here!

The 7th issue of the Arab Cinema Magazine made it to the racks ‎all over the European Film Market (EFM) this Berlinale. The new issue unveiled the remarkable expansion in the number of the jury members of the Annual Critics Awards, ‎organized by the Arab Cinema Center (ACC); it has more than doubled since the first edition last year. ‎

Two projects Selected for the MAFF!

At a conference held within the 68th Berlin International Film Festival, Juan Antonio Vigar, Director of the Málaga Film Festival and Annabelle Aramburu Picasso, Industry & International Coordinator of the Malaga Film Festival, together with Maher Diab, Creative Director and Co-founder of MAD Solutions and the Arab Cinema Center (ACC), announced the selected two Arab film projects to take part in the MAFF - Málaga Film Festival Fund & Co-production Event, held on the sidelines of the Málaga Film Festival in Spain (April 13-22, 2018). There films are ‎, In Between by director Dalyah Bakheet and producer Hanaa Saleh Alfassi, and Chentian by ‎director Suha Arraf and producer Joshua Cassar Gaspar.‎

Celebrating The Reports on Sarah and Saleem!

The ACC held a Happy Hour reception at its stand to celebrate the masterpiece THE REPORTS ON SARAH AND SALEEM, winner of the Special Jury Award for Best Screenplay and the Audience Award (Hubert Bals) at the 2018 International Film Festival Rotterdam.

The ACC’s Partners’ Activities

Eleven ACC’s Partners

For its 4th Berlinale, the ACC brought along eleven of its partners! The partners who attended are: Eliane Raheb from Beirut Cinema Platform – BCP, Mohamed Hefzy from Film Clinic, Hanna Atallah from Filmlab Palestine, Alaa Karkouti, Maher Diab, Abdallah Alchami, Kareem Samy, and Aliaa Zaky from MAD Solutions, Mouhamed Keblawi from Malmo Arab Film Festival and Arab Cinema in Sweden, Frank Albers and Karin Schyle from Robert Bosch Stiftung, Ahmed Samy Wizzo from Studio ZAT, Talal Afifi from Sudan Independent Film Festival and Sudan Film Factory, Rula Nasser from The Imaginarium Films, Hani Osama from The Producers, and George David and Nada Doumani from The Royal Film Commission – RFC.

Robert Bosch Stiftung’s ‎Reception

Just a few days before the Robert Bosch Stiftung’s announcement of the winners of this year´s Film Prize for International Cooperation during the Berlinale , an initiative of the 68th Berlin International Film Festival, the foundation hosted its annual networking dinner connected to the Film Prize of the Robert Bosch Stiftung at its Berlin representation. The Dinner aimed to connect emerging Arab and German film talents with international film industry professionals.

Partners’ Film Screenings at the EFM

While enjoying the prestigious Berlinale along with the ACC, several ACC’s partners had the chance to have their films screened at the EFM this year such as MAD Solutions’ Films; The Journey, The Reports on Sarah and Saleem, and The GUEST: Aleppo - Istanbul.

ACC’ Partners Happy Hours!

The ACC offered its partners the chance to have their very own Happy Hour at the ACC stand this year opening a new window for them to network and ‎socialize with numerous A-list celebrities and key game-changers from the film ‎and entertainment industry from ‎around the ‎world. ‎

International Film Festival Rotterdam - IFFR

On the Rotterdam Lab Board, de Novo

The ACC celebrated its 3rd landing at the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) with selecting Arab film producers to take part at the Rotterdam Lab through its official website. The ACC has selected the Arab producer Khadijah Kudsi (Saudi Arabia – Syria) to attend the Rotterdam Lab held on the sidelines of the International Film Festival Rotterdam – IFFR. The lucky winner had her hotel accommodation, meals, and flight allowance and workshop expenses covered by the ACC.

For the 2nd year in a row, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) took part in the Latin Arab Co-Production Forum as Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, Managing Partner of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) and CEO of MAD Solutions, served as one of the jury members of the Forum. In there, Karkouti participated in a discussion panel entitled "How to get your film there- International and local Distribution" and one to one talks as well.

The ACC participated in the 23rd MEDFILM Festival, where the Center's director Abdallah AlChami participated in panel discussions from film industry professionals, encouraging more co-productions with the #Arab world and Mediterranean countries.

Thessaloniki International Film Festival

In November, ACC participated in the 58th Thessaloniki International Film Festival, where the Center was featured in the official catalog of the festival.

Cape Town International Film Festival

The 10th Cape Town International Film Market & Festival (CTIFMF) selected Maher Diab, Creative Director and Co-founder of MAD Solutions and the Arab Cinema Center (ACC), as one of the jury members of the Main CTIFMF Competition. Diab was also part of a panel discussion titled 'The Secret of Film Festivals'.

Alongside Maher Diab, the list included award-winning Canadian Director/Screenwriter Clement Virgo, who received more than 17 awards from international film festivals. Film Critic and President of FIPRESCI, Alin Tasciyan, headed the jury, marking the first female to hold the post since 2007. The jury awards included the Grand Prix Prize and the New Voices Award.

The ACC's third Malmo Arab Film Festival

For the third consecutive year, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) took part of the seventh edition of the Malmö Arab Film Festival (MAFF) in Sweden (October 6-10) with a schedule of intensive activities. This comes as part of the partnership between the ACC, Arab Cinema in Sweden (ACIS) and MAFF.

The ACC took part, alongside its partners, in the events of the festival's market and forum (October 7-9), including; two seminars, a panel discussion, joining the festival's juries, and presenting an award to one of the participating projects in the market, in addition to presenting 11 films from the distribution list of MAD Solutions, the ACC's organizer, in the festival's various competitions. The latest edition of the Arab Cinema Magazine was also distributed among the festival guests.

ACC partners had a strong presence at the festival. Superstar Saba Mubarak (Pan East Media) joined the jury of the two feature film competitions (long and short films) in addition to her participation in a panel discussion on promoting gender equality in film industry on Monday, October 9th.

Ahmed Samy, CEO of Studio ZAT, gave a presentation on the activities and services provided by the studio in a panel discussion that was held on Sunday, October 8th.

Producer Mohamed Hefzy (Film Clinic) also took part in a panel discussion on the Arab Film Institute (AFI) on Sunday, October 8th. On the same day, producer Rula Nasser (The Imaginarium Films) joined the panel of the MAFF Development Funding Feature, while Maher Diab, Creative Director and Co-founder of MAD Solutions and the Arab Cinema Center, joined the panel of the Doc Post Production Platform.

Also among the ACC's activities at MAFF, Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, Co-founder of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) and CEO of MAD Solutions, presented a seminar titled "ACC: Presenting Fresh Data From The Arab Film Industry" on Saturday, October 7th. Through the seminar, Karkouti briefly described the current status of the film industry and film distribution in the Arab world.

Under the title "Meet the Distributors", Karkouti, together with Marie Strauss (Folkets Bio, Sweden), presented a seminar on Sunday, October 8th, to showcase the activities undertaken by both of their companies, the films they distribute, the kind of films they are looking for, as well as distribution possibilities in the Arab world and Sweden.

On Monday, October 9th, Karkouti was part of a panel discussion entitled "The Map of the Arab Film Industry", where a group of film industry experts and producers from the Arab world spoke about their companies and organizations as well as the film industry in the Arab world.

For the third year in a row, under the umbrella of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC), MAD Solutions is going to present its Marketing and Distribution Award in the Arab world to one of the winning film projects participating in the MAFF Market Forum (MMF). The award comes as part of the company's strategy to support the Arab film industry through its different production stages internationally and within the Arab region and to promote them on the long run. The company previously offered similar awards for winning projects at the Locarno International Film Festival in Switzerland, and at the Final Cut in Venice workshop held within the Venice International Film Festival.

The ACC at the 65th San Sebastian International Film Festival

The Arab Cinema Center (ACC), organized by MAD Solutions, continues to be part of International film festivals and markets as it took part in the 65th San Sebastian International Film Festival (22-30 September, 2017). Accompanying the ACC is MAD Solutions that attended a panel discussion titled: The Bigger Picture: A Fresh Approach to Public Funding; in its capacity as the only Arab representative in

the Europa Distribution association of international independent film distributors. Representing MAD is Abdallah Elchami, Managing Partner of MAD Solutions in the GCC. Organized by the Europa Distribution association, the panel discussion was slated to take place on Monday, September 25 and the ACC in addition to MAD Solutions were the only Arab representatives in the event.

The ACC at the 3rd Film and Television Careers Connection

For the second year in a row, the ACC was present at the ‎3rd Film and Television Careers Connection (FTCC). The event was organized by the Royal Film Commission - Jordan (RFC) and it took place on September 22-24, 2017‎. The ACC was represented at the FTCC by Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, Managing Partner of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) and CEO of MAD Solutions, as he took part in two panel discussions. The first panel featured a discussion on the 1st Amman International Film Festival - Awal Film, which is going to be launched in 2018 and is co-organized by the Royal Film Commission - Jordan (RFC) and MAD Solutions, in collaboration with the ACC. Whereas, the second panel was titled 'Regional Support for Arab Filmmakers' and it included many guest speakers along with Karkouti such as: Moroccan Film Critic Ahmad Oraib, Filmmaker/Producer Hanna Atallah, (Filmlab: Palestine), Iraqi Cinematographer Salam Salman, and Abedalsalam Alhajj (Royal Film Commission-Jordan).

ACC’s Second Toronto International Film Festival

For the second year in a row, the ACC was present at the Toronto International Film Festival. Accompanied by seven ACC’s partners, the ACC had a handful of activities in there.

A Reception that Rises to the Occasion!

The ACC teamed up with the Royal Film Commission – Jordan (RFC), MAD Solutions and the Amman International Film Festival- Awal Film to host a reception on Sunday 10th of Sep at Brassaii Restaurant and Lounge.

The 6th Arab Cinema Magazine

The 6th issue of the Arab Cinema Magazine was distributed during the events of the prestigious 42nd Toronto Film Festival.

Supporting ACC’s Partners!

Four of the ACC’s partners had their films screened at the festival. The films were: ‘Toronto Hidden Gem' as described by the Hollywood Reporter, SHEIKH JACKSON by Amr Salama which is produced by The Producers, marketed by MAD Solutions and starring Crystal Dog’s founder star Ahmad Al Fishawy. The Journey by Mohamed Jabarah Al-Daradji which is produced by Iraqi Independent Film Center (IIFC). The short films BONBONÉ by Rakan Mayasi and A DROWNING MAN by Mahdi Fleifel which are distributed by MAD Solutions.

ACC’s Partners at the Toronto International Film Festival!

While some of ACC’s partners were at the Toronto International Film Festival for the world premiere of their films, others were there to support the Arab cinema as well. Many ACC’s partners were present at the festival including: Ahmad Al Fishawy (Crystal Dog ), Mohamed Hefzy (Film Clinic ), Mohamed Al-Daradji ‎ (Iraqi Independent Film Center (IIFC)), Alaa Karkouti and Maher Diab (MAD Solutions), George David and Nada Doumani (The Royal Film Commission – Jordan (RFC)), Rula Nasser (The Imaginarium ), and Hani Osama (The Producers)

The ACC at the 74th Venice International Film Festival

ACC’s Partners Gathered up at La Biennale di Venezia!

The ACC was not alone this time at the ‎74th Venice International Film Festival, as it was surrounded by a sizable number of its partners including: Antoine Khalifa (Arab Radio & Television (ART)), Perihan Abou-Zeid (Arab Cinema Week/ Movie Pigs), Hanaa Saleh Alfassi (AXE Pictures), Mohamed Hefzy (Film Clinic), Alaa Karkouti and Kareem Samy (MAD Solutions), Saba Mubarak (Pan East Media), Assem Ramadan (Rotana Group), Marwa Gabriel (Starz Studio), and Hadi El Bagoury (The Producers).

The Arab Cinema Magazine at La Biennale di Venezia!

The ACC released the sixth issue of the Arab Cinema Magazine at Venice. The new issue brought highlights on a variety of topics; the presence of Arab stars at the festival circuit of 2017, a guide, the first of its kind in the Arab film industry, to the Arab films nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, a list of the Arab films that won the annual Critics Awards, a cinematic look to the refugee crisis, along with a round-table discussion with three directors of key international film festivals.

The ACC in Another Official Catalogue!

The ACC had a two-page ad inside the Venice’s industry catalogue this year.

An ACC’s Cocktail Reception

The ACC's wide-range of activities at Venice also included a cocktail reception that was held in collaboration with the Venice Production Bridge on September 2nd at the Beach Pavilion.

There’s a New China of International Cinema in the Picture!

The Arab Cinema Center joined hands with the Venice Production Bridge to present a panel discussion on how the Arab World can be the new China of international cinema in general, and European cinema in particular. The panel was attended by a number of Arab and European film experts.

And the MAD’s Award Goes to....

Under the umbrella of the ACC, in association with Eurimages, and for the third year in a row, MAD Solutions offered its special award to the winning film project at the 5th Venice Final Cut workshop. This year’s award went to the film project JOINT POSSESSION by Moroccan director Leila Kilani.

ACC participated in the 70th Festival del film Locarno

In August, ACC participated in the 70th Festival del film Locarno, where the Center was featured in the official catalog of the festival and issues of Arab Cinema Magazine was distributed during the festival's events.

Film Analyst Alaa Karkuti, Co-founder of Arab Cinema Center and CEO of MAD Solutions, participated in a panel discussion in the fifth edition of StepIn. The panel was titled "Global Platforms and Cinema Screenings". This year, SetpIn aimed to discuss the growing impact of video-on-demand platforms on cinemas, as this digital revolution affects the challenges of creating and consuming content more than ever before.

The Arab Cinema Center (ACC) was launched for the very first time at the 13th Eurasia International Film Festival in Kazakhstan

Abdallah Elchami, Managing Partner of MAD Solutions in the GCC; the company which organizes ACC, represented the center at the Eurasia International Film Festival. Elchami participated in a panel discussion, within the Eurasia Film Market. The discussion was titled " Kazakh films abroad: Marketing and Promotion", where Elchami will talk about MAD Solutions' experience in promoting films from the Arab world, the company's strategy, and the results it arrived at.

Elchami represented ACC in the closing session of the Market, focusing on the possible actions that the film industry in the Central Asian region has to take. ACC was presented as an example of very important and productive initiatives that can lead to international cooperation. In the same context, issues of Arab Cinema Magazine will be distributed among the festival and market visitors.

The Eurasia Festival featured 11 films distributed by MAD Solutions in the Eurasia Film Market, including the feature film feature A Mile in My Shoes directed by Saïd Khallaf, My Uncle by Nassim Abassi, and Foreign Body by director Raja Amari, as well as the long documentary Gaza Surf Club directed by Philip Gnadt and Mickey Yamine, Nany Culture by Paul James Driscoll, and the short films Kindil El Bahr by Damien Ounouri, The Parrot by Amjad Al Rasheed and Darin J. Sallam, One Minute by Dina Nasser, Nocturne in Black by Jimmy Keyrouz, last but not least, the two animated films Ayny by Ahmed Saleh and Karouma by Boubaker Boukhari.

Egyptian Jeanne D'Arc also competed at the same festival, within the Plaza 6 Program, that was dedicated to featuring films from developing countries, with the attendance of the film's director Iman Kamel who was also selected for the Short Film jury, alongside representatives from MAD Solutions, which distributes the film in the Arab world.

At The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival

Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, Managing Partner of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) and CEO of MAD Solutions, has been invited to attend the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival to introduce the Arab Cinema Center.

The ACC’s Critics Awards Went to the Best Achievements in the Arab Film Industry!

The ACC is Registered in Berlin

Arab Cinema Made Simple

The ACC’s website now offers a variety of new tools to make it easier for Arab and foreign filmmakers looking for information about the Arab film industry. The ACC has updated its website to include an Arab Cinema Guide, Festival Guide, Grants and Support Guide, and a Training and Education Institutions Guide.

The Arab Cinema Magazine celebrated its first anniversary, where its first issue was released a year ago, with the launch of its fifth issue at the festival in its 70th edition. The magazine comes as part of the Center’s 2017 plan of promoting Arab cinema at more than 20 international film festivals and markets.

Connecting Filmmakers…

At its booth at the Palais, the ACC held a reception to bring Arab filmmakers together with international filmmakers. After the Critics Awards ceremony, the ACC held a reception for the nominees, winners and the critics to celebrate together. For the Malmo Arab Film Festival, a reception was held to connect Scandinavian countries with Arab filmmakers in collaboration with the MAFF market.

Opportunities in Emerging Global Markets: The New Gold Rush

Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, Co-founder of MAD Solutions and ACC, was part of a panel discussion titled "Opportunities in Emerging Global Markets: The New Gold Rush”, where the ACC participated along with The Hollywood Reporter. The panel presented analytics that show that markets in Latin America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East are poised to become dominant playerson the world stage. Panelists discussed their current strategies, what content works in their markets, what is exporting and their future plans.

A Rewarding Festival For Our Partners

Sheikh Jackson Brings iProductions, The Producers and Film Clinic Together

iProductions joined forces with The Producers and Film Clinic on the production of the film Sheikh Jackson by director Amr Salama, which is set to be released in theatres during 2017. The Producers and Film Clinic have released the teaser poster at the festival. The German company Media Luna has acquired the distribution rights to Sheikh Jackson outside the Arab world. Sheikh Jackson was highlighted by regional and international media on ScreenDaily and Variety

The RFC and MAD Solutions Launch a New Festival in Amman!

Saba Mubarak is a Jury Member in Sweden!

While attending Cannes' Le Marché du Film, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) announced that Jordanian star Saba Mubarak has been selected by Palestinian filmmaker Mohammad Keblawi, Festival Director of the Malmö Arab Film Festival in Sweden, as jury member for the Feature Film competition (long and short films) at the festival's 7th edition, which will be held on October 6 -10, 2017.

Carthage Film Festival 2017 Is Full of Surprises

On the margins of the Cannes Film Festival and for the second consecutive year, the Carthage Film Festival (JCC) had a press conference at the Tunisian Pavilion in Cannes, where many journalists, festival directors and film professionals attended. Nejib Ayed, General Manager of the 2017-2018 Carthage Film Festival (JCC) made a number of important announcements like the next edition’s date (November 4-11, 2017), the creation of two new sections, workshops dates and a new workshop that will be developed in 2018.

MAD Solutions Welcomes ‘The Guest’

MAD Solutions has acquired the Arab world distribution rights to the Turkish/Jordanian film The Guest: Aleppo-Istanbul, featuring Jordanian star Saba Mubarak in the lead role. MAD has signed the deal with the film's production companies, Istanbul Film Productions (Turkey) and Pan East Media (Jordan). This news was highlighted exclusively by ScreenDaily magazine on Thursday, the 18th of May.

The Royal Film Commission – Jordan (RFC) is Going Beyond Borders

As part of the its tremendous efforts to promote both Jordanian cinema and Jordan as a filming location, the Royal Film Commission – Jordan (RFC) held two successful panel discussions at the festival. A panel entitled “Producers Without Borders” organized by the RFC and The Producers Guild of America, and another panel entitled “Beyond Borders: Why do few Arab films travel beyond local borders” organized by the RFC and the Centre Cinematographique Marocain.

Dubai Film Market Goes to Cannes

Taking place for the third year, the Dubai Film Market (DFM) Goes to Cannes programme screened a line-up of five Arab projects from the region during the festival as part of the partnership between the Dubai Film Market (DFM), organized by the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF), and Cannes’ Marché du Film. The projects were Joint Possession by Leïla Kilani, Marjoun and the Flying Headscarf by Susan Youssef, Poisonous Roses by Ahmed Fawzi Saleh, Until the End of Time by Yasmine Chouikh, and Wajib by Annemarie Jacir.

WIPO SCCR in Geneva

The ACC was present at the WIPO SCCR in Geneva as the film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, CEO of MAD Solutions and organizer of the Arab Cinema Center, ‎was invited among other professionals to be part of a roundtable discussion, entitled ‘Using ‎the Copyright Framework to Help Build Sustainable Audiovisual Industries Worldwide’, held ‎as part of the WIPO SCCR 34 in Geneva.‎

At the Tripoli Film Festival in Lebanon

As an ACC partner that will accompany the center to international film events in 2017, the ‎Arab Cinema Center joined the 4th Tripoli Film Festival in Lebanon. The ACC and its partner MAD Solutions provided the festival with figures and statistics about ‎Arab cinema and on the sideline of the festival, two discussions took place at the TFF FORUM. The discussion featured the Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti (Arab Cinema Center / MAD Solutions) and the ACC’s partners, Jad Abi Khalil and Zeina Sfeir from the Beirut Cinema Platform and Beirut DC Lebanon.

First Time in Turkey! At the Istanbul Film Festival

Conquering a new market, the ACC attended the first and oldest international film festival in Turkey, the Istanbul International Film Festival. During the festival’s 12th Meetings on the Bridge, the Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, Co-founder of MAD Solutions and ‎organizer of the Arab Cinema Center, presented a discussion entitled "MAD Solutions and ‎Arab Cinema Center: Where the Future of the Arab Film Industry Lies".‎

Honoring Independent Arab Filmmakers at the Beirut Cinema Days

Aiming to provide support to Arab independent filmmakers, the ACC attended the 2nd Beirut Cinema Platform (BCP). The ACC team met with Lebanese filmmakers at the festival and they were introduced to the ‎Arab Cinema Center and knew more about its role in promoting the Arab cinema. Also in there, the Egyptian Producer Mark Lotfy was granted the ACC award for his co-production feature film project, Souad, directed by Egyptian director Ayten Amin, within the events of the 2nd Beirut Cinema Platform (BCP).

At the Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale)

The ACC had its special blue stand at the Berlinale promoting the center’s activities. The ACC also held networking sessions teaming up with powerful partners like; the European Film Market (EFM), Variety Magazine, Robert Bosch Stiftung Foundation’s Film Prize nominees, and for the EFM’s Mexico in Focus, a number of sessions were held‎ with seven Mexican film professionals, institutions and ‎commissions. Finally, celebrating its presence in Berlinale for the third year in a row, the ACC threw a hit party with an oriental flavor! ‎

At The International Film Festival Rotterdam

The International Film Festival Rotterdam (25 January - 5 February) witnessed a strong Arab presence, as the Arab Cinema Center began its third edition with extensive activities by offering Arab filmmakers the opportunity to participate in Rotterdam Lab for the second consecutive year. Director Elie Kamal was in attendance as co-producer, in place of Jana Wehbe, the producer of the documentary film Beirut Terminus, in the Rotterdam Lab Workshop, alongside Producer Dina Harb, Managing Director of Birthmark Films.

Among the Arab Cinema Center partners who were in attendance at the workshop are Karin Schyle from the Robert Bosch Stiftung Foundation; Alaa Karkouti, CEO of MAD Solutions; Afnan Sarraj fromART, whose film Tramontane was also screened at IFFR within the Voices Section. ‎

ACC AT THE 27TH CARTHAGE FILM FESTIVAL (JCC)

Five Partners Attended

The ACC Stand Was Visited By Arab Celebrities

Around 160 visitors including Arab producers, directors and journalists graced ACC’s stand by their presence at the JCC. Among the top names of the Arab film industry that stopped by the stand were Egyptian stars Nahed El Sebai, and Yosra El Lozy; producers Nahed Farid Shawky, and Mohamed El Adl; Egyptian stars Mahmoud Hemida, and Khaled Al Nabawy, along with the Egyptian satirist Bassem Youssef.

The Arab Cinema Magazine Had A Blast

The first and second issues of the magazine were picked by many at the ACC stand. The magazine was also sent to the hotel rooms of outstanding Arab celebrities including Syrian director Mohamed Malas, Tunisian director Ridha Behi, Egyptian satirist Bassem Youssef, Egyptian director Khaled Youssef, Egyptian star Khaled El Nabawy, Tunisian film director and screenwriter Férid Boughedir, Egyptian star Mahmoud Hemida, and Palestinian director Rashid Masharawi.

Two Networking Sessions

Held at the Palais des Congrès, ACC and its partners attended two networking sessions within the events of the Carthage Film Festival, the Takmil Workshop and the Producers Network. Both events were intended to bring together the experts of the distribution and production sectors of the Arab and African film industry.

MAD Solutions Award at the Takmil Workshop

Under the umbrella of Arab Cinema Center (ACC), MAD Solutions offered its award to the winning projects Vent du Nord by Tunisian Director Walid Mattar and Jordanian Director Dina Naser's film Tiny Souls at the 3rd edition of the Takmil workshop, which was held within the 27th Carthage Film Festival (JCC). The award grants the film marketing and distribution services in the Arab world.

ACC AT THE 29TH TOKYO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (TIFF)

Wherever ACC Goes, Its Partners GO

Two Kickoff Events

ACC and its partners were part of two exciting events hosted by the festival. The first was the TIFF Opening Party, held at the 3F Grand Ballroom, Grand Hyatt in Roppongi, where ACC and its partners made contact with the experts of the international film industry, particularly the Asian film industry, for future business partnerships. During the second event, the Special Night Event at the Kabukiza Theatre in Ginza, ACC and its partners acted as ambassadors of the Arab cinema in order to promote it among the industry gurus. The event comprehended a great speech about the history of the Tokyo International Film Festival and its success over the years.

ACC’s Arab Cinema Magazine

For its first time in the Asian market, the first and second issues of the Arab Cinema Magazine were spread all over the market stands at TIFF. For being the first English-language publication of its kind specialized in Arab cinema, the Magazine helped the Arab cinema center with its aim and introduced the Arab cinema in an enjoyable way through its various fascinating topics.

ACC Now Has Potential Business Partners in Asia

Through its stand, Arab Cinema Center was introduced to the Asian market, and through its team, who approached was most of the exhibitors at the festival, the Arab film industry was very well-presented. That resulted in potential partnerships with some of the leading companies in the Asian film and entertainment industry. The discussions were about the possibility of distributing Arab films and TV series in Asia, and partnerships in providing audio production services for films, TV and radio commercials, and online content.

ACC AT THE 6TH MALMÖ ARAB FILM FESTIVAL

The ACC Partners Who Joined

The Magazine

The Arab Cinema Magazine issues were placed on ACC’s stand at the Market Forum

MAD Solutions Award

Under the umbrella of the ACC, MAD Solutions offered its special award to the winning film project at the MAFF Market Forum (MMF) at the Malmö Arab Film Festival in Sweden (1-3 October). Participating as part of the Doc Post Production Platform initiative, which is held on the margins of MMF, the MAD Solutions Award went to the documentary Tiny Souls by Jordanian director Dina Naser, which grants promotional and distribution services in the Arab world.

A Meeting Point for Arabs and Nordics

A networking session entitled "Meet the Arab and Nordic filmmakers” was held as part of ACC’s events at the festival organized by the MAFF Market Forum (MMF). The session was a co-production meet-up for producers and filmmakers from both regions who signed up to network looking for potential co-pro partners, not only that, but also for distribution, sales, or other partnerships.

ACC’s Partners Were Part of a Panel Discussion

Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, CEO of MAD Solutions, and Producer Hani Osama, the producer of the festival’s closing film Hepta: The Last Lecture, together with Andreas Rocksén from the Swedish production company Laika Film & Television convened to discuss the first MAFF Development Funding winner, Beauty and the Dogs. The panel’s moderator was the Forum Coordinator Camilla Larsson.

Film Clinic’s Clash Case Study

After scoring a groundbreaking box-office success in Egyptian theatres, winning the raves of critics, filmmakers and the super star Tom Hanks, Egyptian film Clash, produced by Mohamed Hefzy (Film Clinic), had an analytical case study presentation at the Malmo Festival to give interesting details about the film.

ACC AT THE 41ST TIFF

Variety Magazine’s TIFF Dailies

Being ACC’s media partner, Varity Magazine has included a number of articles in its TIFF Dailies focusing on Arab cinema and the Arab films selected at the festival, along with some ad pages for ACC and its partners. In its TIFF Day 2 issue, Variety has made a special full page highlighting the Jordanian film Blessed Benefit by Mahmoud al Massad that was an official selection at TIFF, listing its screening halls and times. The magazine also listed the screening times of the Tunisian film Foreign Body by Raja Amari. Two articles by Variety’s Nick Vivarelli were dedicated to Arab filmmakers and films entitled “Groundbreaking Slate of Genre Films Closes Gap in Gulf Cinema” and “Nasrallah Cooks Up New Wedding Comedy”. The Day 2 issue featured ad pages for ACC, and its partners MAD Solutions and the Carthage Film Festival (JCC).

Arab Cinema Magazine Was There Too!

The first and second issues of the Arab Cinema Magazine were displayed on the trade magazines rack at TIFF. The magazine is the first English-language publication of its kind specialized in Arab cinema and designed to address international film markets.

Some Partners Flew to Toronto with ACC

ACC was accompanied by two of its partners; Film Analyst and CEO of MAD Solutions, Alaa Karkouti, along with Jordanian Producer Rula Nasser, Founder of The Imaginarium Films.

ACC AT THE 2 ND FTCC

The Distribution Panel

Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, CEO of ACC’s partner MAD Solutions, along with producer Bassam Heggawy had a panel discussion on September 24, 2016, titled "Distribution Panel" at the 2nd Film and Television Careers Connection (FTCC) in Amman. The discussion was about film distribution in the Arab world.

ACC’s Stand

ACC had successfully run its stand at the FTCC in Amman where it was visited by many of the film industry’s professionals and enthusiasts.

WHAT DID ACC DO AT THE 73RD VENICE FILM FESTIVAL?

The Arab Cinema Magazine’s 2nd Issue Was Launched

The festival witnessed the release of the second issue of the Arab Cinema Magazine; the first English-language publication of its kind specialized in Arab cinema and designed to address international film markets, shedding light on Arab cinema updates as well as prominent and up-and-coming Arab filmmaking potential and talents. In the coming lines, we have picked a few of the magazine’s many intriguing and surprising articles.

A Secret Roadmap to Arabic Taboo-logy

The article talks about how Arab countries react differently to Arab films touching on sensitive and serious matters in the Arab world like homosexuality, criticizing social, religious and political issues, or even the films that contain nude or sex scenes.

10 Arab Actresses who Stole the Spotlight in International Film Festivals

A list of lovely Arab actresses who became well-recognized at prestigious international film festivals, whether for winning awards or being jury members.

So You Think You Know Egypt?

A number of interesting articles telling facts about Egypt and its cinema that you might have never known like Egyptian stars that played roles in Hollywood films, the last one on the list might be a jaw-dropper, Hollywood blockbusters that were shot in Egypt, besides some unexpected locations in Egypt that would be perfect for shooting films, and much more.

ACC Hosted a Cocktail Evening Reception!

ACC and the Venice Production Bridge hosted the Venice Gap-Financing Cocktail Party on Saturday, September 3 at the Terrazza Biennale. The event was sponsored by ACC and Eurimages.

Two of ACC’s Partners joined an Interesting Panel Discussion

The panel discussion was held on Saturday, September 3, 2016 at the Spazio Incontri under the title “Film Development, Co-Production, and Distribution in Africa and the Middle East”. The panelists were ACC’s partners Alaa Karkouti, Film Analyst and CEO of MAD Solutions, and Paul Baboudjian, Owner of Tharwa Productions and Executive Director of Screen Institute Beirut, among other film experts including Martina Malacrida, Co-Artistic Director and Programme Manager of Ouaga Film Lab, a meeting platform between experts and young African talents for co-production opportunities, Elias Ribeiro, Founder of Realness, a screenwriters’ residency for a new generation of African cinema, and Raed Andoni, Co-founder of Future Logic, a new platform for the development of the Palestinian cinema. The panel was moderated by Alessandra Speciale.

ACC’s Partners Who Made it to the Festival

The MAD Solutions Award Was Given Out

For the second consecutive year under the umbrella of the ACC, MAD Solutions has offered its special award to the winning film project Obscure by Syrian Director Soudade Kaadan that was one of the participating films in the fourth round of the Venice Final Cut workshop at the Venice Film Festival. Last year, Iraqi director Hakar Abdel Kader's documentary film Separation won the MAD Solutions Award. The award offers promotional and distribution services for the winning film across the Arab world as part of the company's strategy to support the Arab film industry.

Variety’s Venice Film Festival Dailies

ACC’s media partner, Variety magazine, placed a full-page ad for Studio ZAT, one of ACC’s partners, in its Day 4 issue. Studio ZAT is a training studio that offers specialized workshops for amateur and professional actors delivered by Arab and international experts.

On Sunday 7 August, Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, Managing Partner of MAD Solutions and Co-founder of Arab Cinema Center (ACC), was part of the StepIn's panel discussion under the title 'Theaters Will Never Die' that highlighted the challenges faced by the independent theatres in the past few years, ways to adapt to the challenges of the market place and reinvent themselves and how to look at alternative and sustainable business models according to some initiatives launched in Canada, in the US and in Europe.

ACC CANNES FILM FESTIVAL ROUND UP!

For the second year in a row, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) has wrapped up a successful edition atthe Marché Du Film – Cannes Film Festival2016, the world’s most prestigious film festival. Here are some highlights from our biggest fest of the year!

The Launch of the Center’s Arab Cinema Magazine

Moving to a new stage in promoting Arab cinema, the ACC launched the first issue of its Arab Cinema Magazine; the first English-language publication of its kind specialized in Arab film industry to represent the industry locally, regionally and internationally. The magazine is a quarterly publication that will accompany the Center all the way through its worldwide tour. At Cannes 2016, the magazine was distributed at the ACC stand at the Palais, and, with the support of the Marché Du Film Press team, in press spots at the Palais des Festival and in the 4 major hotels: Majestic, Carlton, Martinez and JW Marriott.

Ten Names You Need to Know in the Arab Film Industry

Producer Mohamed Hefzy, founder of Film Clinic, topped Vivarelli’s list of the “Ten Names You Need to Know in the Arab Film Industry”. Vivarelli described Hefzy as Egypt’s most innovative indie producer. The list also included Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, CEO of MAD Solutions, in addition to Mahmoud Sabbagh, Director of groundbreaking Saudi romantic comedy Barakah Meets Barakah and Tunisian Producer Dora Bouchoucha, who has been selected by Arab Cinema Magazine within the list of 10 most influential Arab women in the film industry.
http://variety.com/2016/film/spotlight/ten-names-you-need-to-know-in-the-arab-film-industry-1201772933/

Director Mahmoud Sabbagh and the Saudi Film Industry

Film Critic Alissa Simon began his article about Director Mahmoud Sabbagh pointing out his new way in building up Saudi cinema industry. Although his feature film Barakah Meets Barakah landed as the first Saudi feature at the 66th Berlinale and received theEcumenical Jury Prize, within the Forum section, but one of the most important elements of the success of the film, from her point of view, is being entirely made in Saudi Arabia. Follow the link to read the full article:
http://variety.com/2016/film/spotlight/mahmoud-sabbagh-challenges-facing-saudi-filmmakers-1201772979/

Clash Receives a Thunderous Applause

in his article entitled “Not-So-Easy Access”, Nick Vivarelli wrote about Arab filmmakers are increasingly shifting toward making more accessible topics that can connect with larger audiences, both at home and abroad. At the beginning of the article, Vivarelli stressed on the opening film of Un Certain Regard section, Clash (Eshtebak) by Mohamed Diab, which received wild critical and audiences’ applause last Thursday.

“There is a new generation of Arab directors who understand that they have to make movies with a more universal appeal.Clash is very dramatic, but also funny.” says Eric Lagesse, one of the film producers alongsideMoez Masoud, Mohamed Hefzy

http://variety.com/2016/film/awards/arab-filmmakers-strive-wider-audience-reach-local-foreign-fronts-1201771953/

Arab Cinema Celebration! Mabrook!

Photo for Houda Benyamina, Caméra d’or, Catherine Corsini & l’équipe de Divines © D. Charriau / Getty Images

Divines Wins Caméra d’Or Award at Cannes 2016 Moroccan film director Houda Benyamina won Cannes’s 2016 Caméra d’Or award for her first feature Divines.

ACC Partners Making Deals at Cannes!

Benelux, Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Switzerland, Scandinavia, Taiwan, China (VOD), Greece, Turkey, Colombia, and Brazil. Currently, negotiations are taking place to sell to Australia/NZ, Poland, Baltic States, UK and US.

ART co-production TRAMONTANE at Cannes

Directed by Lebanese director Vatche Boulghourjian, TRAMONTANE was part of the 55th edition of LA SEMAINE DE LA CRITIQUE (12-20 May) at CANNES. The film is a joint production between About Productions and Rebus Film in collaboration with ART.

My Driver and I

MAD Solutions has signed a co-distribution deal with ART where the two companies will jointly distribute the film across the Arab world. Directed by Saudi director/ actress Ahd, the film is her first feature film.

My Driver and I is a coming-of- age story about a Saudi girl growing up in the ’80s and ’90s, and her friendship with her driver.

Submarine

MAD Solutions has announced the acquisition of the Arab distribution rights for the short film Submarine by Lebanese director and writer Mounia Akl. From among the 2,300 works submitted this year, Submarine was selected for the official competition at Cannes' Cinéfondation section to have its world premiere screening.

The Fearless Tiger

Odeh Films has announced its co-production of the new Palestinian feature film The Fearless Tigers by director Matthias Lebeer. The film is set to be filmed between Palestine and France. The film will be distributed in the Arab world by MAD Solutions.

Minaa Launch

After its announcement in Berlinale this year, Minaa VOD has officially gone live during Cannes Film Festival. Featuring a carefully curated content, the platform will be available for streaming for audiences in the Arab world further to international audiences (when rights are applicable). Creative documentaries range in topics and themes, and present an overall portray of what Minaa aims to achieve in terms of being an all-encompassing platform for all documentary genres. The Creative Documentary Platform (CDP) - Amman and MAD Solutions-Cairo founded Minaa as a Public-Engagement Distribution Scheme. The platform will collect and harbor Arabic creative documentaries and allow their online streaming via Minaa VOD.

MAD Solutions

MAD Solutions Starts Arab-European Co-production and Places Two Arab Stars in International Films: Dhafer L’ Abdine in South of Hope and Ahmad Al Fishawy in Sawah

Movie Pigs

On the margins of Cannes Film Festival, MoviePigs, the US-based SVOD platform, has announced the acquisition of two new films to its extensive library; I am Nojoom, Age 10 and Divorced and Yallah! Underground.
Represented by its Founder and CEO Perihan Abou Zeid, MoviePigs has attended the festival as one of the Arab Cinema Center’s partners. MoviePigs is the first online cinema platform dedicated to Arab expats in the USA and Canada, exclusively streaming high-quality Arabic indie films with English subtitles. MoviePigs will also open doors for Arab cinema aficionados to connect with creative Arab filmmakers and will soon expand its services to include international indie films in the future.

FILM CLINIC PRODUCES
AN ARAB VERSION FOR
ALICE IN WONDERLAND

Networking sessions

TRAVEL WITH YOUR FILMS in which Arab partners met with some key film festivals around the world ARAB TECH FREAKS: with focus on the VOD platforms ARAB CHUTZPAH: where Arab Filmmakers who exist in the international market mingled with ACC partners LET'S MAKE MOVIES: where our producers met with key Arab producers and international producers

ARAB CINEMA CENTER WRAPS UP A SUCCESSFUL EDITION AT HONG KONG INTERNATIONAL FILM & TV MARKET "FILMART"

Scoring a milestone for Arab cinema presence at an Asian festival, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) landed a standout edition at the prestigious 20th Hong Kong International Film & TV Market (FILMART), which witnessed several networking sessions opening co-production opportunities for the Center's partners with Asia's top professional filmmakers and key international auteurs.

Opening doors for potential Asian-Arab co-productions and filmmaking partnerships, the ACC delegations of partner producers/filmmakers included several names, such as; Perihan Abo Zeid (Movie Pigs), Ahmed Rasheed (Red Star) and Ahmad Al Fishawy (Crystal Dog and The Friends).

Joined by the festival's guests and filmmaking professionals, the Center held a cocktail reception where the ACC team, led by Siza Zayed, ACC Manager, presented the ACC partners and projects to the Asian and international filmmaking community at FILMART.

---

The center hosted a screening for the Egyptian film hit The Seventh Sense, which was stirred a wave of interest from potential co-producers for its upcoming sequel The Eighth Sense.

As part of the new strategy for 2016, which targets more than 20 international festivals and film markets, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) participated at the Qumra Industry Programme at Doha Film Institute (4-9 March). The programme is an initiative that seeks to provide mentorship, nurturing, and hands-on development for filmmakers from Qatar and around the world. Qumra Doha Film Institute also marks the first Arab platform to host ACC, since its debut by MAD Solutions in 2015.

Before Qumra's events proceed, Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, CEO of MAD Solutions, joined a roundtable session on Wednesday, March 9th, organized by Qumra to discuss promoting Arab cinema. Karkouti introduced ACC and its events during the session.

ACC was accompanied by several partners, including; producer Mohamed Hefzy (Fortress Film Clinic), Aya Al Blouchi (Seat 26), Paul Baboudjian (Tharwa Productions), Frank Albers (Robert Bosch Stiftung), and George David (Royal Film Commission in Jordan).

ACC Brings Focus to Arab Cinema at Berlinale 2016

For the second time in a row, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) wrapped up a successful edition at Berlinale. To know just what a great adventure it was, here are a few of our favorite things:

Networking sessions

Throughout Berlinale, ACC hosted several networking sessions, where all of our partners mingled with the movers and shakers of contemporary cinema from across the globe, opening the doors for more cross-cultural collaborations with names such as: Bero Beye, Director of International Rotterdam Film Festival, Nadia Locarno, Artistic Director of Locarno Film Festival, Samr Al Marzooqi Manager Dubai Film Market, Dubai International Film Festival, Basil Khalil Award winning director of Ave Maria, Vincenzo Bugno project manager of the World Cinema Fund, and Marit Van Den Elshout CineMart Manager/Head of Industry

ACC Event Highlights

As part of a year-round partnership between ACC and Variety magazine, ACC hosted the Variety Arab Filmmaker of the Year Award. Emirati filmmaker, Majid Al Ansari, won the title this year, in a nod to his feature debut, Zinzana.

The launch of Minaa VOD platform. The Creative Documentary Platform (CDP)- Amman and MAD founded Minaa public-engagement distribution scheme. Minaa scheme is supported by Abdul Hameed Shoman Foundation- Amman, and Key technological contributor Striim.in- Finland, in collaboration with Ma3mal 612 Founder and Organizer of the Karama Human Rights Film Festival- Amman.

ACC highlighted the presence of HH Sheikha Hoor Al Qasimi as a jury member at the international short film jury of Berlinale. The festival witnessed the participation of several Arab films, including the Tunisian film Inhebbek Hedi, by Mohamed Ben Attia, which landed the world premiere in the official competition.

ACC News

I Productions releases teaser poster for Wedding Song and Mawlana

Three SVOD platforms within ACC: Movie Pigs, TV.AE and Minaa

Royal Film Commission signing of MOU with Taipei Film Commission promoting mutual collaboration in film training and screenings at Berlinale

Tharwa announces Five Days Grace film by Saleh Nas

Arab Film Festival celebrates its 20th anniversary

Fortress Film Clinic and MAD Solutions announced the acquisition of Arab world distribution rights for the Saudi film Barakah Meets Barakah by director Mahmoud Sabbagh

ACC Variety Supplement

For the first time ever, Variety released a special supplement of 25 pages with Arab cinema news and ACC partners ads that was distributed in Day 3 of the festival dailies

ACC Making Headlines in International Press and EFM website

ACC Branding all over EFM

Digital Ad. Photo

ACC at the EFM Marriott Stairs

ACC Guide in the stand and the wall

ACC Ad. in EFM Catalog

ACC news in the festival dailies

ACC Breakfast

ACC hosted an early-bird breakfast party at Acradiszaal at De Doelen. The event was attended by several key international figures and the festival guests.

A Hive of Activity for Arab Producers

Rotterdam Lab
Aya Al Blouchi, Lebanese/Qatari Producer and Founder of Seat 26
"I've learnt a lot and had great meetings for my projects. I am already excited for next year's festival with the hope that my films will make it. Rotterdam was a truly unique experience!"

Rami Alayan, Palestinian Producer, Palcine Productions
“It has been an honor and an incredible experience to be at the Rotterdam Producers' Lab and to attend CineMart as part of the Arab Cinema Center's delegation. It has been very enlightening to meet and learn from the experiences of fellow producers in the Arab world and around the world. It has also been extremely invaluable to meet domain experts from the industry and hear their perspectives on the latest trends in the film market."

ACC Partners

Producer Rula Nasser, Founder of The Imaginarium Films
“The festival was a very good opportunity for networking, I would love to go next year!”

Egyptian Producer Saliee Waly, Chairperson of S Entertainment
“It was a great privilege going to IFFR for the first time, looking forward to future Arab Cinema Center festival tours."

A MAD Roar at the Tiger Pro Debate

Heralding a new parti-colored year for its ACC during 2016, MAD Solutions was part of a panel discussion at International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR).

Hend Sabry Jury Member

Hend Sabry, Tunisian Actress and Founder of Salam PROD “Rotterdam is one great destination if you want to watch truly original "Auteur" pieces. It is a big honor and recognition as a "serious" actress to be part of this year's jury.”

Following a successful launching at Berlin International Film Festival, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) made its second step through the Cannes Film Festival (13-24 May, 2015). The center continued to provide new spaces for the Arab cinema through its venue in the Film Market of the festival (Le Marché du Film) which boasted 17 film companies and organizations from 8 Arab and European countries. MAD Solutions organized this Arab congregation in line with its long-term strategy to support and promote Arab filmmaking industry in the Arab world.

In the second edition of the ACC, 17 film companies and organizations participated and whose activities range from production, distribution to support and promotion of the Arab cinema: Film Clinic (Egypt), The Imaginarium Films (Jordan), The Producers (Egypt, the UAE), Crystal Dog (Egypt), The International Oriental Film Festival of Geneva (Switzerland), The Friends (Egypt), Seat 26 (Lebanon), True Motion (Egypt), Robert Bosch Stiftung Foundation (Germany), Cinema Akil (UAE), Silk Road Film Festival (Ireland), Luxor's African Film Festival's Etisal Fund (Egypt), Ministry of Interior's Cinema Awards (the UAE), Salam PROD (Egypt), Iraqi Independent Film Center (Iraq), Free TV (Egypt) and MAD Solutions (Egypt, the UAE).

After its successful launch this year at Berlin International Film Festival then Cannes Film Festival, MAD Solutions launched the 3rd edition of Arab Cinema Center within the 5th Malmo Arab Film Festival in Sweden (2 -6 October) in an effort to promote Arab cinema at one of the most prominent international film events.

The 3rd ACC has partnered with 10 organizations and companies involved with Arab films distribution, production, support, and promotion; Image Nation Abu Dhabi (UAE), The Imaginarium Films (Jordan), Seat 26 (Lebanon), The Producers (Egypt, UAE), X-Rated (Egypt), Crystal Dog (Egypt/UAE), Middle West Films (Egypt), Friends (Egypt), Screen Institute Beirut (Lebanon), and MAD Solutions (Egypt, UAE.)