Arab Cinema Center Reveals the Nominations for the Critics Awards for Arab Films 2021

14 June 2021:

Through a video, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) revealed the list of nominations for its annual Critics Awards for Arab Films. This year, the international jury panel encompasses 160 film critics from 63 countries. The jurors will review the Arab films that have been produced in 2020 through the digital platform of Festival Scope, the ACC's partner. The winners will be revealed during this year's edition of the Cannes Film Festival (July 6 -17) in 2021.

Deborah Young, Manager of the Critics Awards for Arab Films, commented: “Although last year was hard on everyone, the Arab cinema provided a recognizably high-quality level of fiction and documentary films; making it hard to pick the nominees for this year’s Critics Awards for Arab Films. I was also heartened to see a growing number of women directors among the nominees, a trend I hope will continue. My congratulations to everyone who made it this year, and thanks to all the critics on the jury panel for their efforts.”

Co-founders of ACC, Alaa Karkouti and Maher Diab, commented saying "This year’s edition is very special to us as we celebrate the fifth anniversary of the Critics Awards for Arab Films that aims to promote the finest Arab productions annually. What’s remarkable about this edition is that we have a stiff competition between great films, unlike last year that witnessed a few cinematic productions across the world.”

For watching the nominations video: https://youtu.be/MINhlpZiv0A

The first edition of the Critics Awards for Arab Films was held on the margins of the 70th Cannes Film Festival. The awards are given to the best Arab film productions every year in the following categories: Best Feature Film, Best Documentary Film, Best Director, Best Writer, Best Actress and Best Actor. For the first time in the history of Arab cinema, the jury committee brings together 160 of the most prominent Arab and international film critics from 63 countries from all over the world this year.

The final list of the nominees for the Critics Awards for Arab Films were selected according to the following criteria: the films must have been premiered at international film festivals outside of the Arab world during 2020, and at least one of the production companies must be Arab (regardless of the size of its contribution to the production of the film), in addition, the films must be feature-length films (fiction or documentary).

Organized by MAD Solutions in 2015, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) is a nonprofit organization providing the filmmaking industry with a professional window to connect with their counterparts from all over the world through a number of events that it organizes. The ACC also provides networking opportunities with representatives of companies and institutions specialized in co-production and international distribution, among others. The ACC's activities vary between film markets, stands, and pavilions, networking sessions and one-on-one meetings bringing together Arab and foreign filmmakers, welcome parties, as well as meetings with international organizations and festivals, and the issuance of the Arab Cinema Magazine to be distributed at the leading international film festivals and markets.

Furthermore, newsletter subscription is now available on the ACC's website, allowing users to obtain digital copies of the Arab Cinema Magazine, as well as news on the ACC's activities, notifications of application dates for grants, festivals and offers from educational and training institutions, updates on Arab films participating at festivals, exclusive news on the Arab Cinema LAB, and highlights from the ACC's partners and their future projects.

The ACC also launched an English-language Arab Cinema Guide, available on its website, which is a comprehensive cinematic guide that comprises a variety of tools presented collectively for the first time to offer information on Arab cinema to filmmakers inside and outside of the Arab world. It also aims to facilitate filmmakers' access to international markets and help film industry representatives to easily identify Arab film productions.