As part of its strategy to promote Arab cinema on the international level, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) will be part of the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) (January 24 - February 4) for the third year in a row. In this context the ACC opens the call for submissions by Arab film producers for the Rotterdam Lab, through its official website: http://acc.film/rotterdamlab.php, from the 30th of September, 2017 to the end of October. The Rotterdam Lab will be held within the International Film Festival Rotterdam.
Eligible participants for Rotterdam Lab are the emerging producers, who should have produced at least one or two short films, and not more than two feature films. The selected winners will have the hotel accommodation, meals, flight allowance and workshop expenses covered by the ACC.
Organized by CineMart within the IFFR, the Rotterdam Lab is a five-day training workshop for promising emerging producers from all over the world. The Rotterdam Lab offers a place to over 60 producers from over 24 countries. The aim of Rotterdam Lab is to provide emerging professionals with the means to build and develop and international network with providing confidence and skills to navigate the world of international film financing, sales and distribution.
Organized by MAD Solutions, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC), which operates for the third year, is an international promotional platform for Arab cinema as it provides 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 Center's activities vary between film market main wings, introduction and networking sessions for 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 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.
Since the beginning of 2017, the ACC has made 13 stops at international festivals and markets. The festivals attended are the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR), Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale), Beirut Cinema Platform (BCP) held within the Beirut Cinema Days, Istanbul Film Festival, Tripoli Film Festival, the 34th WIPO SCCR in Geneva, Cannes Film Festival, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, Eurasia International Film Festival, Locarno International Film Festival, Venice International Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, and the Film and Television Careers Connection.
