The third edition of the Sharjah Film Platform (SFP) organized by Sharjah Art Foundation (SAF), will take place from 14 – 21 November 2020, continuing the Foundation’s longstanding commitment to film programming and the support of established and aspiring filmmakers.
The Festival will screen award-winning and never-before-seen films, and include discussions and workshops – taking place across cinemas and online. Also part of the programme will be the distribution of awards by an international jury of distinguished directors, filmmakers and critics for outstanding cinematic productions screened during the festival, including Best Narrative, Best Documentary and Best Experimental Film.
Opening with the premiere of Soha Shukayr’s In the Time of Revolution – an original short film supported by SAF’s Short Film Production Grant 2020, the Festival will also feature 60 films from around the world, including the Middle East premiers of acclaimed films such as: The Shepherdess and The Seven Songs (2020), Eyimofe (This is My Desire) (2020) and Epicentro (2020), winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival in 2020.
Commenting on the third edition of SFP, Hoor Al Qasimi – Director of Sharjah Art Foundation said: “There is an exceptional community of filmmakers in the UAE and the surrounding region, and through the establishment of Sharjah Film Platform in 2018, we aimed to build on the SAF’s longstanding support for filmmakers and help bring their work to wider international audiences.”
“The substantial developments happening this year the inclusion of an online screening component for the festival and the launch of the SFP Industry Hub allow us to build on our commitment to films by bringing the work of incredible filmmakers from the region straight into the homes of viewers around the world and by creating new infrastructure to support emerging filmmakers and lay the groundwork for more risk-taking, experimental and exceptional films in the years to come,” added Al Qasimi.
Screenings will take place at SAF’s open-air Mirage City Cinema, the recently renovated Flying Saucer and the IMAX at Cinemacity – Zero 6 Mall in Sharjah. Meanwhile, online screenings will be hosted on SAF’s dedicated virtual Festival platform, which will also present the talks and workshops programme this year. The Industry Hub, launching for the first time, is a new initiative that aims to support film production and distribution in the MENASA region.
Cinema screenings are priced at Dh20 per screening, while online screenings will cost Dh10 per screening. An all-access online pass is also available for Dh50.
Click here to view the entire programme.
Click here to book you tickets.
Sources: Sharjah Art Foundation, Zaywa and Gulf News
Sharjah Art Foundation’s new annual film festival – Sharjah Film Platform, will featuring over 100 short and full-length films, and will screen at various venues across the emirate.
Sharjah Art Foundation’s inaugural edition of Sharjah Film Platform (SFP) is an annual programme that supports film production in the United Arab Emirates and the region and provides a critical platform for both established and aspiring filmmakers.
In its first edition, SFP – taking place from 18th – 26th January 2019, will present over 120 films from over 40 countries. Selected from an open call, the films include both short and feature films in the documentary, narrative and experimental categories and a number of these films will have their premieres at the festival. Among the premieres are the three films by the SFP grant awardees, which will be screened on the opening night.
In conjunction with the film screenings, a public programme of talks and workshops on both conceptual and practical topics will offer opportunities to examine pertinent and pressing issues within the film industry. Featuring Emirati filmmakers and practitioners along with regional and international speakers, sessions will touch on postcolonialism, nation-building, representation and new technologies as well as intersections between film and contemporary art. The public programme will also provide useful discussions and workshops on administrative aspects of film production such as distribution, funding and legal matters.
Film screenings, talks and workshops will be held in various places across the city of Sharjah, including Mirage City Cinema, Sharjah Institute for Theatrical Arts, Al Hamra Cinema and Africa Hall, where, through a collaboration with The Africa Institute, films by Youssef Chahine will be presented to mark the tenth anniversary of his passing.
Films will be screened at either 3:00 pm, 6:00 pm or 9:00 pm in one of the four venues, and some films will be shown twice during the week. Doors will open 15 minutes before each screening and close 5 minutes after the designated screening time.
Please note: all seating is on a first-come, first-served basis and cannot be reserved in advance.
Tickets can be purchased online through Ticketmaster – until the day before each screening, at the venue – one hour before the screening time, and at the box office in Sharjah Art Foundation’s Information Centre in Al Mureijah Square.
General admission is 15 AED. Tickets for 10 or more film screenings can be purchased at a discounted price.
For group ticket sales at a discounted price, please contact [email protected]
Click here to download the Sharjah Film Platform talks programme.
For more information, visit www.sharjahart.org
Sources: Gulf News, The National and Sharjah Art Foundation
