Iranian movie bags Dagger Award at film festival Oman Film Society, FESPACO sign cooperation agreement
Iranian movie ‘Al Hares’, directed by Sadek Abu Talib, won the Dagger Award in the 11th Muscat International Festival, which ended on Thursday. Best Director Award went to Kuwait’s Ahmed al Khadari for ‘Amakor’. The Best Actor Award was claimed by Egypt’s Zafar al Abdine for ‘Nose and 3 Eyes’, while the Best Actress Award went to Morocco’s Sonia Akasha for ‘Casablanca’s Divorcees’.
The prizes were given to the winners by HH Sayyidah Hujaija bint Jaifer al Said. She congratulated the winners across five categories: feature films, Omani short films, documentaries, Omani short documentaries and animation movies. The festival featured 56 films from 11 countries. Oman’s ‘Al Mubadala’, directed by Yasser Ahmed, won the jury award. The jury was headed by Ghita al Khayyat (Morocco) and comprised Sabrina Cleaver from the Netherlands, Magdi Ahmed from Egypt, Essam al Zadjali from Oman, and Philip Ronald from Britain.
OMANI SHORT FILMS
‘Dayanat Al Maa’, directed by Haitham Suleiman, won the
The Oman Film Society, represented by Dr Humaid al Amri, the society’s president, signed a memorandum of cooperation with the African Film and Television Festival in Ouagadougou (FESPACO), represented by Moussa Alex Sawadogo, General Delegate.
The agreement was signed within the framework of the 11th Muscat International Film Festival in the Sultanate of Oman.
Both parties committed to collaboration in mutually participating in each other’s festivals, sharing programmes and information related to cinematographic works, providing
Dagger Award for best Omani short narrative film. Saleh al Raisi received the Best Actor Award for ‘Al Fa and Beta’, and Hamza al Hashmi won Best Actress for ‘Dayana Al Maa’. The jury award went to ‘Al Fa and Beta’ by Asim al Hashmi. The jury was led by Saad Hindawi from Egypt and consisted of Ahmed al Hamdani and Ibrahim al Balushi from Oman, and Hamid al Hawij from Syria.
DOCUMENTARIES
‘The Hidden Beauty of Iraq’ by Sahim Omar Khalifa and Jürgen Böttcher won the Dagger Award for Best Feature-length Documentary. Frederic won the Best Cinematography Award for ‘House of Wonders’ from Oman. The jury award went to Anis al Aswad for ‘Allah’s Borders’ from materials and logistical support, and financial assistance in film execution.
The agreement also involves exchanging experiences through participation in various activities and seeking to train film-makers and festival organisers.
Tunisia and Fouad al Suweiba for ‘Maul Al Maa’ from Morocco. The jury was led by Oman’s Abdullah al Sha’ili and consisted of Jean Saragolo from Turkiye, Alex Mousa from Burkina Faso, Malak Dahmani from Morocco, and Mohamed Al Thabet from Tunisia.
OMANI SHORT DOCUMENTARIES
‘Sahar Al Rimal’ by Walid al Kharousi won the Dagger Award for Best Short Documentary. The jury award went to ‘Bint Al Raml’ directed by Salah al Hadrami and ‘Lonely Diver’ by Fahd al Maamari. The jury consisted of Mahboub Issa from Oman, Saeed al Nazam from Morocco, Sameh Sameer from Egypt, Rima al Majid from Saudi Arabia, and Mohammed al Ajmi from Oman.
Notably, the Ouagadougou African Film and Television Festival (FESPACO) was founded in 1969 and remains the largest cinematic event across Africa.
Alex explained, “FESPACO is the largest artistic event in Africa that will contribute to the
INTERNATIONAL AND OMANI ANIMATION FILMS
‘The Sea’ by Bilal Abu Samra from Egypt won the Dagger Award for Best International Animated Film. The Best Visual Design Award went to ‘Dream on the Wall’ by Iyad Abdul Hussein from Iraq. The jury award went to ‘Without Words’ by Nour Jamal from Egypt. Najlaa Mohammed from Egypt, Khaled Jallal from Syria, Abdullah Abari from Morocco, Hassanein al Hani from Iraq, and Munir al Sulaimi from Oman were in the jury. The festival also honoured several artists, including Bahrain’s Zainab al Askari and Omani artists Khalil al Sinani and Abdullah Habeib, as well as directors Khamees al Musafir and Hussain Amiri from the UAE.
On the sidelines of the festival’s closing ceremony, an agreement was signed between the artist and director Ahmed al Khadari from Kuwait and the ‘Aks for Short Films’ platform, represented by Fahd al Maamari. This collaboration will feature the screening of 10 short films on the platform to attract an international audience interested in Oman’s culture. The ‘Aks’ platform is considered one of the youth cultural initiatives aimed at promoting Oman. exchange of experiences between technicians in Africa and the Sultanate of Oman. People in Burkina Faso will get to know Oman and Omani cinema, and what is happening in Oman. Additionally, they will discover its tourist and historical assets that may attract film-makers to shoot their films here.”
He added that the participation of film-makers in Muscat International Film Festival opens up people to global cinema and interaction with experiences from different countries.
FESPACO’S international reputation lies not only in the importance of its goals and tasks in the audiovisual film industry, but also in the organised biennial festival. FESPACO remains a place where film-makers from Africa and around the world aspire to promote and distribute their works.
Dr Al Amri explained that the Oman Film Society aims to provide a platform for Omani films to express their ambitions and contribute to enhancing and enriching this sector with the necessary experience that enables young people to make films.
“We want to make it an artistic and investment platform that generates income for its owners through hosting these festivals and signing agreements. Such agreements are crucial for filmmakers, especially in the Sultanate of Oman,” he said.
“As for the Burkina Faso festival, it is important as one of the oldest and largest gatherings of filmmakers globally, comparable to Bollywood in India and preceding international Hollywood. This collaboration will enrich our experience by benefiting from their expertise and understanding the African cinema experience,” he added.