YEMEN ABSENCE FROM GULF FILM FESTIVAL IN DUBAI

DUABI, April 09 (Saba) - The third edition of the Gulf Film Festival
has kicked off in the UAE city of Dubai. It is an annual non-profit
cultural event that aims to celebrate the highest standards of Gulf
cinema.

The GFF, held under the patronage of Sheikh Majid Bin Mohammed Bin
Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority
(Dubai Culture) will take place on April 08-14 in Dubai.

Speaking to Saba, GFF Director Masoud Amralla Al Ali regretted the
fragile participation of Yemen in the GFF 2010, noting there had
been no this year from Yemen ''only a feature film certainly not
lived up to the level of the festival''.

Yemen's participation in the GFF 2010 was only represented by
prominent filmmaker Khadija Al Salami, chosen as member of a jury of
eminent film professionals, in addition to the participations of
Director of the Cultural and Scientific Department of Yemen News
Agency (Saba) Ahmed Al Aghbari and filmmaker Hamid Oqabi in the
Festival's Arabian Nights.

Khadija Al Salami, Yemen's first woman filmmaker, was chosen as
member of a jury of eminent film professionals who would judge the
competitions in the Gulf Film Festival. Yemeni filmmaker Khadija
Al-Salami was instrumental in altering the biases in the Yemeni film
industry.

Al-Salami has produced a number of documentaries, including 'Women
of Islam,' 'Land of Sheba,' and 'Amina,' which won the second prize
at the Muhr Arab Awards in DIFF 2006.

The GFF hosts two competitions, the film competition and the script
competition, as part of its mission to encourage creativity and
excellence among filmmakers from the region.

The film festival will showcase a vivid collection of 194
contemporary films from 41 countries over the next seven days at
Dubai Festival City.

The 194 films being screened at the Gulf Film Festival include 81
World Premieres, 11 International Premieres, 33 Middle East
Premieres, 17 GCC Premieres and nine UAE Premieres, assuring a novel
cinematic experience for filmgoers. In all, GFF 2010 will screen 128
short fiction films, 28 short documentaries, 8 features, 5 feature
documentaries and 25 animation films.

The festival is supported by Dubai Culture and Arts Authority and is
held in association with Dubai Studio City.

YA