(Dubai) – The curtain on the Dubai International Film Festival 2011 (DIFF) was closed on Wednesday night. With some high-profile names such as Tom Cruise, Shah Rukh Khan, and Ali F. Mostafa walking the red carpet this year, the 8th DIFF has shown to be another successful event.
The festival, which had some 171 films of 56 countries produced by masters to amateurs, some casting the world’s most-celebrated names to others introducing new talented individuals; demonstrated the power of cinema to engage minds, irrespective of where you are you from and what language you speak.
From short films, to big-budget extravaganzas, the festival presented life and its myriad facets through gritty documentaries, surreal features and fantastical animations.
Special attention this year was given to the cinema of Germany and Werner Herzog, credited with boosting the German film industry in the 1970s, was awarded a lifetime achievement award.
Numerous projects were also handed the funds at this year’s Film Connection awards, to help get them off the ground. Among the winners was the Palestinian thriller Eyes of a Thief, the forthcoming second feature from the director of Pomegranates and Myrrh, Najwa Najjar.
With the eighth edition of the festival now having drawn to a close, the next 12 months should see a flurry of activity from those who have benefited from its offerings.
With Herzog and Tom Cruise hinting at possible future film activity in the emirate, DIFF 2012 could see just as much mayhem as the festival did this year.
