FilmFest 2020

Cosponsored with American Institute for Yemeni Studies (AIYS)

Yemen/Qatar/UK 2020; color; Arabic with English subtitles 6 minutes; dir./prod. Mariam Al-Dhubhani

No Words is a poetry film that showcases the poet's loss of words about what is happening to his beloved city Taiz and the situation in Yemen. Using 360 footage in regular display, it places as an observer to what is happing in the city. The images resonate with the words and create a poetic feel of the ongoing conflict.

Kuwait/Qatar 2018; color; no dialogues; 3 minutes; dir./prod. Maysaa Almumin

The Child has been prepared well for this day. In the presence of The Mother to bear witness, The Child must overcome the menacing Creature in a rite of passage.

Kuwait/Qatar 2018; color; English; 5 minutes; dir./prod. Maysaa Almumin

The Travelers have lost faith in the powers of the Chambers. It has been long since any have summoned The Congress. After a long journey, a Traveler has found the last sacred article to complete a long-forgotten ritual, but when she finally has the chance to make the Calling on the Congress, she faces the moment when she too may lose her faith.

Qatar 2019; color; Arabic with English subtitles; 11 minutes; dir. Abdulaziz Yousef and Latifa Al-Darwish; prod. Ben Robinson

A curious little girl is determined to save the Moon from a lunar eclipse, all to find out what happensnext in the story her grandmother is telling. As there will be no moonlight if the eclipse takes place, the little girl searches for the mythological characters in her grandmother’s stories in order to utilizetheir magical powers so that she can reach the Moon in a story about how far stories could push people to go and explore.

Qatar 2018; color; Arabic with English subtitles; 14 minutes; dir. Awad Karrar/prod. Wijdan Al Khateeb

In a Sudanese university, Ahmed gets elected by the corrupt school administration to be president ofthe student body. Students who are against the Sudanese regime, gather in a protest led by Azza tofight this decision. A clock rings in Ahmed’s room continuously as he sleeps in his room. Ahmed isfaced with an ultimatum of either whipping Azza, or the president, which would silence the clockonce and for all.

Kuwait 2020; color; Arabic and English with English subtitles; 13 minutes; dir./prod. Yousef Alabdullah/ prod. Abdulaziz Alballam and Yousef Ben Ali

A true story about the suicide of an Asian worker that causes controversy in his workplace.

Yemen/ South Korea 2020; color; Korean and English with English subtitles; 10.5 minutes; Juyoung Choi and Saad Ejaz

Mohammed Ameen came to Jeju Island, South Korea as a refugee in 2018. There, he met Ha Min-Kyung, who hired him as a chef. She wanted him to help run the new restaurant she had opened for the Muslim refugees from Yemen. As they worked together, Ameen and Min-Kyung fell in love and eventually got married. This is how it happened.

Qatar/Syria 2019; color; Arabic with English subtitles; 5 minutes; dir./prod. Tony El Ghazal

The Artist: Yacoub Missi is a personal documentary that follows the life of Yacoub Missi, a Syrian painter, and sculptor while he talks about how he learned to become an artist and master of his craft. The film tackles themes such as memory, passion, and art.

Qatar 2019; color; Arabic with English subtitles; 6 minutes; dir./prod. Dalal Garai

After being abandoned years ago by his family, a young man spends his days searching for them with the help of a private investigator. When he finally locates them, the situation is much different than expected.