Dubai Film Festival Opens

Mandy Moore, Amitabh Bachchan and Nayla Khaja at the opening of the Dubai International Film Festival on Wednesday.—KT photos by Shihab

The opening night of the 6^th annual Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) added one more feather to the city’s cultural cap by delivering a spectacular night of cinematic magic and Hollywood grandeur. The flashes of camera bulbs lit up the night sky around Madinat Arena as a train of actors came out in force to support their projects.

The festival’s opened with the film, Nine, hours before its premiere in Los Angeles, to make Dubai audiences say, “We saw it first.”

On the flipside though, due to the conflict in scheduling, none of the films leading actors could appear in Dubai. Instead, recorded messages were beamed before the screening, with many of the famous faces praising the city’s efforts towards bridging the two film communities.

But a group of supporting actors from the film did manage to make an appearance on the red carpet, zigzagging their way through the media blitz.

The showstopper of the night was the elegant Mandy Moore, who arrived donning a black ball-gown and diamond chandelier earrings. The successful singer-actress was in town to support the festivals charity amfAR auction — Cinema against AIDS — where she confirmed she would be performing a few of her favourite ballads.

“It’s my first time here and everyone has been so hospitable,” she told Khaleej Times, gleaming with excitement over the frenzy upon her arrival.

Early on in Moore’s career, the young singer shifted to cinema, appearing in breakout hits like A Walk to Remember and Saved, but the young starlet says her true focus has never changed. “I like getting the opportunity to do film roles,” she said, “but music is what I’m passionate about.”

The father of Indian Cinema, Amitabh Bachchan, spoke softly as he arrived unaccompanied to promote his latest film Paa, where he plays a 12-year-old boy with the rare disease Progeria.

Saying that he felt ‘honoured and humbled’ with the DIFF 2009 Lifetime Achievement Award, the legendary Indian actor said the Middle East was emerging as one of the largest territories for Indian cinema overseas.

“The local population has contributed to the success of the Indian films here,” he said.

“Although there are linguistic differences, people in the Arab world share cultural similarities and can associate well with Indian films. This bodes well for the Indian film industry.”

When one reporter asked him to identify his suit designer, Bachchan simply smirked and said, “This is all me.”

As Queen Noor of Jordan entered the arena, an entourage of more than 25 followed suit. Donning a beautiful blue embroidered dress, the Queen waved for cameras before being escorted inside.

Arab stars at the opening gala included Hala Sarhan, Somayya Al Kashab, Mostafa Fahmy, Habib Gholoom, Nelly Kareem, Rania Shawky, Sherine Adel, Khalid Al Sawi and Khalid Taja.

Young Emirati filmmaker Ali Mustafa also appeared with the cast of his latest project, City of Life, an interweaving story of three individuals living in Dubai. The film is the first-ever feature to come of the city.

DIFF Chairman Abdulhamid Juma said the selection of 168 films from 55 countries to be screened over the next week confirmed the festival’s emergence as the leading one in the region.

“As a nation, we have always believed in building bridges between civilisations and people, and opening doors for dialogue, despite the differences in language or cultural attributes such as music,” he said.

“Like movies, music also brings together people from different cultures. This respect for diversity and the universal language of movies and music is highlighted in our opening film, Nine, and the films to be screened in the coming days.”

Do you think the Dubai Film Festival provides an ideal opportunity to watch great movies?