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META Film Fest to showcase 70 movies from 25 countries in Dubai

Expect an action-packed three-day global festival which will include international premieres, red carpet events and more

More than 70 films from 25 countries will be showcased in Dubai at META Film Fest, a new international festival launched by META Cinema Forum, the pioneering cinema convention for Middle East and Africa.

The event will take place from October 27-29 at VOX Cinemas - Nakheel Mall, Palm Jumeirah.

This curation for the UAE audience is composed of 9 world premieres, 43 Middle East premieres and 12 UAE premieres, and several special screenings, with numerous feature, animation and documentary and short films being screened which have received multiple nominations and awards from other international film festivals.

District Terminal, a dystopian Iranian film, has received three nominations at the Berlin International Film Festival and Best Film nomination at the Festival du nouveau cinema and Sao Paulo International Film Festival.

Iranian crime thriller Holy Spider received a 15-minute standing ovation at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for the Palme d'Or and MORE awards.

Emily, a film depiction of the life of English writer Emily Bronte, was nominated at the Toronto International Film Festival and Sitges – Catalonian International Film Festival.

French feature film Hard Shell, Soft Shell (Fragile) received four nominations, including Best International Feature Fiction at the Beirut International Women Film Festival and Best Feature Film at Buzz IFF.

“META Film Fest is a platform to showcase quality local, regional and international films, as well as a catalyst for a larger film industry based out of our home ground in Dubai,” said Leila Masinaei, Festival Director and Managing Partner of Great Minds Event Management, organisers of META Film Fest.

Expect an action-packed three-day global festival which will include international premieres, regional feature films, red carpet events with stars and talents from the Arab World, Hollywood, Bollywood and Nollywood, celebrity meet and greets, a Film Fund launch, an awards ceremony, after-parties, content markets and much more.

META Film Fest was first announced in May this year, welcoming submissions from film makers across the UAE, Middle East and the world. Shortlisted films will be judged by at the event’s Awards Ceremony on October 29.

The jury is headed by Nujoom Al Ghanem, an award-winning Emirati director, poet and artist. Supporting her is the Oscar-winning Spanish producer, Andrés Vicente Gómez and award-winning Iranian producer Kaveh Farnam. The other jurors are Iranian actress and director Pegah Ahangarani, award-winning Turkish actress Neslihan Yeldan, Marta Svecova Lamperova and Elon D. Johnson.

Tickets for META Film Fest screenings are now on sale on October 7 at voxcinemas.com.