The selection of 14 films by Arab filmmakers is the result of a new partnership between the Gulf Film Festival (GFF) and the Tissa festival.
The Dubai-based GFF is considered the home of bold, contemporary and innovative cinema from the region.
The films included from Saudi Arabia are "Football... Baby?" and "Aayesh," which won first prize at GFF 2010.
"Aayesh," directed by Abdullah Al-Eyaf, charts the life of a morgue security guard, whose life is forever changed in 10 minutes.
"Football… Baby?" directed by Abdullah Ahmad, combines the stories of three children trying to buy a ball, a girl wanting to join the football team and a young lover waiting for his sweetheart.
“We decided to open up our festival to Arab films, especially those from the Gulf region, due to the quantum leap the region’s cinema has witnessed recently.
The 5th edition of our festival aims at introducing the Moroccan audience to this changing face of Arabian Gulf cinema, and enhancing their appreciation in Morocco,” said Said Bakloul, general coordinator of the Asian-Moroccan Festival of Short Films.
The festival will also show films — many of which award winning — by filmmakers from the UAE, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Iraq.
“The showcase in Tissa is an important part of our work to support Gulf and Arab films and filmmakers at home and abroad.
“The Gulf Film Festival is the start of many journeys for student and professional filmmakers, and we look forward to welcoming a new crop of filmmakers and films to the festival this April,” said Salah Sermini, GFF consultant and coordinator of the Tissa-GFF program.
