ALGIERS: The Eighth International Festival of Arab Film in Oran (FIOFA) was inaugurated by the Algerian Minister of Culture Azzedine Mihoubi in the presence of a large number of celebrities from the Arab world and beyond.

The opening ceremony was attended by communication minister Hamid Grin, the president of the audiovisual regulatory authority Miloud Chorfi, a large number of guests and a host of national and Arab stars, like Leila Aloui, Yahia El Fakhrani, Sabah el Djazairi and the Franco-Italian Claudia Cardinale.

The opening ceremony was marked by a performance by the National Symphony Orchestra led by the renowned Algerian music maestro Farid Aoumar.

Seventeen Arab countries are participating in official competitions with 38 films competing in three sections: long and short films and documentaries. As part of the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the revolution of Nov. 1, 1954, the cinema-going public of Oran will appreciate 14 national films including the latest productions such as “Col. Lotfi” of Ahmed Rachedi and “Crépuscule des ombres” (Twilight shadows) of Mohamed Lakhdar Hamina. Many tributes were paid to Algerian filmmaker Mohamed Lakhdar Hamina, the winner of the the Golden Palm award for his film “Chroniques des années de braise” (Chronic years of embers) at the Cannes Film Festival in 2003.

Up to 38 movies and documentaries from 17 countries, including Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Tunisia, Morocco, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine, Syria and France feature in the event.

For this 8th edition, organizers have scheduled an international conference on Arab films and novels. The winners of this 8th edition will be announced on June 12 at the closing ceremony of the festival.