The line-up features 13 projects from Qatari and Qatar-based filmmakers.
Doha Film Institute’s Qumra 2023, the Institute’s annual industry incubator event, has selected 44 films, including feature narratives, documentaries, web series and shorts for the ninth edition.
Film projects at Qumra 2023 come from varied geographies, from Algeria to Indonesia and Mexico to Mongolia.
Of 44 projects, 29 are recipients of the Doha Film Institute’s Grants programme, and five are supported through the Qatari Film Fund. Twenty-four projects have participated in DFI Training Programmes (Hezayah Scriptwriting lab, Producers Lab, Shorts Script Lab, Doc Lab with Rithy Panh, Series Lab and First Cut Lab). In all, eight feature projects are in development, five in production and 13 in post-production, seven in Qumra Series, and 11 in Qumra Shorts.
The ninth edition features 13 projects by Qatar-based talent, including seven by Qatari nationals. Highlighting the evolution of the series, Qumra 2023 will nurture seven series projects by emerging talent.
Qumra 2023 will offer networking and development opportunities for the selected projects from 23 countries as part of Qumra’s mission to accelerate the success of filmmakers from the region and beyond.
Talents associated with the selected projects will take part in Qumra’s innovative hybrid event, participating in mentorship and networking activities in-person from March 10 to 15 and online from March 19 to 21, 2023.
Fatma Hassan Alremaihi, Chief Executive Officer of the Doha Film Institute said the projects being nurtured at Qumra 2023 have been selected from a diverse pool of films from across the world supported by the Institute. “Qumra is creating a new space for independent and new voices in cinema, and we are impressed by the diversity and depth of the original themes that emerging filmmakers are exploring. Our goal is to support independent voices in cinema in their script-to-screen journey. We are honoured to have the support of acclaimed film luminaries and industry experts who provide mentoring and guidance for the selected projects. The skills filmmakers learn at Qumra will be invaluable in their journey, not only in connecting their projects to global audiences but in gaining exceptional insights into the craft of filmmaking.”
Projects in development participate in group and individual sessions with Qumra Masters and industry mentors in script consulting, legal, sales, marketing and co-production advice, along with individual matchmaking sessions for projects in post-production, which are presented in a series of closed rough-cut screenings to leading festival programmers, broadcasters, market representatives, sales agents and distributors.
The talents will take part in group and individual consultation sessions with Qumra Masters and industry mentors in script development, legal, sales, marketing, and co-production. Films in post-production will benefit from individual matchmaking and private rough-cut screenings with leading international festival programmers, broadcasters, market representatives, sales agents and distributors, providing opportunities for wide exhibition and distribution.
The event will invite five Qumra masters, which include playwright, screenwriter and director Christopher Hampton, producer David Parfitt, costume designer Jacqueline West and filmmakers Lynne Ramsay and Michael Winterbottom. They will each give a masterclass on their careers and mentor individual participants.
Perfumed with Mint (Egypt, France, Qatar, Brazil) by Muhammed Hamdy, The Other Wife (France, Qatar, Algeria)(working title) by Meriem Mesraoua, El Bastardiya – Once Upon A Time In Tripoli (Libya, Egypt, France, Qatar) by Abdullah Al-Ghaly, and Weedestine (Palestine, Jordan, Qatar, KSA ) by Said Zagha have been selected for Development- Feature Narrative section.
Thank You for Banking with Us! (Germany, Palestine, Qatar) by Laila Abbas, Sink (Jordan, France, Sweden, Qatar) by Zain Duraie, and The Station (Yemen, Jordan, France, The Netherlands, Qatar) by Sara Ishaq will represent the In-Production- Feature Narrative section.
Post-Production – Feature Narrative section includes Brief History of a Family (China, Denmark, France, Qatar) by Jianjie Lin, If Only I Could Hibernate (Mongolia, France, Switzerland, Qatar) by Zoljargal Purevdash, Hounds (France, Morocco, Belgium, Qatar) by Kamal Lazraq, Tiger Stripes (Malaysia, Taiwan, Singapore, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Indonesia, Qatar) directed by Amanda Nell Eu, Backstage (Morocco, Tunisia, Belgium, France) by Afef Ben Mahmoud and Khalil Benkirane, Dead Dog (Lebanon, France, Qatar) by Sarah Francis, and Motherhood (Tunisia, France, Canada, Qatar) by Meryam Joobeur.
Souraya Mon Amour [working title] (Lebanon, Qatar) by Nicolas Khoury, The Woman I Never Called Mum (Algeria, France, Qatar) by Sabrina Adiri Chemloul, Fouledh (Tunisia, France, Luxembourg, Qatar) by Mehdi Hmili and Abdallah Chamekh, and The Myth of Mahmoud (Palestine, USA, Qatar) by Mayar Hamdan will be screened in Development – Feature Documentary section.
West of May (Lebanon, France, Qatar) by Sarah Srage and Women of My Life (Iraq, Sweden, Qatar) by Zahraa Ghandour is selected for In-Production- Feature Documentary section.
Other films include Bye Bye Tiberias (France, Palestine, Belgium, Qatar) by Lina Soualem, Machtat (Tunisia, Lebanon, France, Qatar) by Sonia Ben Slama, River of Toads (Mexico, Qatar) by Juan Carlos Núñez Chavarría, The Forgotten [Working Title] (Palestine, Qatar, UAE) by Ghada Terawi, Miara (Morocco, Qatar) by Talal Selhami and Jawad Lahlou, Nguya (Democratic Republic of the Congo, Belgium) by Michiel Robberecht and Precy Numbi, Let The Earth Burn (France, Qatar) by Sofia Alaoui, 17-0: The Untold Story [Working Title] (Qatar) by Fatma Al-Ghanim, I Wished for Solitude (Qatar) by Hamad Alfayhani, and Holy Feet (USA, Egypt, Qatar) by Karim Emara.
