Feeding Five Hundred, a short film directed by Emirati filmmaker Rafed Alharthi and supported and produced by twofour54 creative lab, has been officially selected to screen in competition at the UKs prestigious Encounters Short Film & Animation Festival, which takes place in Bristol, England from September 17-22, 2013. Now in its 19th year, the festival […]
Feeding Five Hundred, a short film directed by Emirati filmmaker Rafed Alharthi and supported and produced by twofour54 creative lab, has been officially selected to screen in competition at the UKs prestigious Encounters Short Film & Animation Festival, which takes place in Bristol, England from September 17-22, 2013. Now in its 19th year, the festival is the UKs leading showcase and meeting point for emerging film talent and it is the countrys leading gateway to prestigious awards including the BAFTAs, Oscars and The European Film Awards. Feeding Five Hundred is the first Emirati film ever to be selected for the festival and it is the only Arab film selected from the 2,372 entries this year.
Set in the UAE, Feeding Five Hundred is an evocative documentary about one mans passion, determination and struggle to feed 500 stray cats each day since 1995. The film, which is in Arabic with English subtitles, has already been screened at three international festivals this year and selected for a further four. At the Encounters Short Film and Animation Festival, it is eligible for awards across three categories.
Noura Al Kaabi, Chief Executive Officer, twofour54 said:
The selection of this engaging short film at such a prestigious international film festival is well deserved recognition for the filmmaker Rafed Alharthi, and for the creative lab community who supported and helped produce it. The acclaim that the film is receiving demonstrates not just Rafeds talent as a filmmaker, but also the caliber of productions developed by young UAE talent from twofour54s creative lab community. It is very exciting that the first documentary produced by creative lab has been so well received, especially because its a genre that has great potential in the region.
Liz Harkman, Managing Director, Encounters Short Film and Animation Festival, added:
Encounters Short Film and Animation Festival is delighted to be welcoming the makers of Feeding Five Hundred to Bristol this September. As a committed supporter of emerging talent from around the globe, its great to see such strong work coming from the developing film industry in the Emirates.
Twenty-five year old Emirati, Rafed Alharthi, commenced his career on-screen, first as a volunteer and later as a professional presenter on Abu Dhabi TV where he still regularly introduces his own show Min Alkhater. After participating in the Young Media Leaders programme, run by twofour54s training academy, tadreeb, Rafed developed a passion for documentary filmmaking. Feeding Five Hundred is his debut production.
Rafed said: Its very exciting that Feeding Five Hundred has been selected and Im really looking forward to flying to the UK for the Encounters Short Film and Animation Festival where I hope to connect with other filmmakers and film industry professionals to explore other projects to further develop my career. Id like to extend my thanks to the team at twofour54 creative lab who supported and produced Feeding Five Hundred. Im passionate about filmmaking and this could lead to anything!
At The Encounters Short Film and Animation Festival, Feeding Five Hundred is eligible for: the Brief Encounters Grand Prix Award; the Audience Award and the Best Short Documentary.
Feeding Five Hundred has been screened or is due to be screened at other festivals in 2013. These are: Ismaïlia International Festival for Documentary and Short Films, Egypt; Cinemadamare, Italy; Two Riversides, Poland; flEXiff Cinewest, Australia; Nour Festival of Arts, UK; Beirut International Film Festival, Lebanon and Festival International du Court Métrage, France.
Established in 2010, twofour54 creative lab is an initiative that identifies, nurtures and guides young Arab talent looking to jumpstart a media or creative career. Its film productions, in particular, have been very successful, achieving 177 film festival acceptances and 23 awards to date. Feeding Five Hundred is the first documentary produced by creative lab.
