The shortlist for the esteemed IWC Filmmaker Award was revealed this week and three Gulf contenders have been nominated. Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) and official partner and sponsor Swiss luxury watchmaker IWC Schaffhausen have joined forces annually to support local Arab filmmaking talent by helping to take “their project from script to big screen”.
“Thanks to the IWC Filmmaker Award, both emerging and established directors have an unparalleled opportunity for global recognition,” said DIFF’s Artistic Director, Masoud Amralla Al Ali.
The three nominees include Qatari director Khalifa Al Muraikhi for “Schaab”, Saudi director Shahad Ameen for “Scales” and Emirati director Layla Kaylif for “The Letter Writer”. The nominated contenders will present their scripts to a respected panel of film industry experts, which previously included actress Emily Blunt, Cate Blanchett and Marc Forster, who will review the films. The winner will be announced during the IWC gala event held on December 10th. The winner will be awarded with a grant of 100,000 dollars.
“This is the fourth consecutive year we are hosting the IWC Filmmaker Award during the Dubai Film Festival and I am happy to say that we are receiving more submissions every year,” said IWC Regional Brand Director, Luc Rochereau.
