Abu Dhabi Film Festival reveals Talks line-up

Abu Dhabi Film Festival (ADFF) has announced this year’s ADFF Talks Film programme, comprising masterclasses and panel discussions on topics ranging from film preservation and crowdfunding campaigns to Arab diaspora filmmaking and international co-productions.

ADFF Talks Film will kick off on Oct 24 with In conversation with Rachid Bouchareb, which will cover the life and career of the French-Algerian director and producer, who has been Oscar-nominated three times with Dust of Life (1995), Days of Glory (2006) and Outside the Law (2010).

The opening day will also host the director and producers of ADFF’s opening film, From A to B. The session titled From A to B – The A to Z of Making an Emirati Feature Film, will cover the various stages of filmmaking, from concept to post-production.

Panel discussion Let’s Work Together on Oct 25 will include directors and producers from Europe, Canada and the Arab world analyzing whether Arab filmmakers should opt for international co-productions and collaborations to gain global success.

In the second half of the day, twofour54’s Creative Lab will host Iraqi-Canadian musician and actor Yassin Alsalman at an event titled An Evening with The Narcicyst. Alsalman is set to attend ADFF this year for the premiere of his latest film, Rise.

On Oct 26, panel discussion Moving Beyond the Arab World will examine various acting styles in films from the region and its impact on gaining international exposure.

It will be followed by a workshop on Preserving for the Future. Led by representatives of Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Project (WCP), the workshop will highlight techniques on the preservation and protection of new, digitally-produced films.

On Oct 27, panel discussion The Soul Yearns for a Home – Film Making from Arab Diaspora will complete ADFF’s programme ‘The Arab Diaspora’. This segment will see filmmakers discussing the economic, social and historical factors that contribute to an individual’s decision to emigrate.

Emigrant filmmakers residing away from their home countries will discuss how the challenges they faced living in countries not originally their own impacted their careers.

The panel Build It and They Will Come will be headlined by regional filmmakers and industry representatives. Participants will analyse the GCC’s fledging film industry that took root more than a decade ago with the launch of the Emirates Film Competition and will discuss achievements and barriers faced by the industry.  

Additionally, a panel titled Point of View will debate the problems documentary filmmakers and their audiences face in remaining objective. Panellists will also focus on the notions of truth in documentary films.

On Oct 28, ADFF and Tadreeb will team with Avid to present a workshop on Media Composer and Pro Tools, while masterclass The Long and Short Of It will unite short film programmers from the Berlinale, Cannes and Tribeca, offering tips on the work needed ahead of the launch and marketing of short films.

The final session will be an interactive workshop on Pitching to the Masses. Conducted by Aflamnah, a crowdfunding initiative dedicated to the Arab World, the session will offer an overview on crowdfunding and ways to make it work - from planning the campaign and pitch video to wrapping up with social media utilisation.