Maysoon Pachachi was presented with the $100,000 IWC Schaffhausen Filmmaker Award for her project Nothing Doing In Baghdad at a glittering ceremony at the Dubai International Film Festival last night.

Pachachi, an acclaimed Iraqi-born, UK-based documentary director, received the award from jury president Cate Blanchett. Nothing Doing In Baghdad, which will be her narrative feature debut, comprises overlapping stories about a group of people in a Baghdad neighbourhood during the winter of 2006. Kuwait-born Talal Al Muhanna will produce.

Also judging the award were IWC Schaffhausen CEO Georges Kern, DIFF chairman Abdulhamid Juma, DIFF artistic director Masoud Amralla AL Ali and Arte France Cinema general director Olivier Pere.

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