Business & Finance Club - Dubai: The Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) is promoting documentary film-making in the region through a new collaboration with Lebanon-based Screen Institute Beirut.

Beginning with DIFF 2010, Screen Institute Beirut will award $15,000 (Dh55,083) annually to a documentary film under development and included in Dubai Film Connection, the Festival's co-production market.

An international jury, comprising Sandra den Hamer, director of the Eye Film Institute in the Netherlands and former Director of the Rotterdam Festival; Carthage Film Festival head Dora Bouchoucha; and Lebanese filmmaker Mohammad Sweid, will shortlist entries and name the winner of the Screen Institute Beirut DIFF Documentary Award in December.

Touching on the new partnership, Shivani Pandya, Managing Director of the Dubai International Film Festival, said: "Documentary films are the most popular genre in the Arab world, outstripping the number of fiction features produced every year, and DIFF is recognised by directors and organisations alike as a strong platform for these needed voices and stories."

Reinforcing its role

She added: "The new relationship with Screen Institute Beirut will enable us to reach out to, encourage and assist more documentary filmmakers across the region, and reinforce our role as a resource and stage for Arab documentaries."

Henning Camre, president of Screen Institute Beirut, said: "Screen Institute Beirut aims to strengthen the capability and the conditions for producing films in the Arab region. Our first target is new, personal, documentaries that bring to screen stories and subjects not often exposed. The DIFF offers a unique platform for young professionals from the Screen Institute to showcase their films."

Information

Registration for DIFF 2010 is now open at www.dubaifilmfest.com