SYRIA: Damascus Film Festival goes ahead despite funding worries

Record ID: 278894

  • Title: SYRIA: Damascus Film Festival goes ahead despite funding worries
  • Date: 3rd November 2009
  • Summary: DAMASCUS, SYRIA (OCTOBER 31, 2009) (REUTERS) (NIGHTSHOTS) SYRIAN OPERA HOUSE FESTIVAL SIGN VARIOUS OF ARAB ACTORS ARRIVING
  • Embargoed: 18th November 2009 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: Entertainment,Economic News
  • Reuters ID: LVA7TOUV3Q54AIR4RAE4CWJ3GHKC
  • Story Text: The 17th Damascus International Film Festival kicks off at the al-Assad for Culture and Arts Centre in Damascus.
    The 17th Damascus Film Festival kicked-off on Saturday (October 31) in the Syrian capital, with 52 countries participating in the annual international event.
    About 252 films are competing for prizes in three main categories: long, short and best Arabic film. Only two Syrian films will be showcased at the event.
    The festival aims to bring together actors from all over the world in order to exchange ideas and culture to develop and enhance film-making in the Arab world.
    Damascus's film festival was first launched in 1979, but was previously held every few years until 2008, when demand turned it into an annual event.
    The opening night was attended by an array of stars and features film from Arab and other countries.
    Egyptian Actress Yosra said the festival is a good chance to foster culture exchange between artists.
    "This offers intellectual, creative, cinematic and artistic paths of communication for the whole Arab region and for the whole world. It is an exchange of cultures not only within the Middle East and but also between us and the rest of the world."
    Despite the high profile the event has attained in recent years, the festival still suffers from a lack of Syrian film production every year.
    Syria is participating in the Damascus Cinema festival with only two films produced by the Syrian General Institute of Film-Making, which is a public-sector foundation.
    Syrian Actor Salim Sabri said that an increase in Syrian film production was desperately needed to improve Syria's industry.
    "There should be cinema halls because this material that we are producing needs to be shown. Syrian television drama has its market in the many satellite channels, but where is the cinematic film going to be shown? You need cinema halls for showcasing this material and unfortunately this is a big problem and it is hard to discuss it in a matter of seconds or minutes."
    Although the Syrian television industry is one of the better-established in the Levant, the film industry still has a long way to go in terms of progress and development. Experts say that is due to the lack of funds, the low number of cinema halls and the private sector's focus of the television industry.
    Syrian Actress Sabah al-Jazaery, said, "The truth is we need the private sector to produce cinema so we can have real cinema. This is the only reason we do not have cinema. The films produced by the establishment cannot cover all the that is available in Syria. If the private sector does not produce films I think we will not progress."
    This year's festival honoured many Arab and International film makers such as Syrian Director Najdat Anzour, Egyptian Actress Yosra, Swiss Actress Ursula Andress and Spanish actress Victoria April for their contribution to film.
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