Amman International Film Festival 2022 ends with awards ceremony

Algerian director Salah Assaad won the Black Iris Award for best Arab feature-length narrative for his film 'Soula.' (Courtesy of Amman International Film Festival)
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Updated 28 July 2022
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Amman International Film Festival 2022 ends with awards ceremony

DUBAI: The third edition of the Amman International Film Festival, held over eight days, came to a close on Wednesday with an award ceremony celebrating the best films in its program.

The Black Iris Awards was held at The Royal Film Commission — Jordan in the presence of Prince Ali Bin Al-Hussein and Princess Rym Ali, the festival’s president.

The Black Iris Award for Best Arab Feature Film went to the Algerian film “Soula,” directed by Salah Assaad. Somali film “The Gravedigger’s Wife” by Khadar Ahmed received a special mention.

The Palestinian Syrian film “Little Palestine,” directed by Abdullah Al-Khatib, won the award for Best Feature-Length Arab Documentary; while the Best Arab Short Film prize went to Algerian film “My Mother’s Voice.”

French director Florence Miailhe’s animation “The Crossing” was voted by the audience as the winner of the Best International Film Award.


Lolo Zouai teases new album for 2026

Updated 03 January 2026
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Lolo Zouai teases new album for 2026

DUBAI: French Algerian singer and songwriter Lolo Zouai this week revealed that her new album has been submitted and is expected to be released later this year.

“2026. ALBUM SUBMITTED. LET’S… GOOO,” she wrote on Instagram, sharing a carousel of images of herself.

Fans quickly took to the comments section to congratulate the music sensation.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Lolo Zouaï (@lolozouai)

“OH MY GOD FINALLY!!! I’m so so so excited and proud of you omg, you did that,” one fan wrote, while another said: “some good news i needed this fr.”

Another comment read: “I’m so excited I just shed a tear… 2026 is so gonna be your year boo!!!! SEE U SOON!!”

Zouai’s latest release was in November, when she dropped a new single titled “3AM in San Francisco.” It was the first release of the year.

Zouai captioned her announcement post, “time to hit em with the bilingual,” hinting that the track features lyrics in English and French.

In 2024, Zouai dropped several tracks, including her “Please Hold” EP featuring “jetlag” and “UNHHH,” along with “mute” and “Potential.”

In June 2024, she also announced that she had written a song for K-pop group NewJeans for their Japanese debut.

She captioned the post at the time: “‘Right Now’ by @newjeans_official out now!! Written by me. I’ve been a fan of NewJeans for a while and I’m honored to be a part of their Japanese debut!

Known for her blend of R&B, club-pop and hip-hop, she has gained an international fan base for her dynamic stage presence and genre-blending music.

Her career highlights include the release of a debut album “High Highs to Low Lows” in 2019, which featured 12 tracks, and a follow-up “PLAYGIRL” in 2022, which included 13 tracks.

After the album’s release in October 2022, Zouai was featured on a billboard in New York’s Times Square.

She shared a video of herself posing in front of the billboard with fans. “I always said that one day, I would be on a billboard in Times Square. Today is that day,” she said in the short clip.

“Manifestation and hard work works,” she added.

The singer, who lives between Brooklyn and Los Angeles, embarked on a 30-stop tour for the album in 2023. The tour featured cities in the US, France, Canada, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.