DUBAI: The Doha Film Institute’s incubator program, Qumra, has been moved to a virtual event that will run until April 8.
The initiative, which supports emerging filmmakers, was originally due to be an in-person event but will now be online due to the ongoing war in the region.
Qumra focuses on nurturing first- and second-time filmmakers by providing tailored creative support at every stage of filmmaking.
This year’s program brings together 49 projects from around the world, representing a diverse range of storytelling approaches and themes. The selection includes 27 feature films, nine series and 13 short films that span fiction, documentary and experimental formats.
A large majority — 43 in total — come from the Middle East and North Africa, while six originate from international filmmakers. Fifteen projects are led by filmmakers based in Qatar, including ten by Qatari nationals.
The projects explore a wide range of themes, from personal stories and social realities to history, myth and identity.
Highlights include “The Missing Planet” by Marouan Omara and Tom Rosenberg, part of the Development — Feature Narrative section. It follows a paramedic searching Cairo for his missing wife, guided by dreams sent from the future by his grieving daughter.
In Development — Documentary, “Onions to Forget the Past” by Emilien Awada sees the director trace his parents’ secret wartime letters, uncovering a family history shaped by Lebanon’s divisions.
“Reset” by Qatar-based Dhoha Abdelsattar follows 12-year-old Noura as her Tamagotchi dies, triggering her first confrontation with the inevitability of change in the Development — Short Narratives section.
Films from Hong Kong, Chile and Cameroon also feature on the agenda from further afield, with themes ranging from family dysfunction to the supernatural.
