FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ROBERT DE NIRO WELCOMES QATAR’S COMMUNITY TO DOHA TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL CLOSING NIGHT AWARDS AND OUTDOOR SCREENING
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Tribeca Film Festival Co-founder De Niro to Honour Festival Winners
Prior to Public Screening of Cairo Time
Doha, Qatar [31 October 2009] – To thank the entire community in Qatar for its enthusiastic support for the inaugural Doha Tribeca Film Festival (DTFF), Tribeca Film Festival co-founder Robert De Niro and DTFF organizers are welcoming the public to the closing awards ceremony and free outdoor screening on the grounds of the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA).
From 7pm on Sunday, 1 November, De Niro and his Tribeca Film Festival co-founders Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff, DTFF Executive Director Amanda Palmer, DTFF Managing Director Maggie Kim, and Chief Creative Officer of Tribeca Enterprises Geoff Gilmore will present two awards of $50,000 each to two feature filmmakers as part of DTFF’s closing night ceremony. Aimed at further supporting filmmakers and filmmaking in the region, the two $50,000 cash prize awards – one each for the best Arab and international film – will have been selected from the Festival’s line-up by the audience.
“The turnout for DTFF’s opening night was amazing. I hope the community comes out to celebrate the Festival’s closing night with me,” said Robert De Niro.
At 8pm, DTFF will host its final free-to-the-public outdoor screening at the MIA, filmmaker Ruba Nadda’s Cairo Time, starring Patricia Clarkson and Alexander Siddig.
Cairo Time made its Middle Eastern premiere on Friday, 30 October to an intimate gathering within the MIA itself and has built up so much buzz and anticipation at DTFF that organizers were prompted to feature it on the MIA’s outdoor screen as the closing film. The purpose-built screen enables up to 3000 of the Festival’s supporters to view the cross-cultural love story.
“We hope that by welcoming Doha’s film enthusiasts to our awards ceremony and closing night film Cairo Time outdoors, we can demonstrate to the entire community in Qatar just how much we appreciate all of the support that DTFF has received,” said Amanda Palmer, DTFF’s Executive Director.
“While the DTFF’s awards programme will inspire and enable the next generation of filmmakers, our closing ceremony and final outdoor screening will be the conduit through which we thank the Qatari community for the wholehearted reception that DTFF has received. But while the Festival itself is closing, our initiatives to provide a platform for filmmakers from Qatar will continue,” added Palmer.
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About DTFF
Doha Tribeca Film Festival was formed through a strategic partnership by Her Excellency Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and CEO Abdulla Al Najjar of the Qatar Museums Authority and the Tribeca Film Festival Founders, Jane Rosenthal, Craig Hatkoff, and Robert De Niro. The arrangement was spearheaded by DTFF Executive Director Amanda Palmer. Uniquely Qatari in its identity, the Festival is modeled on the success of Tribeca Film Festival’s dedication to engage the local community and promote filmmaking talent. In its inaugural year, Doha’s first international film festival will celebrate the best of Arabic and international cinema. Its ongoing aim will be to inspire, engage and educate a new generation of cinema appreciation locally; discover, mentor and fund regional filmmaking talent; foster a community through art and entertainment; and encourage open discussion and debate.
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