Beirut DC was founded in Beirut, Lebanon in 1999 by a group of cinema professionals and art advocates. The organization began its projects towards the end of 1999. The aim of Beirut DC was to provide help and support to Arab independent filmmakers, in facing up and overcoming the constraints facing independently-minded Arab cinema.
Beirut DC is proud to present the 6th edition of its biennale Arab Film Festival Ayam Beirut Al Cinema’iya (The Cinema Days of Beirut).
This event, bound to be one of the most exciting cultural happenings in Beirut, will take place between the 16th and the 26th of September 2010 at Cinema Metropolis Empire Sofil, Achrafieh.
Throughout its previous five editions, Ayam Beirut managed to screen more than 300 Arab films and films addressing the Arab World. Several acclaimed filmmakers like Abdellatif Kechiche, Yousri Nasrallah, Omar Amiralay, Daoud Abdel Sayyed and Jean-Luc Godard have participated to the festival. But also several Lebanese celebrated directors presented their films during Ayam Beirut, including Ghassan Salhab, Michel Kammoun, Simon El Habre, Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige. During the closing ceremony of the 2008 edition, French icon Catherine Deneuve presented the film I Want to See. Yet the festival is not only about big names, its main challenge was to present emerging young Arab and Lebanese talents by screening their feature, short and documentary films as well as videos. The festival served as a platform to discuss these films with several key figures working in the audio-visual industry.
The 2010 edition will showcase an eclectic selection of feature and short films from all corners of the Arab World, creative documentaries, foreign films that deal with the Arab World as well as films from the Arab cinema heritage. This edition will also have retrospectives, a master class held by filmmakers Ghassan Salhab and Tariq Teguia as well as a pitching session for Arab documentary filmmakers in the presence of local and international producers.
