Homegrown filmmakers whose projects have been selected for mentoring at the 10th edition of Qumra said the support and guidance they receive at the event have been invaluable in finding their own unique cinematic voice and realising their creative aspirations.
This year, 13 projects from Qatar are part of Qumra, including 11 by Qataris. They receive guidance from this year’s luminaries in world cinema – Qumra Masters Toni Colette, Leos Carax, Claire Denis, Atom Egoyan, Martín Hernández, and Jim Sheridan – as well as more than 200 international industry professionals.
The nurturing covers every aspect of filmmaking – from scripting to production, post-production and marketing.
Amal al-Muftah, director of Before the Day Breaks (Qatar), said: “I think the challenge we face as Qatari filmmakers is to find our voice. Being a part of Doha Film Institute (DFI) allowed us to mature and have a collective voice.”
Theatre of Dreams (Qatar) director Fatma al-Ghanim said: “DFI’s Short Doc Lab with Rithy Panh, the backing of DFI’s Qatari Film Fund and the feedback from industry experts at Qumra all supported the process of diving into exploring an unconventional thematic approach to a character-driven sports documentary”.
Kummam al-Maadeed and Abeer al-Kubaisi, who introduced their short film Becoming a Vampire (Qatar), said: “There weren’t any restrictions or obligations on the theme, and we were able to script a universal story because DFI supported us to share more accurate realities of life as a woman in Qatar.”
On the support from DFI and Qumra, Ali al-Hajiri, director of I Lay to Wait for You to Sleep (Qatar) said: “DFI offers a safe, supportive space to connect with other filmmakers and get peer support.”
Homegrown filmmakers at Qumra 2024.
