Ajyal youth festival opens with inspiring Kazakh film

The fourth Ajyal Youth Film Festival, presented by the Doha Film Institute (DFI), kicked off on a powerful note with a red carpet ceremony to mark the screening of the inspiring Kazakh film, The Eagle Huntress (Mongolia, UK, US/2016) and a call to draw on the power of films to drive positive social change.
This year, Ajyal has a curated selection of 70 films from 33 countries that address issues ranging from women empowerment to the global displacement crisis, the loss of loved ones, financial dependence, separation and every day struggles.
According to DFI, these films are presented with an underlying spirit of optimism and hope that will warm the hearts of the viewers.
“Each film reflects our time and space, and even when discussing disturbing subjects, they rekindle hope and restore confidence in humanity,” said DFI CEO and festival director Fatma al-Remaihi .
“These filmmakers have gone great lengths to accomplish their dreams, and they do us a service by opening up new horizons.”
In addition to Otto Bell, director of The Eagle Huntress and its actress Aisholpan Nurgaiv, the red carpet ceremony was attended by Margus Paju, director of Secret Society of Uptown; actress Olivia Viikant; Choi Soo-in (The World of Us); Babek Anvari, Narges Rashid and Lucan Tohn (Under the Shadow), and actress Haifa Hussein and director Khalifa al-Obeidly (both Made in Qatar jury members), among others.
Talents showcasing their films in the Made in Qatar programme and who attended the red carpet included Nora al-Subai, Abrar Sabt, Hassan Saqer, Rasha Mkachar, AJ al-Thani, Ahmed Afif, Hamida Issa, Khalifa al-Marri, Bahyan Dahdah, Jassim al-Rumaihi, Noor al-Nasr, Alanood al-Kuwari, Noor al-Khaldi, Mostafa Sheshtawy, Shouq Saheen, Dana Almeer, Aisha R al-Muhannadi and Amer Jamhour, among others. Other cultural leaders, artists and social influencers who attended the event include Abdulaziz Jassem, Saad Burshid, Asma al-Hamadi, Amal Abdel Malek, Ali Abdulsatar, Ahmed Iraj, Tarek al-Arabi, Karim Fouad, Khulood Ahmed, Hedaya Saeed, Rabeea al-Kuwari, Mohamed al-Hajji, Omar Hussein, Dana Mado and Bin Baz, among others.
In addition to regular screenings, the six-day festival also features special screenings, thematic tributes, ‘Cinema Under the Stars,’ family weekend activities, Ajyal Talks and a Creativity Hub.