The Doha Film Institute has announced the recipients of the Fall 2015 session of its grants programme, which includes 30 projects from 19 countries.

The projects, which comprise 16 feature-length narrative films, 10 feature documentaries and four short films, will receive funding for development, production or post-production.

The Fall session marks the 11th session of the grants programme, which is dedicated to supporting new cinematic talent, with a focus on first- and second-time filmmakers.

Twenty-four of the projects are from the Mena region, while six are from the rest of the world. For the first time, filmmakers from Chile, Peru and Spain will receive funding from the programme.

Stories of displacement, physical or spiritual journeys, tales of family life, the power of nature and the importance of protecting the environment are highlighted in the selections this Fall.

Fatma Al Remaihi, CEO of the Doha Film Institute, said: “Our Fall grantees cover a broad range of subjects and represent some powerful new voices in cinema, especially from Qatar and North Africa with several projects supported from Morocco and Algeria.”

“Animated films are very popular in our region so it is very encouraging to see an acclaimed filmmaker like Haifaa Al Mansour turn her skills to this important genre; we support two other animated projects in this grants cycle as well.

“Our grantees represent the core of the Doha Film Institute’s mandate to support emerging filmmakers and contribute to the development of the regional film industry.

We have supported more than 255 films since the inception of the grants programme and we continue to seek out projects with a strong directorial vision that are challenging, creative and thought-provoking. Our new round of grantees is no exception and I am delighted to welcome this outstanding crop of projects to our growing community of grantee alumni,” she added.

Submissions for the next funding round open January 6 and close January 19, 2016. Funding is available to projects by filmmakers from around the world, with an emphasis on support for filmmakers from the Mena region. Certain categories of funding reserved for Mena and Qatari filmmakers.

The fund is primarily for first and second-time filmmakers. Post-production funding is available to established filmmakers from the Mena region. – TradeArabia News Service