The eighth Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) concluded today (Dec 14) with a glittering award ceremony, where top talent from the UAE and the Arab world, Asia and Africa were presented DIFF’s Muhr Awards.

Over the past eight days, the festival screened a vivid showcase of 171 films from 56 nations, hosted live music performances that attracted thousands of spectators, and celebrated the spirit of cultural solidarity through its central credo of ‘Bridging Cultures. Meeting Minds.’

A strong statement on Dubai’s ability to host world-class events, the festival welcomed some of the towering names in cinema from Hollywood, Europe, India, Asia, Africa and the rest of the world. The festival also put the global spotlight on the city with the premiere of Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, shot partly in Dubai.

DIFF’s comprehensive script-to-screen industry initiative, the Dubai Film Market, extended co-production, post-production and trade & distribution support, in addition to fostering open discussions on the current trends in cinema and encouraging the development of a new cadre of film journalists.

The presentation of the Muhr Awards, aimed at promoting filmmaking talent in the Arab world, Asia and Africa, brought a perfect culmination to the celebration of the finest in global cinema over eight days.

Some 90 shorts, documentaries and features, selected from over 1,700 entries from 106 countries, had competed for more than 36 Muhr Emirati, Muhr Arab and Muhr AsiaAfrica Awards and over $600,000 in prize money in addition to invaluable industry connections.

They were also eligible for a variety of prestigious global awards including the FIPRESCI International Prize of the Critics Award and the Human Rights Film Network Award.

Earlier, DIFF presented its Lifetime Achievement Awards to veteran Egyptian actor and crossover star Gamil Ratib; Oscar- and Grammy-award winning Indian music composer A R Rahman and internationally renowned auteur Werner Herzog.

The festival also presented the People Who Make a DIFFerence Award to Jafar Varzideh, for flying out from Los Angeles since the inaugural edition of DIFF to volunteer at the festival. The DIFF Young Journalist Award and Dubai Film Connection prizes were presented during the festival. – TradeArabia News Service