Oscar-nominated filmmaker Jim Sheridan and Film Director Zahara Moufid’s  7th annual Dublin Arabic Film Festival (DAFF) is set to run online from the December 11 to 13, five feature length Arab films will be shown on the festival’s website.
The Dublin Arabic Film Festival (DAFF) is hosting a virtual event from December 11 to December 13, 2020, with the Chester Beatty  in Dublin and the French Embassy both set to show Arabic and French movies.

Five feature length Arab films will be shown on the Festival’s website, while the French Embassy will offer one or two films for free for schools to screen online.

Zahara Moufid and Jim Sheridan established DAFF in 2014 in a bid to allow Irish audiences the opportunity to enjoy some of the best new and classic Arab films ever made.

Legendary, actor Omar Sharif launched the inaugural edition of DAFF in 2014 and was the guest of honour for the duration of the festival.
The Egyptian actor was due to return to Ireland for the 2015 festival but sadly died in the summer of 2015. He was subsequently represented by his eponymous grandson, Omar Sharif Junior.

Other famous faces who have supported the festival over the years have included The Edge, actress Fionnula Flanagan, singer Damien Dempsey and last year’s patron, Liam Cunningham of Game of Thrones fame.

An additional element has been added to this year’s film festival, ‘The Jim Sheridan International Short Film Competition’, created by Zahara Moufid and Jim Sheridan to inspire young filmmakers globally.
 
Aspiring filmmakers are invited to submit a 20-minute, original short film which explores the themes of Arabic culture, human rights, injustices, immigrant life, displacement, or which helps to create awareness of the plight of underprivileged women and girls.
The short films may be viewed online between January 22 and January 24, 2021 and the winners will be announced on Facebook Live on the eve of the final day.

The overall Short Film Competition winner will win a one-on-one virtual mentoring session with Jim Sheridan and will automatically qualify to screen their work at the Waterford Film Festival in 2021.

For more information on The Jim Sheridan Short Film Competition, please go to the competition page on this site.