Abu Dhabi, October 18: Emirati director Hani Al Shaibani dominated the ninth Emirates Film Competition (EFC), as he won four awards in this year’s fiesta for Gulf Arabic movies. The three main categories were UAE shorts, GCC shorts and GCC features.
A veteran filmmaker in the UAE, Shaibani was awarded with the Best Short Film in the UAE, Best Feature Film in the Gulf, Best Script and Best Editing.
For his Best Short Film, ‘Ahzan Sagheera’ (Young Sadness), Shaibani received a Dh50,000 cheque, while the Best Feature award (‘The Hotel’) came along with a Dh100,000 prize money.
He was also awarded a special Dh50,000 prize for his short film ‘Uboor’ (‘Crossing’).
The film ‘Al Jazera Al Hamra’ (The Red Island) directed by Ahmed Zain and Ahmed Arshi won a special appreciation award (Dh10,000).
The GCC Short Film category was won by Bahraini filmmaker Mohammed Ibrahim, for his film ‘Azhar Tahtareq’ (Burning Flowers), along with a Dh50,000 prize.
Since all three movies in the feature competition this year were Emirati, there were no awards for GCC feature, but the jury did offer a special appreciation award (Dh20,000) to Emirati director Hanan Al Muhairi for her film ‘Haqna Fi Alforosiyya’ (Our Right to Ride).
–Agencies