Doha Film Institute (DFI) has announced that it is set to present a new themed programme for cinema enthusiasts in Qatar, highlighting the importance of visual illusions in filmmaking to provide a real sensory experience.
Themed ‘Masters of Illusion,’ the special programme will run from June 1-5 at the Katara Drama Theatre and explore the fascinating world of visual perceptions created by master filmmakers to provide audiences with a cinema experience that tricks the mind through the art of deception.
‘Masters of Illusion’ follows the success of DFI’s earlier themed series, Science Fiction in Film-Spaceships in Cinema and Fashion in Film- Costume as Character, according to a statement.
The ‘Masters in Illusion’ series includes a line-up of films from some of the most celebrated filmmakers who have defined the use of illusions in their mise-en-scene and added to its popularity along with a master class, Masters of Illusions, Masters of World, by international film expert and programmer Teresa Cavina.  
The special line-up features Federico Fellini’s 8½  (Otto e Mezzo), screening at 9pm on June 4; The Matrix by the Wachowskis, screening at 9pm on June 3; Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth, screening at 5.30pm on June 3; The Prestige by Christopher Nolan, screening at 9pm on June 1, The Mummy/The Night of Counting the Years (Al-Mumia) from Shadi Abdel Salam, screening at 5.30pm on June 4; and Andrei Tarkovsky’s Mirror, screening at 9pm on June 2. The series also includes a free family screening of Alice in Wonderland at 2.30pm on June 4. 
Cavina’s master class on June 3 will help audiences find out how great filmmakers such as Fellini, Nolan and Tarkovsky, among others, built their film universes around optical illusions to create a fictional world that we inhabit and believe in.
DFI’s Thematic Series, part of DFI Cinema, provides cultural and creative discoveries for audiences in Doha all year-long, making a “valuable contribution to the diversity of screen culture in the region”, the statement noted.
The initiative is aimed at strengthening appreciation for the arts and contributing to the evolution of Qatar’s rich cultural fabric, and offers audiences in Doha the opportunity to view films that may not necessarily reach commercial cinemas, and exposes them not only to the history of the medium but also introduces them to new perceptions through a diverse programme.
Ticket prices and further details can be had by visiting,  www.dohafilminstitute.com