Doha Film Institute (DFI) has announced its first line-up of six films, including the closing night gala, selected to the fourth Ajyal Youth Film Festival to be held from November 30 to December 5, in Doha.
The selection celebrates excellence in world cinema today and includes films from acclaimed filmmakers such as Ken Loach, Gianfranco Rosi, Asghar Farhadi, Taika Waititi, Michael Dudok de Wit and newcomer Babak Anvari, who are some of the most powerful voices within the international film community.  
“The six films present a wonderful showcase of how today’s filmmakers use the medium to present stories that touch a chord within you,” said DFI CEO Fatma al-Remaihi.
Acclaimed Dutch-British animator Michael Dudok de Wit’s The Red Turtle (La Tortue rouge [France, Belgium, Japan, 2016]) will be the closing gala of this year’s Ajyal Youth Film Festival, marking the film’s Mena premiere.
The Red Turtle, a visual poetry in cinema, narrates the story of a man who tries to escape from a deserted island and must battle a giant turtle. It premiered in the Un Certain Regard section of the 2016 Cannes Film Festival and won the Special Jury Prize.
Also making a beeline for Doha following critical acclaim at international film festivals is I, Daniel Blake (UK, France, Belgium/English/2016), the winner of the Palme d’Or at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival, and the Audience Award at the Locarno International Film festival.
Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Ken Loach, the film is about the life of a middle aged carpenter who applies for state welfare, which gets entangled in red tape. He meets a single mother with two children who are facing a similar predicament.
It stars English stand-up comedian, writer and actor Dave Johns in the title role. The film will screen at Ajyal in the competition section in the Bader segment.
Fire at Sea (Fuocoammare) [Italy, Italian, 2016] directed by Gianfranco Rosi, is the winner of the Golden Bear at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival and Italy’s official submission to the 2017 Academy Awards. Set in the island of Lampedusa, a frontline in the migrant crisis, the compelling documentary charts the risky Mediterranean crossing of ‘refugees’ against the background of the ordinary life of the islanders. The film will screen in Ajyal Competition in the Bader segment.
Iran’s official entry to the 2017 Academy Awards, and winner of the Best Screenplay and Best Actor Awards in the official competition section at Cannes 2016, Asghar Farhadi’s The Salesman will make its Mena debut at Ajyal 2016.
The Salesman is produced by Memento Films Production and Asghar Farhadi Production and co-produced by Arte France Cinema in association with Memento Films Distribution and the DFI.
Forced out of their apartment due to dangerous works on a neighbouring building, a young couple Emad and Rana move into a new flat in the centre of Tehran. An incident linked to the previous tenant will dramatically change the young couple’s life. The Salesman stars Shahab Hosseini (A Separation) and Taraneh Alidoosti (About Elly).
Screening in the Mohaq competition section at Ajyal is Hunt for the Wilderpeople (New Zealand/English/2016) directed by Taika Waititi. The film has won eight international honours already including the Audience Award at Edinburgh International Film festival, and was a sensation at the 2016 Sundance Film festival, where it premiered. Based on a book by Barry Crump, the film stars Sam Neill (Omen III, The Piano) and Julian Dennison, and charts the story of a rebellious young city kid who is sent to live with his foster parents; the two go missing in the wild New Zealand bush leading to a national manhunt.
Under the Shadow (US/English/2016), a thriller by Babak Anvari, screens at Ajyal by marking the opening of the festival’s first Midnight Screening. A DFI grantee project, the film is about a mother and daughter who struggle to cope with the terrors of the post-revolution Tehran of the 1980s.
The film stars Narges Rashidi and Avin Manshadi, and has won international film festival awards for best film and best actress and is the UK’s official entry to the 2017 Oscars.