Move over Cannes, it's Dubai's turn now to send across the message of cultural harmony and understanding.

The first ever Dubai International Film Festival was held in the Emirates recently with a most appropriate theme - 'Bridging Cultures, Meeting Minds'.

The red carpet rolled out in style on Dec.6, welcoming a galaxy of international and Arab stars as they descended on Dubai, for five days, to attend the opening ceremony of this multi-cultural event. What was more exciting however was the choice of films and the message that the organisers wished to convey through them.

''The Dubai International Film Festival aims to be a forum for inter-cultural conversation through the work of filmmakers. In a world of globalisation, there is a particular need for cultures to communicate openly in order to pave the way for understanding,'' said Abdul Hamid Juma, chief executive of the Dubai Media City (DMC) - the host of the festival.

Film synergy

Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, president of the Dubai Department of Civil Aviation and chairman of the Emirates Group, who is also the festival chairman, said, ''Dubai has always been a cultural crossroad where people from all over the world live together in a peaceful and harmonious environment, I hope that this festival, through the medium of film, can make a small contribution towards building cultural bridges and promoting peace and understanding on the international stage.''

Reiterating this strong mandate, festival director and chief executive officer Neil Stephenson said at the inaugural ceremony, ''The idea was that Dubai should use its historic position as a multi-cultural crossroads to host an international film festival.''

''This festival would act as a cultural bridge and serve as an instrument of global understanding and dialogue between the East and the West, between the Arab and the non-Arab worlds,'' he added.

Honouring the memory of Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the first president and founding father of the U.A.E., who passed away on Nov. 2, the organisers dedicated the section of the official programme entitled 'Operation Cultural Bridge', as well as the festival's closing ceremony, in his name.

Multiculturalism

''Sheikh Zayed was always a strong advocate of interfaith tolerance and harmony among religions and between cultures, and he continually promoted peaceful co-existence among the peoples of the world, stressing the need for constructive dialogue and non-violent resolution of conflicts,'' Stephenson said.

Featuring a mix of culturally rich and diverse movies selected for their popularity in their countries of origin and their ability to transcend cultures, the Dubai festival screened around 75 films, including 55 features as well as retrospective and short films at various venues across Dubai.

The films were chosen by a panel of international programmers based on their appeal to transcend communities. Thirty of these films had their Middle East premiere with the six-day extravaganza offering the best in contemporary French, British, Iranian, Filipino, Indian, Pakistani and Russian cinema.

The section 'Operation Cultural Bridge: A Tribute To His Highness Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan' featured a selection of international films that narrated tales which focussed on tearing down walls of inter-racial prejudice and intolerance, and helped to stimulate dialogue and build cross-border and cross-cultural bridges.

Award-winning Latin American favourite 'The Motorcycle Diaries', which follows the life of revolutionary Che Guevara; Iranian romantic adventure 'The Tear of the Cold'; 'Bollywood Hollywood', the romantic drama from Indo-Canadian director Deepa Mehta; Filipino film 'Milan', the story of a group of Filipino immigrants struggling to make a new life in Italy; Moroccan feature 'In Casablanca, Angels Don't Fly'; and Lebanese drama 'Ring of Fire' are few of the films the public got a chance to see.

Chosen for screening at the inaugural ceremony, the French-Moroccan film 'Le Grand Voyage' aimed to help cast a more positive outlook on Arab-Muslim culture according to its Moroccan director Ismael Ferroukhi.

Islam can be hip too

''This film is spiritual rather than religious or political. Muslims and Arabs have got a very bad press in the western world and it's time people were aware of this and faced up to it. It's a tribute to my parents and the 97 per cent of Muslims that we never hear about in the Western world,'' said Ferroukhi of his first feature film.

Added Stephenson: ''This was a perfect film to start the festival as we were all determined to have an Arabic film as the opening movie and it's doubly fitting since it also embodies the cultural-bridge aspect of the festival.''

The best in UAE cinema had also been chosen for a special programme. Five films from upcoming Emirates' national directors were featured in a section with themes ranging from the struggles of a career woman to a portrait of the country's landscape.

''To stay with the theme, none of the movies featured were censored, as we did not want to limit the opportunity of others to express their minds freely.Political conflicts and ideological disagreements in the world make it imperative to find a medium that narrows the gap and provides a platform for effective dialogue,'' said DMC's chief executive Juma.

The inaugural ceremony was attended by over 800 guests. Among the biggest names were 'Lord of the Rings' stars Orlando Bloom and Billy Boyd together with Bollywood actor Fardeen Khan.

Boyd later told reporters, ''I think film is something we all understand. It's international.''

''The way the world is just now, the more ways we can build bridges and understand different races and how we all live our lives. What better way to do this than film,'' he added.

The festival also honoured Egyptian superstar Omar Sharif, whose legendary acting in Hollywood films like 'Lawrence of Arabia' and 'Doctor Zhivago' had won him international acclaim.

In an interview with the 'Dubai Radio Network', Sharif said he felt privileged to be the first actor honoured at the festival and lauded the main theme.

''At this moment, we absolutely need this bridging between East and West, North and South, between our culture and the Occidental culture,'' said Sharif. ''It's a great thing to have a big festival in Dubai because Dubai is the crossroads of the world's cultures, completely Oriental and completely Arab in its soul, and yet it can also receive all cultures and all Occidental people and they don't feel out of place.''

- IPS