Lifetime Achievement

Werner Herzog / 2011

Werner Herzog is an internationally renowned filmmaker who has worked in fiction and documentary from the beginning. Knowing at an early age that he wanted to work in cinema he worked at nights as a welder and invested his earnings in making short films whilst at Munich University. His fourth short, “Letze Worte” won a major prize at the renowned Oberhausen Film Festival. His first feature, “Signs of Life” (1968) won a Silver Bear for best first film at the Berlin Film Festival. It was with his third film that he leapt to the forefront of international cinema with “Aguirre, Wrath of God” (1972) shot in the Peruvian jungle. He won the Jury Prize at Cannes for “The Mystery of Kasper Hauser” (1975) and then Best Director there for “Fitzcarraldo (1982). This is extraordinary film is of a man determined to build an opera house in the Amazon jungle, hauling a ship over mountains to achieve it. The film was shot in the jungle and a ship hauled over the mountains – no cgi special effects were available then and one wonders if Herzog would have used them anyway. Inevitably he was seen as something of an inspired madman but this was to misrepresent someone who, as a dedicated filmmaker, has to cross boundaries and challenge the seemingly impossible. In 2009 he had two films at the Venice Film Festival, “Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans” which was in competition, and “My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done?” a first for the festival. His creativity, whether in fiction or documentary (we are showing one of each) remains and his films continue to be extraordinarily personal. His ability to make them in an increasingly commercialised medium is something that we should most surely be grateful for.

Gamil Ratib / 2011

“To be feted by Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) is an acknowledgment of my expertise in art. I know that DIFF has previously feted three Egyptian artists: Faten Hamama, Omar El Sharif and Adel Imam; to be placed in their league, is a huge honour for me as an Egyptian, and for my country Egypt.” – Gamil Ratib

Gamil Ratib’s memories span across the past and present. They summarize the uniquely artistic journey of a lifetime. He left Cairo in the mid-1940s for Paris to study political science. Shortly after, he abandoned his studies and immersed himself in acting school. Never once regretting his choices, he realized his dreams and experienced artistic, cultural and political events that he would have missed out on had he followed the desires of his upper-class family that he remain a man of politics and law.

French and international cinema embraced his talent, as he acted out various roles until he achieved true stardom, when Egyptian cinema opened its doors to him in the mid-1970s.

To date, his credits include about 56 Egyptian films, five films helmed by Arab directors, 17 foreign films, in addition to several TV series and Egyptian and French plays, of which several are high-profile productions.

Gamil Ratib has worked with leading Egyptian directors including Salah Abu Seif, Ali Abdulkhaliq, Kamal Al Sheikh, Ali Badrkhan, Barakat, Sa’id Maezuk, Yousef Chahine, Atef Al Taieb, Osama Fawzi and Yousri Nasrullah. He also worked with Arab directors such as Mahmood bin Mahmood, Mu’min Al Samihi, Farid Bu Ghadir, Heyam Abbas, Rashid Frshio, Samir Al Ghosaini, Bu Alam Gharadjo and Abdulkarim Bahlul. Foreign directors he has worked with include Carol Reed, David Lean, Eduard Molinaro, Marcel Carne and Pierre Granier-Deferre.

Never one to complain about alienation or the path of creative solitude he has chosen for himself, Gamil Ratib is an extraordinary artist, content with his life’s creative journey and grateful for the love and support showered on him by the Egyptian and Arab audiences.

As DIFF honours him, two films featuring Gamil Ratib will be screened: the politics-themed film “The Beginning” (1986) by Salah Abu Seif, and “A Cloud in a Glass of Water”, a French film by Srinath Samarasinghe.

Allah Rakha Rahman / 2011

Allah Rakha Rahman is that wonderful Indian musical genius, who is popular worldwide. He is the first Indian to win two Oscars - for Best Original Music Score and Best Original Song for Jai Ho for Danny Boyle’s “Slumdog Millionaire” - of the eight that the film scooped up in 2009. His score for Danny Boyle’s “127 Hours” earned Academy Award, BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations. His amazing body of music in international and Indian films, as well as theatre, have also earned him two Grammy Awards, the Padma Bhushan, India’s high civilian honour, and an Honorary Fellow of the Trinity College of Music, with Time magazine naming him one of the ‘world’s most influential people’ in 2009.

A composer, musician, singer, song-writer, record producer and philanthropist, he has composed over 100 film soundtracks in several Indian languages, English and Mandarin. He has sold over 300 million records of his film scores and soundtracks, making him one of the world’s all-time top selling recording artists. Born A.S. Dileep Kumar in Madras (now Chennai, in south India), he converted to Islam following a family crisis. Called the ‘Mozart of Madras,’ Rahman is the first musician to be feted by Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) with its Lifetime Achievement Award. At 45, he is also among the youngest recipients of this honour. The Oscar-nominated “Lagaan” and “Dil Se” will screen at DIFF 2011. Rahman will also kick off his world tour with a concert on December 9 in Dubai that is supported by DIFF.

Morgan Freeman / 2005

The Oscar that he received earlier this year as Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Clint Eastwood’s multi-award-winning Million Dollar Baby merely confirmed Morgan Freeman’s place in the very top rank of American performers. After all, the American Academy had already nominated him twice for Best Actor: as the resourceful Red in Frank Darabont’s moving prison drama, The Shawshank Redemption, and for his portrayal of Jessica Tandy’s courtly chauffeur in Bruce Beresford’s Driving Miss Daisy.

The latter film was released just a year after his breakthrough as the unforgettable vicious pimp, Fast Black, in Jerry Schatzberg’s taut thriller Street Smart (1987), for which he won his first Best Supporting Actor Oscar Nomination. At that point, Morgan Freeman, born in Memphis, Tennessee in 1937, was hardly a newcomer, having acted in theater, appeared in a long-running children’s television series, The Electric Company, and taken small film roles, before Brubaker (1980) and Teachers (1984) brought him wider attention. Among his other outstanding appearances, one should cite Edward Zwick’s American Civil War Drama, Glory (1989), Clint Eastwood’s beautifully crafted Western, Unforgiven (1992), and David Fincher’s grisly thriller, Seven (1995). Freeman has also directed one powerful feature, Bopha! (1993), which screened at DIFF last year and stars Danny, Glover as a South African cop during the apartheid era.

He has also provided mellifluous narration for dozen of films and television shows, the most recent of which was his voiceover for The March of the Penguins, the English-language version of the French documentary, La Marche de l’empereur. It can surely be no accident that with Morgan Freeman’s soothing voice on the soundtrack, The March of the Penguins has become the highest-grossing French film ever shown in the US. How ironic that Morgan Freeman is one of the few American actors who speak fluent French!

The Dubai International Film Festival is proud to welcome this uniquely versatile actor as its first Hollywood “In the Spotlight” honoree.

Yash Chopra / 2005

“I don’t make films with a calculator; I make films that I believe in. I can’t guarantee the success of the film; that is in the hands of God. I just try and make a good film and an honest film from my heart”. Yash Chopra

Yash Raj films was formed in 1970 by Yash Chopra, a man responsible for 30 films, many of them box-office giants, and a man equally adept as director, producer or businessman. A five-time winner of India’s National Award, his remarkably diverse achievements include the establishment of Yash Raj Films distribution, Yash Raj Films USA, Yash Raj Films UAE and Yash Raj Music. Just two months ago, Yash Raj Film Studios opened in Mumbai.

As a director, he has been called a “colossus who straddles two worlds”: the land of the angry young man, expressed so ably through the alter egos played by Amitabh Bachchan in Deewar (The Wall), Trishul (Trident) and Kakalla Pather (Coal), and the universe of the human heart. Yash Chopra lays claim, like no other director, to grand, sweeping love stories, always embellished with stirring music, snow-capped mountains, lakes, rivers and fields of flowers. The lovers in Kabhi Kabhi (Sometimes), Silsila (The Affair), Lamhe (Moments), Daar (Fear) and Veer-Zaara are often doomed, but invariably passionate, and universal. His films fill the heart with joy and wound us with lovers’ sorrows.

DIFF is proud to present special screenings of Lamhe, perhaps the film closest to Yash Chopra’s heart, and clearly one of the most controversial subjects he has tackled, and Veer-Zaara, a story of unconditional love and sacrifice. And yet in Veer-Zaara, love survives and emerges as the victorious thread that connects us all. Perhaps this is the heart of Yash Chopra and his work.

Adel Imam / 2005

Adel Imam is a true acting phenomenon. He has been king of the comedy scene in Egyptian cinema for more than 30 years. He is hugely popular in the Arab world and beyond. Born in 1940, to a modest family in one of Cairo’s populous districts, Adel socialised with all sorts of characters in his neighborhood and picked up the sarcastic sense of humour with which the poor bravely faced their daily plight. Shortly after graduating as an agricultural engineer, he drew attention for his performance in a minor role in a comic play, Me, You and Her. Adel made it to stardom in a hugely successful stage comedy, School of the Bad Boys, then moved to cinema, starring in I Have the Wallet (1978) and Rajab on a Hot Tin Roof (1979). In these films he radically changed the prevailing stereotype of the Egyptian starring role, from elegant, well-to-do young man, to regular guy in modest clothes, irreverently humorous in his quest for good, justice and dignity. Adel smartly listened to the pulse of the people in the street, reading between the lines and examining more and more closely the plight and dreams of the poor. Adel says: “I always bet on people and always win the wager, because I am one of those poor people and can never part with them.” He dedicated his talents to challenge the terrorists trying to take over Egypt, starring in several hits that addressed this subject head-on, including Terrorism and Kebab, The Birds of Darkness and The Terrorist. In the 1990s, he went to the city of Asyut in the lower Nile region, following a terror attack against tourists visiting the city’s archaeological treasures, and presented a comedy to turn fears and tears into confidence and smiles. He has fought injustice and corruption in 119 movies and five plays that have attracted huge crowds. The UN High Commission for Refugees recognized his example as a conscious and educated artist, by appointing Adel as a Goodwill Ambassador. He has won numerous awards, and DIFF is proud to add to his long list of tributes by presenting Terrorism and Kebab and his latest movie, The Embassy Is in the Building.

Subhash Ghai / 2004

‘all our efforts, through our parts of media and communication whatsoever, must focus on one mission… to bring this world closer with better understanding and welfare for mankind:’ Subhash Ghai

Born in 1945, in Nagpur, India, Subhash Ghai graduated in Commerce from Rohtak, Haryana, before studying cinema at the Film and Television Institute of India in Pune. He began his career as a screen actor before shifting to writing and then directing, making his directorial debut in 1976 with Kalicharan. The film brought him immediate commercial and critical success, and affirmed the discovery of a major new talent in Indian cinema. Setting up his own company in 1978, he went on to script and direct over 15 films; Mukta Arts is today one of India’s leading production houses, and the first corporate film company in Mumbai. Throughout his career, Ghai has managed to span the gap between popular and artistic cinema, producing blockbusters that are hailed by the critics.

In the 1990s, he led Indian cinema’s great march overseas, marketing films such as Saudagar (1991) directly to international audiences. By the end of the decade, his films Pardes and Taal, both showing in the DIFF, were hitting the top 20 in the US. A great believer in nurturing new and young talent, Ghai has also been credited with launching the careers of, among others, Maghuri Dixit, Manisha Koirala, Mahima Chaudhary, Vivek Mushran, Jackie Shroff and Apoorva Agnihotri.

Aside from his legendary place in the world of cinema, Ghai has dedicated time to working with various social, economic and human welfare associations.

It gives us great pleasure to hail his exceptional contribution to the world of Hindi cinema and beyond at the inaugural DIFF.

Daoud Abdel Sayed / 2004

In the early 1980s, Egypt witnessed the rise of the ‘New Realism’ movement, and at this helm Daoud Abdel Sayed. The talented writer-director, along with compatriots such as Atef El Tayeb, borrowed from action and crime movies, the new on-screen enemies being unscrupulous businessmen and the parvenus; instead of poverty, their films denounced the new unbridled materialism.

Daoud Abdel Sayed was born in Cairo in 1946 and studied cinema at the Institute of Cinema, graduating in 1967. After a series of short fiction and documentary films, he made his first feature, Al-Sa’Alik (Hoodlums, aka The Vegabonds, 1985), considered one of the best pictures from his generation of young Cairenes. He followed this with Al-Bahths an Al-Sayyid Marzuq (The search of Sayed Marzouk) in 1990, and then Kit Kat, showing in DIFF, in 1991. Ard El Ahlam (Land of Dreams, 1993), Sarek Al-Farah (The Stolen Joy, 1994) and Ard Al-Khof (Land of Fear, 1999) brought him further fame. In recent years, Mowaten We Mokhber We Haramy (A Citizen, a Detective and a Thief, 2001) became another film favorite both in the Arab world and at festivals abroad.

Despite being one of Egypt’s most respected living cineastes, Daoud Abdel Sayed has never been given the recognition and honor he deserves in the Arab world. The DIFF is proud to put him in the spotlight and screen two of his films-examples of his talent as both a writer and director.

Omar Sharif / 2004

That Omar Sharif should be the first actor to be honored at the very first Dubai International Film Festival should come as no great surprise. Alone, he was-and, importantly, still is-unquestionably the Arab world’s major international superstar, his screen image nothing less than iconic.

As Omar el Cherif, the former Michel Shalhoub made his feature film debut in 1954 and went on to appear in 24 Egyptian films. After such first choices as Alain Delon and (allegedly) Christian Marquand proved unsuitable, he was selected by director David Lean to take over the key role of Sherif Ali ibn Kharish. The film was of course Lawrence of Arabia.

Omar Sharif’s impact was electric. Uniquely, he became a matinee idol that could be taken seriously as an actor, able to portray Nazis (The Night of the Generals), Russians (Doctor Zhivago), Mexicans (McKenna’s Gold) and even, yes, Americans (Funny Girl et al). He was also never averse to guest-starring just for the fun of it, and such films as Top Secret!. The Pink Panther Strikes Again and The Parole Officer only served to enhance his public image.

And yet-surprisingly-recognition of his achievements to date has been somewhat muted, perhaps because the man himself-amiable, personable, likeable, and witty-is often taken for granted, but here we salute the film star: the first foreign actor since, say, Charles Boyer, to achieve total Hollywood stardom, to prove a versatility unbounded by his own ethnicity.

It is with the greatest of pleasures and much pride that the inaugural Dubai International Film Festival salutes the Middle East’s finest and first international Arabian superstar.
Thank you, Omar Sharif.

Oliver Stone / 2006

Writer-director Oliver Stone, along with Clint Eastwood, is one of the few genuine mavericks working in Hollywood: both make films that are reflections on male psychologies and violence and both have had their share of controversy, but the nature of Stone’s pictures has ensured that his work has been the the subject of greater and more consistent debate than Eastwood’s. While his films are viewed by some as unsubtle or uncompromisingly direct, no-one can deny that he is one of the few directors who has managed not simply to survive in Hollywood but, for more than 20 years, to make films with a consistent personal vision. 

After dropping out of Yale University, Stone taught in Vietnam, became a merchant seaman and then volunteered for the Vietnam war (where he won a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart). He then studied film at New York University and began his professional career by writing and directing Seizure (1974). It was his second film as a screenwriter, Midnight Express (1978), for which he won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, that signposted the career to follow, with screenplays that include Scarface (1983) and Year of the Dragon (1985). Then, in 1986, came two very personal projects, which he wrote and directed, Salvador (screening as part of this DIFF tribute) and Platoon, the former a searing commentary on US involvement in the civil war in El Salvador, the latter prompted by his experiences in Vietnam. His later films as both writer and director included Wall Street (1987), Born on the 4th of July (1989), JFK (1991), Natural Born Killers (1994), Nixon (1995) and Alexander (2004), and he won Academy Awards for Best Director for Born on the 4th of July and Platoon; the latter also won Best Picture. It is easy to dismiss Stone’s films as violent and male orientated – which, it must be admitted, they are – but that would be to miss the implicit humanity that creates powerful popular dramas from difficult subject matter: the Vietnam War, US involvement in Central America, national politics, media exploitation (Natural Born Killers), and now, World Trade Center (2006), the dramatized true story of two policemen rescued from the rubble of 9/11. We are delighted that Oliver Stone will be attending DIFF to present World Trade Center and answer audience questions.

Sharhrukh Khan / 2006

Who would have believed that an MA in Mass Communication would prove to be perfect preparation for the man who would redefine star power in Bollywood by becoming the brightest and most influential figure in the Indian film constellation? From a television debut as Abhimanyu in Fajui (1988) to debut feature film Deewana (1992), to the first success in Darr (1995), in which he exploded on the screen, Sharhrukh Khan became the “must-have” actor required by producers to ensure the success of their films.

An actor with enormous influence, he believes cinema can be a powerful vehicle for social change, even in easing the decade old stand-off between India and Pakistan. However, he also believes that film should provide unadulterated enjoyment and fun to audiences the world over. He has had particular success as the romantic lead in love stories, and is renowned for his uncanny ability to develop palpable “chemistry” with his heroines, such as Preity Zinta and Aishwarya Rai. He branched out and assumed two very different personas in Swades and Paheli, neither of which were hits, although both are fine films.

Widely known simply as SRK, he has been particularly successful in his work with Yash Chopra of YashRaj Films, and Karan and Yash Johar of Dharma Productions. He owns two production companies, Dreamz Unlimited and Red Chillies Entertainment, through which he has produced hits such as Chalte Chalte (screening in this DIFF tribute along with Main Hoon Na), and the Oscar-nominated Paheli. A winner of six Filmfare awards for Best Actor, lead actor in two Oscar-nominated films (Devdas and Paheli), winner of the Rajiv Gandhi Award for Excellence in entertainment in 2002 and the Padma Shri Award in 2005 – SRK has poured his heart into his life and his work. He has been a gift to us all and we welcome him to DIFF.

Nabil Maleh / 2006

Nabil Maleh a native of Damascus has made many pioneering contributions to the history of Syrian filmmaking. He was the first Syrian director to learn his craft abroad, in Prague. He returned to Damascus in 1964, soon after the establishment of the General Organization for Cinema (now the National Film Organization) as the country’s sole feature film production entity, Ahlaam (Dreams) and Rajolan wa Imra’ (Two men and a Woman). He then began working with the General Organization on documentary and narrative shorts, as well as Syria’s first experimental films, such as the internationally acclaimed Naplam (1970), a 90-second reaction to the horror in Palestine and Vietnam, and Sakhr (Rocks, 1970), about horrendous conditions for quarry workers. His commitment to the Palestinian cause was further demonstrated in 1970, when he directed one part of the trilogy Rijal Tahta al-Shams (Men Under the Sun) and when audiences associated the historical rebel hero of Al Fahd (The Leopard, 1972) with contemporary Palestinian fighters. He made two more features for the General Organization in the 1970s, but in 1981, he went to America to teach film in Texas and California, then settled in Geneva, before moving to Greece, where he would pass the next ten years and write the screenplay for his most popular film, Al Compars (The Extras, 1993), which DIFF is screening alongside (The Leopard). Now based again in Damascus, he has recently worked exclusively with private, mostly European producers, completing the first British-Syrian co-production, the narrative feature The Hunt Feast (2004), and is developing a number of projects. We are proud and delighted that Nabil Maleh will be attending DIFF to present The Leopard and The Extras and answer audience questions.

Danny Glover / 2007

Danny Glover was born in 1947 in San Francisco and studied economics at San Francisco University. After working for a few years in Community Development he studied at the Black Actors Workshop of the American Conservatory and began his professional career on stage, first gaining public and critical attention for his performance in the New York production of Athol Fugard’s Master Harold and the Boys. He made his (uncredited) film debut in Escape to Alcatraz (1979), but it was Places in the Heart (1984), Witness (1985) and The Color Purple (1985) that finally set him upon a successful and extraordinary prolific career.

Glover bestrides Hollywood and independent filmmaking and television with remarkable grace and fluency. Add to that his dedication to the cause of African-Americans and Africa and we find his playing Oscar Micheaux, the African-American film pioneer; narrating The Untold West: the Black West and a documentary on blues hero Robert Johnson; playing Nelson Mandela in an HBO film. He made is producing debut with Charles Burnett’s To Sleep with Anger (Showing in DIFF), in which he also starred.

With Joslyn Barnes he has formed Louverture Films (names after Toussaint Louverture, leader of the Haitian black revolution), to produce films of historical, social and political importance. Its first production was Abderrahmane Sissako’s Bamako (which screened at DIFF last year), followed by Africa Unite, celebrating bob Marley and his vision of African unity, and Salt of This Sea, by Palestinian filmmaker Annemarie Jacir. Glover will make his feature directing debut with the Louverture Films’ biopic Toussaint, funded by the Venezuelan government.

Glover is a UNICEF Goodwilll Ambassador, recipient of an Amnesty International Lifetime Achievement Award and Chair of the TransAfrica Forum, through which he protested against the US militarization of Africa. He has publicly urged South Africa to pay more attention to its Aids epidemic and protested against the slaughter in Sudan and the US invasion of Iraq. It’s difficult to see where Glover finds any spare time, but if he doesn’t then his tirelessness is to our advantage. His outstanding acting, dedication to films that confront contemporary issues and his deep humanitarian impulses are a gift to us all-one which DIFF most happily salutes.

Im kwon-taek / 2007

Im kwon-taek was born in 1936 and grew up in the Southern Korean city of Kweangju. During the country’s long political upheavals, he was forced to work in Pusan, and only returned to Seoul in 1956 to work as a production assistant. His debut film, Farewell to Tuman River, followed in 1962, beginning an extraordinary career in an industry that was little known to the outside world.

Between his debut and Weeds (1972), Im made 50 movies, experimenting with melodrama, teen romance, comedy and historical drama, working from the only templates that were available in Korea at the time: Hong Kong action pictures and Hollywood B-movies. His historical dramas are filled with women who sacrifice themselves for their sons or husbands, within male-dominated societies. Between 1968 and 1971, he produced 25 “National Policy” films for the government of the day, devoid of any political sensitives or social issues.

Im was finally recognized internationally in 1981 when his seventy-fifth film, Mandara, participated at the Berlin International Film Festival. Mandara began Im's fascination with deeply rooted Korean mores, such as Buddhism, Shamanism, Confucianism, Donghak and Existentialism. He was searching for Korean soul, and his films in 1980s and 1990s reflected this search, along with new styles of shooting and points of view.

A breakthrough film in his sixtieth year was Sopjonge (1993), a surprise box office hit in Sout Korea and winner of numerous international awards. Taeback Mountain (1994) and Festival (1996) were both seen as tributes to his parents, the cry of the dutiful son forgiving the past. Chunhyanf (2002), which competed at Cannes, echoed a lifelong preoccupation- the life of an artist- and was his own answer to Sopjonge. In 2002, he and Paul Thomas the great artist, Jang Seoung-up. DIFF is proud to screen Chihwaseon and Chun-nyun-hack (Beyond the Years,2007), the Hundredth film from this astonishingly prolific artist, who has experiment with countless genres and styles, while steadfastly maintaining his classic form and intuitive sense of political history, Im has found his path through the labyrinth of Korean Politics, always adopting his own stance and voice.

Youssef Chahine / 2007

No Arab director can match Youssef Chahine’s cinematic accomplishments. Chahine now ranks amongst the world’s top cinema figures, and expresses the ambitions of a whole generation of Arab directors, through distinguished films that have constantly monitored the individual and public aspects of life and crucial issues in this part of the world. Born in Alexandria, Egypt, in 1926, Chahine has directed some 40 films reflecting social change, even when painting self-portraits on his own life. Also worth noting is how, having started working when he only 26, he staunchly maintained his independence and his intellectual and artistic principles, refusing to relinquish them at any cost. For many, he is the symbol of an ambitious Arab cinema, for generation after generation. Chahine’s movies have distinct traits> They have seamlessly blended public and individual issues and always featured a fine thread dealing with the psyche of his characters, ever since his early works such as Son of the Nile, Struggle in the Valley, Dark Waters and Cairo Station. Chahine always attempted to ass substances to love affairs, in which we see that woman or male models. On the other hand, Chahine’s choice of political movies was never opportunistic, starting with Djamila, Saladin, Those people of the Nile, and The Sixth Day. This trend was crucial for The Land, which, although it avoided Arab relations with the West, dealt with Egyptian national identity and Chahine own left-of-centre political stance. Until The Sparrow and The Choice, Chahine looked like a historian trying to record the vents of two different episodes, before going back to the fringes of the ongoing face-off, aiming at establishing an Arab identity and perusing its relationship with the West, in movies such as Adieu Bonaparte, Destiny and Alexandria...New York. Chahine’s movies always projected a world of vibrant life on the screen, reflecting an eventful personal life that enriched his cinematic experience and made him a symbol for Arab cinema on local and international stages.

CHARLES ROVEN / 2008

Despite a career spanning almost thirty years, based at the very heart of Hollywood, Charles Roven’s face may not be as recognizable as any of the countless stars he has helped propel into the spotlight. But this talented and industrious producer has, over the years, blazed a dazzling trail through the global film industry, generating a succession of box office smashes and independent classics, that add up to billions of dollars in revenues.

After a successful career as a talent manager, Roven moved into producing, on films such as “Final Analysis”, the Oscar®-nominated 12 Twelve Monkeys’, ‘Fallen’, the fantasy romance ‘City Of Angels’, which made over $200m, and the highly-acclaimed post-Gulf War tale ‘Three Kings’.

Within the past year alone, Roven’s domination of Hollywood has been forcefully asserted with the staggering global success of two of the summer’s biggest films: Warner Bros. Studios’ critically-acclaimed ‘The Dark Night’, directed by Christopher Nolan, which has broken box-office records around the world and has grossed over $1bn worldwide so far; and the comedy blockbuster ‘Get Smart’, inspired by the hit TV show, directed by Pete Segal. Earlier this year, Roven also produced the Lionsgate Film ‘The Bank Job’, directed by Roger Donaldson, which opened at number one in the UK box office and is one of the best reviewed movies of 2008.

Roven is currently in post production on Sony Pictures’ ‘The International’ starring Clive Owen and Naomi Watts, directed by Tom Tykwer, which has been selected to open the Berlin Film Festival in February 2009. Most recently Roven began production on ‘Season Of The Witch’, starring Nicolas Cage and Ron Perlman, and directed by Dominic Sena.

TSUI HARK / 2008

Writer, producer and director Tsui Hark began his career directing the ‘Wuxia’ TV series, ‘The Gold Dagger Romance’ in 1979. Hark has defined ‘Wuxia’ – a critical element in his work –as the expression of an ancient Chinese tradition of chivalry, where knights battle for justice, heroism, and humanity against evil opponents. That tradition has morphed into the Kung Fu film genre, and owned by Tsui Hark like no other.

Tsui Hark is often referred to as ‘Steven Spielberg of Asia’, and credited with igniting the careers of people like John Woo, Chow Yun-Fat, Jet Li, Chiang Siu-Tung and Brigitte Lin, and is acknowledged as the creator of many major Hong Kong film genres of the 1980’s and 1990’s – the heroic gangsters, fantasy swordplay, and period martial arts.

‘Zu: Warriors from the Magic Mountain’ (1983) shot for Golden Harvest Studio ignited the fascination for special effects in Hong Kong. ‘A Chinese Ghost Story: The Animation’ (1997) is credited with single handedly building the Hong Kong  animation industry.

In 1984, Tsui Hark formed the Film Workshop Production Company, with Nansun Shi. The Film Workshop quickly became a maelstrom of activity, with work that was visually stunning, highly commercial and shot with unique, distinctive camera styles. He is famous for mining Chinese folktales and resurrecting classic genre films, as in ‘Shanghai Blues’ (1985), ‘Peking Opera Blues’ (1986) ‘Swordsman’, (1990), ‘Green Snake’ (1993), and his landmark series, ‘Once Upon a Time in China’ (1994).

It could said that the spirit of Kung Fu, embodied in Hong Kong Cinema, became the custodian of mythic Chinese culture as it reached across the Chinese diaspora. None have taken this curatorial position more seriously than Tsui Hark.

TERRY GILLIAM / 2008

It’s time to pause and consider the long, strange career of Terry Gilliam. The notoriously expansive director, with an imagination that should carry some sort of government health warning, continues to vex studio executives and delight fans in equal measure with films that inspire, infuriate, confound and delight. Forty years on from his surreal animation segments for ‘Monty Python’s Flying Circus’, clumpy, chunky collages that delighted baffled viewers with their whimsical charm, Gilliam is still working at full-tilt, as zanily inspired and cheerfully acerbic as ever.

Having racked up a clutch of critically-acclaimed features, ranging from twisted fantasy epics such as ‘The Time Bandits’, ‘Brazil’ ‘Twelve Monkeys’ to outright lunacy (‘Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas’), his name is still an instant evocation of unfettered invention and creativity, an instant, anarchic dismissal of convention. A rich streak of satire runs through his finest work, as in ‘Brazil’ and ‘Twelve Monkeys’ where the absurdities of society and power are gleefully skewered through grotesque extremes of reality.

Lesser talents, upon arriving at middle age, would have carefully toned down their more idiosyncratic quirks, perhaps softened their stance and bowed to commercial demands. Gilliam blithely ploughs on, rushing ahead into uncharted realms of the bizarre. Consider the title of his next upcoming film – ‘The Imaginarium Of Dr Parnassus’. Comfortable, safe and cosy retirement is still some way off.

RACHID BOUCHAREB / 2008

One of the most common themes discussed in global cinema is the quest for identity in an uncertain and unpredictable world. Globalisation, emigration, economic and political asylum, war, famine, escape, ambition – myriad forces blow us about the planet, perhaps in search of new worlds, but potentially losing our souls to what we have left behind.

Like many filmmakers working in an international milieu, Rachid Bouchareb’s films take the question of identity as a starting point for his narratives. His heritage goes some way in explaining this deep fascination with identity and the concept of home: Born in 1953 in Paris, to Algerian parents, Bouchareb regards himself as a French citizen, yet remains consistently intrigued by his Algerian roots. His personal journey towards an understanding of his place in the world is echoed repeatedly throughout his oeuvre, which moves from the intensely personal to the wider world at large with an assured fluency and compelling style. As an award-winning producer, writer and director, his international reputation is formidable, as his impressive collection of awards from Festivals and film institutions worldwide attests.

In some of his best-known films, his characters are moving through adversity and difficult circumstances, painfully trying to make sense of their surroundings and reach a ‘home’, be it physical, spiritual or emotional. This is superbly demonstrated in ‘Cheb’, in which the young protagonist goes back and forth between France and Algeria, restlessly trying to find himself between these two worlds which each have a claim upon him, yet finding himself alienated in both. 

In ‘Little Senegal’, he neatly subverts the usual paradigm of identity-seeking Westerners by having an elderly man from Dakar travel to the US in the footsteps of his ancestors, who were slaves on the plantations of South Carolina. Again, Bouchareb examines not only the journey of his central protagonist, but also the multitude of attitudes and viewpoints of those he encounters on the way.

An example of the impact this filmmaker has made on society comes from his 2006 film, ‘Indigènes’, which examined the plight of soldiers from French colonies, who played a crucial part in the fight against German occupation during World War Two, yet who remain almost forgotten today. The day the film was released in France, then-President Jacques Chirac attended a private screening with Bouchareb. Hours later, the French government announced that the pensions of those veterans from colonial territories would be raised immediately, to the same level as their French counterparts. A small act maybe, in a world of uncertainty and inequality – yet proof, if any were needed of the sheer, enduring power of his work.

Amitabh Bachchan / 2009

Trying to summarise the adventures, achievements, accolades and activities of the distinguished Mr Amitabh Harivansh Bachchan would take us most of the day, much of tomorrow and most likely, much of the weekend as well. And that would be just the films. For everything else… well, how long do you have?

For, the life and career of this ebullient 67-year old has been a roller coaster ride of global fame, artistic achievement, political activity, social advancement, all illuminated by ever-increasing degrees of global fame and renown. Today, forty years since his first film, Khwaja Ahmad Abbas’s ‘Saat Hindustani’, Bachchan’s shadow looms large across contemporary Indian culture. Yet, despite the global acclaim, the man himself remains a humble, down-to-earth kind of living legend, a mellow star of the old school, whose innate elegance and poise continue to inspire and delight his legion admirers around the world.

For Bachchan is, quite simply, the biggest cinema star on the planet. In terms of star power, no-one alive can hold a candle to him. When the BBC conducted a global poll, in 1999, to find their international audience’s ‘Greatest Star of the Millennium’, the ‘Big B’ was number one with a bullet. Indian film awards Filmfare have awarded him their always hotly-contested ‘Best Actor’ award 28 times. (That’s a record). He’s also picked up Best Supporting Actor nine times (that is, too). Showered with prestigious honours and accolades from countries around the world, now in his late 60s, he is showing no sign of slowing down and taking it easy. On the contrary – Bachchan is still as productive as ever – following a recent revival in his cinematic fortunes, a spell as TV presenter for the Indian version of ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’ has elevated him to even greater heights of fame and popularity.

Bachchan, in forty years film-making, today has the world at his feet. And thanks to a hectic schedule, and any number of activities on different fronts, he continues to delight fans and critics around the world. This year, we honour Amitabh with screenings of two of his finest performances – 2004’s ‘Black’ and the heartbreaking ‘Silsila’ from 1981. Two films, one powerhouse presence and an adoring world - with our Lifetime Achievement Award, we honour a true legend of global cinema.

Faten Hamama / 2009

From childhood stardom as “Egypt’s Shirley Temple” to her present position as a living legend of the silver screen, actress and producer Faten Hamama has eloquently represented and advanced the standing of woman in Egyptian society, over the course of a long and accomplished career. In doing so, she has become an international icon, a symbol of pride, strength and artistic virtuosity.

Exactly seventy years ago, Hamama made her big-screen debut, playing a chirpy young girl in the movie ‘Yawm Said’ (‘Happy Day’). Her natural charm and vivacity not only endeared her to a swiftly-besotted public, but to the Cairo film industry, on the verge of its own Golden Age. As her characters blossomed into adulthood, producers and directors quickly realized that in Hamama, they had found an actress possessed of profound emotional power and presence. As she progressed into more dynamic roles, Hamama’s reputation as a principled actress of rare talent grew. When she kissed Omar Sharif on screen in 1954’s ‘Sira’ Fi Al-Wadi’ (1954) her popularity soared to unprecedented heights – especially when she married her leading man the following year. (The couple divorced 20 years later).

Films such as ‘Dua’e Al-Karawan’ and ‘Imbratoriyat Meem’ charted Hamama’s ever-increasing influence and appeal. However, it was the landmark ‘Oridu Hallan’ in 1974 which really shook the establishment up, through a story line dealing with a wronged wife seeking redress against her abusive husband. Such was the strength of public sentiment following its release, Egyptian policymakers swiftly acted to repeal anachronistic legislation and finally granted wives the right to initiate divorce. It’s this masterpiece, along with the equally groundbreaking ‘Mouths And Rabbits’ with which we honour  her at DIFF 2009.  A actress of true distinction, Hamama’s pioneering work remains an inspiration to successive generations of cineastes, actors and audiences in the Middle East and beyond.

Souleymane Cisse / 2010

The Dubai International Film Festival is delighted to honour Souleymane Cissé with the presentation of one of its 2010 Lifetime Achievement Awards

A filmmaker of rare integrity and resolution, committed to representing the lives of his countrymen with integrity and honesty, Cissé’s commitment to his art has won him critical praise worldwide, as well as plentiful accolades and honours from institutions including the Cannes Film Festival – Cissé being the first African to win a major prize at the event.

In a career stretching back over 40 years, and one that is indubitably rooted in his home country of Mali, Cissé has consistently addressed the lives of ordinary people, caught up in the situations that viewers everywhere can relate to. Even with specific cultural forces at play, with local political and social forces driving narrative situations and circumstances, the humanity at the heart of Cissé’s cinema is what we connect with at a fundamental level.

This has been one of Cissé’s goals from early in his career, to make films that provide an insight into contemporary African life and the complex structures of culture, tradition, love, religion and politics that shape it. The awards and global recognition he has earned over the decades is testament to his massive achievements in realizing this goal, with artistic integrity and visual mastery. He has been rewarded not only by the deep appreciation of his viewers, but also institutions including the Malian Chevalier du Mérit National for ‘Yeelen’ (1987), which was also awarded the Jury Prize at Cannes in the same year. Other major prizes include the Yenenga’s Talon prize at FESPACO for both ‘Baara’ (1978) and ‘Finye’ (1982)

In 1991 Cissé established the N’Fa Cissé, an award which is given annually in Mali for artistic creation. He is president of UCECAO, the Union of Creators and Entrepreneurs of Cinema and Audiovisual Arts of Western Africa and yet, where possible, Cissé stills prefers a simple, unfussy approach to his storytelling, pressing local people and familiar, everyday locations into service of his narratives, a technique that gives his films added authenticity and vitality.

Sabah / 2010

The Dubai International Film Festival is proud to honour one of the Arab world’s most prolific and popular actresses and singers, Sabah, with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Sabah has starred in nearly 100 movies, including several timeless comedies and musicals, as well as melodramas and romantic features, acted in 20 stage plays, released 50 albums and amassed more than 3,500 songs in her repertoire. Renowned for her endearing performances, soaring voice and sparkling personality, Sabah – or ‘Al Shahroura’ (The Singing Bird) as she is known to her fans – continues to act and sing today, including a recent appearance in the pan-Arab talent show ‘Star Academy’.

Sabah’s work was a bridge between two important centres in the Arab world: Egypt and Lebanon. Although a Lebanese national, the majority of her films were co-produced with or focused on Egypt. At the age of 15, her career launched with a debut in the Egyptian film ‘Bint Al-Charq’ (Daughter of the East, 1946).

Some of her most well-received films include 1956’s ‘How Can I Forget You?’ (Izhay Ansak), 1959’s ‘The Street Of Love’ (Sharia el Hub) (1959), 1962’s ‘Al Layaly Al Dafiaa’ and 1980’s ‘Layla Baka Fiha El Kamar’. Over the years, she has shared the screen with some of the biggest names in Arab cinema, including Abdulhalim Hafiz, Fareed Al Atrash, Emad Hamdi, and Hussain Riyad.

The singer-actress has also worked in international markets, including appearances on French television and a duet with French star Enrico Macias.

Sean Penn / 2010

This year, the Dubai International Film Festival is delighted to be honoring two-time Academy Award winner Sean Penn as one of our three recipients of a prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award.

Actor, director, journalist, humanitarian - Sean Penn is the epitome of the Hollywood superstar on every level. An actor of rare skill and artistry, he has been evolving constantly since his scorching early performances, roles in which the young Penn established himself as an actor possessed of astonishing versatility and talent. Following such disparate characters as the grimly-obsessed military cadet of 1981’s ‘Taps’ to the wise-cracking surfer-dude Jeff Spicoli in ‘Fast Times At Ridgemont High’ in 1982, Penn’s CV is populated with a succession of rich, complex characters, each radiating that compelling charisma that has branded him a force to be reckoned with.

And as a director, his feature films have garnered critical acclaim, as they range from the thought-provoking tribute to the victims of 9/11 in the US segment of ‘Eleven Minutes, Nine Seconds, One Image: September 11’ to the gritty drama of ‘The Pledge’.

There are few modern-day actors who have so repeatedly attracted the scrutiny of film award nominations committees over the years. Over a career laden with accolades, prizes and acclaim from around the world, Penn has been nominated five times for the Academy Awards, including Best Actor for ‘Dead Man Walking,’ ‘Sweet and Lowdown,’ and ‘I Am Sam’. His first Oscar win was in 2003 for ‘Mystic River’ and his second as Best Actor in 2009 for ‘Milk’.

At DIFF this year, we are delighted to offer two very different aspects of Penn’s artistry in action. Woody Allen’s ‘Sweet & Lowdown’ sees him in one of the more heartwarming, joyful roles of his career, in the unlikely guide of fictional 30’s jazz hepcat Emmet Ray, superficially, a rather unlikeable piece of work – but in actuality, as finely-layered, complex and beguiling a creation as ever he portrayed. Meanwhile ‘Into The Wild’, represents Penn’s achievements as a director, his skill and empathy paramount here too in the rendering of a heartbreaking tale of an idealistic, conflicted young man adrift in life.

In yet another string to his bow, Penn has distinguished himself as a serious international journalist, reporting for publications including Time, Interview, Rolling Stone and The Nation.

Penn’s humanitarian work has found him in New Orleans in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and more recently in earthquake-ravaged Haiti. In January 2010, Penn founded the J/P Haitian Relief Organization which saves lives and brings sustainable programs to the Haitian people quickly and effectively. His organization is currently serving as UN IOM-designated Camp Management for the largest IDP camp in Port-au-Prince and established the first emergency re-location in the country. In July 2010 Penn was knighted by Haitian President Rene Preval.