Tale of Bedouin boy during First World War wins big at Abu Dhabi Film Festival

Theeb, directed and co-written by Jordanian filmmaker Naji Abu Nowar, took two awards - Best Film from the Arab World in the New Horizons category, and the International Federation of Film Critics Award for Best Narrative Film.

Theeb director Naji Abu Nowar, centre, with producers Bassel Ghandour, right, and Rupert Lloyd, left, on the red carpet at the Abu Dhabi Film Festival. Mona Al Marzooqi / The National

ABU DHABI // The story of a Bedouin boy in Hijaz during the First World War was a big winner at the Black Pearl Awards on Friday night, as the Abu Dhabi Film Festival drew to a close.

Theeb, directed and co-written by Jordanian filmmaker Naji Abu Nowar, took two awards.

It won Best Film from the Arab World in the New Horizons category, and the International Federation of Film Critics Award for Best Narrative Film.

Theeb had already screened at the Venice Film Festival, where it won the Orizzonti Award, as well as at the Toronto and London film festivals.

In Her Place, a tale of the complex relationships between three women on a South Korean farm, also won two awards.

Directed by Albert Shin, it won Best Film in the Child Protection Award category and the Best Actress in the New Horizons category at the Emirates Palace hotel ceremony.

In officially bringing down the curtain on the 8th ADFF, festival director Ali Al Jabri thanked the event organisers, juries, volunteers, directors and producers for another successful event.

“This is one of the strongest editions of the festival,” Mr Al Jabri said. “It was tough to select the winning film and I appreciate juries who did this job incredibly.

“All the films were inspired by life and close to reality. Some of them share the joy of life and some reflect the sorrows of life.”

About 200 films were screened at the Emirates Palace hotel and Marina Mall for this year’s festival.

Farazdak Chaichan, a Dutch filmmaker of Iraqi descent, has been attending the ADFF since its inception in 2007.

“The festival is a great opportunity for Arab filmmakers to see works from other parts of the world,” Chaichan said. He believes Arab documentaries are of higher quality than the films produced in the region.

“Documentaries are much better than Arab feature films. Documentaries are stronger in sending their message,” he said.

Awards were presented in the Narrative Features, New Horizons and Documentary – shorts and features – categories. Seventeen films competed in the Documentary section.

Virunga, directed by Orlando Von Einsiedel, won in the New Horizon category, while The Wonders, directed by Alice Rohrwacher, won the Black Pearl Award.

The Narrative Features competition also had 17 films participating and Leviathan, directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev, won the Black Pearl.

Winners received prize money of between US$80,000 (Dh294,000) and $100,000.

The Salt of the Earth, directed by Wim Wenders and Juliano Ribeiro Salgado, won the Audience Award.

"This is the most luxurious and hospitable film festival we have ever attended," said Aditiya Vikram Sen Gupta, director of Labour of Love, which received the Special Mention award in the New Horizon competition.

Labour of Love was the only film from India in the festival this year, and it has no dialogue.

After the awards ceremony, Big Hero 6, the 3D movie from Walt Disney Animation Studios, was screened at Emirates Palace.

It is an action-packed comedy and adventure film co-directed by Don Hall and Chris Williams, the team behind Frozen and Wreck-it Ralph.

Abu Dhabi Film Festival will screen the Black Pearl-winning films on Saturday at Marina Mall.

Theeb's screening here marked the movie's Middle East premiere. Theeb, meaning "wolf" in Arabic, is a story of a young boy set in Wadi Rum and Wadi Araba, the sandy valleys of Jordan.

It takes place in 1916, when Hijaz was part of the Ottoman Empire.

In Her Place is set in a small village and is about a weathered woman, her peculiar teenaged daughter and a wealthy woman who arrives with a deal.

The film festival was established in 2007 with the aim of helping to create a vibrant film culture throughout the Middle East and has previously showcased the work of major figures in world cinema, including Ingmar Bergman and Naguib Mahfouz.

A key event in Abu Dhabi’s cultural calendar, it features an extensive 10-day programme of Arab and international cinema, complemented by red-carpet premieres and associated events.