The second edition of the Bahrain Film Festival is on the way, taking place from October 1 to 5.

Under the patronage of the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities, Bahrain Cinema Club will host the second edition of Bahrain Film Festival from October 1 to 5. This year, the festival will be held under the slogan ‘Cinema for You’.

In 2017, the club organised a local contest, Bahrain Club Film Competition, which witnessed the participation of 15 short films. The second edition of this competition was held in 2018 and saw 25 short films taking part. In 2019, the club decided to take this annual competition to the next level – from local to pan Arab – and conduct it in 2020. Unfortunately, the pandemic had different plans. Nevertheless, Bahrain Film Festival was conducted in 2021 where awards were distributed to the winners offline and the films were screened in October.

This year, Bahrain Film Festival is ready to have a full-scale physical event, which will host celebrities from the Middle East and see participants from 28 Arab countries. So far, 300 short films have already entered under three categories: short movie, short documentary and short animation. The submissions will be reviewed by a panel of experts who will shortlist a few films to showcase at the festival. Awards will be presented in these categories, as well as for one best movie by students and a special jury award. The shortlisted entries will be screened at a venue in Manama over five days and the films will be primarily in Arabic but with English subtitles.

The festival aims to celebrate young Bahraini and Arab cinematic talent and create a supportive environment to launch new talent in the field. Additionally, it seeks to contribute to the revival and advancement of the Bahraini cinematic movement to achieve a place in the cinematic movement of Arab Gulf countries in particular and Arab cinema in general. ✤

GO: VISIT BAHRAINFILMFESTIVAL.ORG FOR MORE INFORMATION.