Cinema of the United Arab Emirates

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Life in the UAE
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The Cinema of the United Arab Emirates is minimal but expanding. There was only one full-length Emirati feature film as of 2007,^{[citation needed]} Al-Hilm, about a group of frustrated actors/directors wandering aimlessly in the desert. However there are a large number of short films from the country (the makers of which have been dubbed the 'Emerging Emiratis'). In addition the UAE is a popular filming location for South Asian films and television serials, mainly those of Bollywood and the Pakistani Lollywood.

The UAE holds annual film festivals in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and a film studio (Studio City) has been purpose-built in Dubai to promote Emirati filmmaking.

In 2008 Emirati director Majid Abdulrazak produced a film version of Wilfred Thesiger's Arabian Sands which was self-funded and employed actors from the UAE and Oman in most of the major roles. The film has since been released on DVD by Viva Entertainment.

The second edition of the Gulf Film Festival in Dubai (April 2009) premiered two UAE feature films. Al Dayra (The Circle), by filmmaker and actor Nawaf Al-Janahi, told the story of Ibrahim, a poet and journalist who captures a thief and finds himself changing lives with him. Director and novelist Saleh Karama also showcased his first feature, Henna, in which the title character’s mother is sick, and her frequent fits have led to a divorce. Fatherless Henna has to find a way to relate to her new father-figure, a Bedouin relative who arrives from the desert with his camels to visit the family.

The sixth edition of the Dubai International Film Festival in 2009 featured further screenings of The Circle and the premiere of City of Life by Emirati director Ali F. Mostafa, which went on to achieve general release in UAE cinemas on 22 April 2010 - the first locally-produced film to do so.

Emirati films

• Al-Hilm (The Dream) (2005)
• Manahi (2008)
• Arabian Sands (2008)
• Al Dayra (The Circle) (2009)
• Henna (2009)
• City of Life (2010)
• Moments Of Fiction (2011)
• Sea Shadow (2011)

Emirati short films

• The Fallen (2008)
• 100 Miles (2007)
• Ahlam Fi Sundook (Dreams In A Box; 2003)
• Al-Rumram (1994)
• Ala Tareeq (On A Road; 2003)
• Amen (2005)
• Arabana (2006)
• Arwaah (Souls; 2004)
• Aushba's Well (2004)
• Cigarettes (2004)
• The Confrontation (1998)
• Hajess (Obsession; 2002)
• Mirrors of Silence (2006)
• Signs of the Dead (2005)
• Under the Sun (2005)

Films shot in the United Arab Emirates

• Dam 999 (Hollywood; 2011) partly filmed in Fujairah, UAE
• Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (American; 2010) partly filmed in Dubai
• City Of Life (Emirati; 2009) filmed in Dubai
• 36 China Town (Indian; 2006) partly fimed in Dubai
• Balram vs. Tharadas (Indian; 2006)
• Boom (Indian; 2003) - partly filmed in Dubai
• Chalo Ishq Larain (Pakistani; 2002) partly filmed in Dubai
• Chetna: The Excitement (Indian; 2005) partly filmed in Dubai
• Code 46 (British; 2003) partly filmed in Dubai
• Deewane Huye Paagal (Indian; 2005) partly filmed in Dubai
• Dil Vil Pyar Vyar (Indian; 2002) partly filmed in Abu Dhabi
• Dubai Return (Indian; 2005) partly filmed in Dubai
• Family: Ties of Blood (Indian; 2006) partly filmed in Dubai
• Keif al-Hal? (Saudi; 2006)
• The Kingdom (American; 2007) filmed in Abu Dhabi
• Kisse Pyaar Karoon (Indian; 2005) partly filmed in Dubai
• Lahoo Ke Do Rang (Indian; 1997) partly filmed in Dubai
• Maine Pyar Kyun Kiya? (Indian; 2005) partly filmed in Dubai
• Market (Indian; 2003) partly filmed in Dubai
• Mujhse Shaadi Karogi (Indian; 2004) partly filmed in Dubai
• Naam (Indian; 1986) partly filmed in Dubai
• Om Jai Jagadish (Indian; 2002) partly filmed in Dubai
• Pehla Pehla Pyar (Pakistani; 2006) partly filmed in Dubai
• Pyar Hi Pyar Mein (Pakistani; 2003) partly filmed in Dubai
• Risk (Indian; 2007)
• El-Sefara fi El-Omara (Egypytian; 2005) partly filmed in Dubai
• Silsiilay (Indian; 2005) partly filmed in Dubai
• Syriana (American; 2005) partly filmed in Dubai
• Talaash: The Hunt Begins... (Indian; 2003) partly filmed in Dubai
• Tarap (Pakistani; 2006) partly filmed in Dubai
• Vishwavidhaata (Indian; 1997)
• Woh Lamhe (Indian; 2006) partly filmed in Dubai

Emirati directors

• Mustafa Abbas
• Abdullah Hasan Ahmed
• Nawaf Al-Janahi
• Khalid Al-Mahmood
• Hani Al-Shaibani
• Waleed Al-Shehhi
• Mohammad Al-Traifi
• Ali F. Mostafa
• Abdulla Al Kaabi
• Majid Abdulrazak
• Saleh Karama
• Mohammed Mamdouh
• Yaser Al Neyadi

See also

• Cinema of the world

External links

• Article about the UAE short film movement
• Article about the UAE short film movement
• Article on the 'Emerging Emirati' movement
• Al Jazeera article on 'Al-Hilm'
• IMDB entry for the UAE
• IMDB entry for The Circle
• Cinemas in the UAE - TEN Movies
• City of Life official film website
• Gulf Film Festival website
• Dubai International Film Festival website
• Abu Dhabi Film Festival website