2021 San Diego Arab Film Festival Concludes; Audience Choice Awards Announced
The 2021 San Diego Arab Film Festival completed its run on Saturday, June 19. A hearty “thank you” to all of you who made this year’s edition a success.
This year, for the first time, the Festival went hybrid, showing feature films in-person and showing short films online using the SparqFest platform. The in-person portion was the first film festival presented in San Diego since the COVID-19 pandemic. We collected votes in traditional fashion for our in-person screenings and sent sent emails to all of the registered online attendees attendees for our short films asking for their votes for our Audience Choice Awards. The Audience Choice Awards went to 200 Meters (feature film from Palestine, Qatar and Jordan) and The Present (short film from Palestine).
200 Meters was directed by Ameen Nayfeh and was his first feature film. 200 Meters was Jordan’s official entry to the 92nd Oscars. Although it wasn’t selected as a nominee in the Oscar’s Best International Film category, it has won numerous awards at film festivals internationally.
The Present, directed by British-Palestinian filmmaker Farah Nabulsi. The Present, her first film as director, was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Live Action Short Film category.
Planning is already starting for the 2022 San Diego Arab Film Festival, tentatively scheduled for March 11-12, 18-19 and 5-26.
San Diego Arab Film Festival Announces Call for Submission for 2022 Festival
The San Diego Arab Film Festival (San Diego AFF) invites submissions for its upcoming festival scheduled for March 11, 12, 18-19 and 25-26, 2022. San Diego AFF is seeking narrative, documentary, experimental and animated films, both features and shorts.
San Diego AFF began in 2012 and presents films from and about the Arab world that reinforce the humanity of Arab people and it highlights the dynamism and creativity of contemporary Arab culture. The Festival strives to show top-quality films that offer honest and realistic portrayals of Arab people and their culture, history and politics without reinforcing negative stereotypes.
San Diego AFF is a project of KARAMA, a 501(c)(3) in San Diego. For more information about KARAMA, visit www.karamanow.org.
San Diego AFF accepts submissions on FilmFreeway. Click on the links below to access the submission pages.
Schedule of Submissions
Opening Date: July 25, 2022
Regular Deadline: October 31, 2022
Late Deadline: November 30, 2022
Notification Date: January 15, 2022
Event Date: March 11-2, 18-19 and 25-26, 2022
Awards and Prizes
Selected films will be entered into competition for Audience Choice Awards for Best Feature Film and Best Short Film.
Rules and Terms
San Diego Arab Film Festival seeks films from and about the Arab world produced between January 1, 2020 and December 31, 2021. Films must have legible English subtitles unless there is little or no dialogue.
Formats
San Diego AFF prefers that submissions be made via Film Freeway, however downloadable links (with passwords) may be submitted to lchristian@sandiegoaff.org. Selected films must be available in DCP, high resolution .264 or Blu-Ray format with a frame rate of 24fps. Please include director’s name, country of origin, and a brief description.
By special arrangements, submissions may be made by mail or delivery service with the understandings that San Diego AFF will not bear costs related to shipping and that submitted media may not be returned. Contact lchristian@sandiegoaff.org for further information.
Fees
Regular Deadline: Feature films, $15; short films, $10
Late Deadline: Feature films, $25; short films, $20.
Pay fees via Film Freeway at time of submission.
Selected Films
Official Selections will be asked to provide a password protected link for previewing, high resolutions stills and any available press materials for use in publicizing the film and the Festival.
San Diego Arab Film Festival Supported By San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture for the Seventh Year
202-2022 is the seventh year that the San Diego Arab Film Festival is receiving support from the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture. This recognition and support represents an important milestone for the Festival and for San Diego’s Arab Community: it shows that Arab culture is an important part of the fabric of San Diego! In addition, on-going support from the Arts and Culture Commission helps lay the groundwork for the Festival’s growth as a dynamic part of San Diego’s cultural life.
Financial support is provided by City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture.
San Diego Arab Film Festival is the registered trademark of KARAMA.
It is not affiliated with Arab Film Festival or Arab Film and Media Institute.