MARCHE DU FILM
Paris, France – 8 May 2024
The Arab Cinema Center (ACC) is proud to announce its continued collaboration with
the Marché du Film, alongside MAD Celebrity, for an enticing lineup of panel discussions
and prestigious events, set to enrich this year’s market edition at the 77th Festival de Cannes,
from 14 to 25 May. This marks a momentous occasion as ACC celebrates its 10th year
anniversary since its inception by MAD Solutions in 2015.
With a particular focus on Arab creative talent, this year’s ACC activities are designed to draw
international attention to the wealth of storytelling expertise and artistry on both sides of the
camera, which have helped usher in a new Golden Age of Arab Cinema across the Middle
East and North Africa (MENA) region.
This year's ACC program will comprise a total of four separate panel sessions, in addition to
the ACC’s highly anticipated annual beach-side ceremony for the Critics Awards for Arab
Films. All events will take place at the prestigious Plage des Palmes — the official beachside
venue shared by the Festival de Cannes and Marché du Film.
“These panels always attract a huge crowd in Cannes, which speaks volumes about the
international demand to both see more Arab films in the global arena and to collaborate with
talents and changemakers in the region to make sure more exciting, entertaining and relevant
stories see the light of day,” commented ACC Co-Founders Alaa Karkouti and Maher Diab.
“We are forever thankful to the Cannes Film Festival, their incredible team at the Marché du
Film, and all our partners and collaborators for giving us the space to keep elevating the pan-
Arab film industry in the eyes of the global community.”
The festivities will commence with the star-studded, three-hour event collectively bannered
as “Talent Hotbed: How Arab Artists & Artisans are Conquering the Entertainment
World” (15:00-17:00, 17 May) which will be presented by ACC, And MAD Celebrity and
consist of two celebrity-filled panels, followed by an hour-long invite-only reception.
The first panel, “The Arab New Wave: The Actors,” moderated by Melanie Goodfellow of
Deadline, will spotlight Arab cinema’s rising stars in a joint discussion about the opportunities
and challenges they face in breaking into the international marketplace. Following this, “The
Arab New Wave: The Artists and Artisans,” moderated by Michael Rosser of Screen
International, will celebrate the work of the newest generation of talents working behind the
camera. This session will dive into their international career paths, shedding light on the
necessary steps for more of these exceptional artists to garner recognition beyond the MENA
region.
The Arab Cinema Center (ACC) will serve as Master of Ceremonies (MC) for the two-session
panel, which will feature an impressive lineup of key industry players and speakers, including
trailblazing Egyptian superstar Youssra; the much in-demand actor Ahmed Malek; rising
Saudi actor Yagoub Alfarhan, the lead in the Cannes-selected Saudi film NORAH; renowned
TV host Raya Abirached; celebrated Tunisian producer Dora Bouchoucha; Egyptian
cinematographer Mostafa El Kashef; Jordanian director Murad Abu Eisheh; Jordanian
Canadian film composer Suad Bushnaq; award-winning Canadian producer Roger Frappier;
casting director and President of the European Board of Governors for the Casting Society
Cassandra Han; Managing Director of Media Industries, Entertainment, and Culture at Neom
Media Hub Wayne Borg; General Manager of MBC Studios and MBC Academy Zeinab Abu
AlSamh; and Co-Founder of MAD Solutions and the ACC Alaa Karkouti.
On the following day, 18 May, ACC, MAD Solutions, IEFTA (International Emerging Film
Talent Association) and NEFT Emerging Film Talent International Competition will host the
annual ceremony for the Critics Awards for Arab Films (17:00-19:00). Launched in 2017 by
the ACC at the Festival de Cannes, this special awards ceremony provides a platform for a
glittering jury of more than 200 prominent international film critics to select and honor the best
of recent Arab cinema across numerous awards categories.
Finally, on 20 May, ACC — in collaboration with IEFTA and UNHCR — will be presenting a
pressingly timely panel titled “Displacement: Cinematic Perspectives” (9:30-11:00).
Journalist Hadley Gamble will lead a thought-provoking discussion with a UNHCR goodwill
ambassador, accompanied by Princess Grace Award Winner & IEFTA selected filmmaker,
Daniela Repas. This moderated panel will shed light on the power of cinema in portraying and
addressing the challenges of displacement.
This will be followed by ACC’s final event, “Jordan: A Case Study in Sustainable Growth,”
a high-profile panel moderated by Nick Vivarelli from Variety, that will bring together many of
the leading lights of the Jordanian film industry who have turned their country into a global
model for how to build a local storytelling infrastructure for long-term sustained success.
They include Managing Director of the RFC Mohannad Al-Bakri; Jordanian superstar actress
and producer Saba Mubarak; Jordanian producer Rula Nasser; CEO of Egypt’s Lagoonie
Group Shahinaz El Akkad; Jacob Jarek, the Danish producer involved in HOLY SPIDER, which
shot in Jordan; and Jordanian director Bassel Ghandour, who co-wrote and produced
Jordan’s first even Oscar-nominated feature film, THEEB, before making his directorial debut
with THE ALLEYS.
Guillaume Esmiol, Executive Director of the Marché du Film, expressed his enthusiasm for
this year’s renewed partnership and compelling lineup for this year’s events, “The Arab
Cinema Center’s commitment to highlighting Arab talent perfectly mirrors the spirit of diversity
and creativity that Cannes represents. We are thrilled to collaborate once again with ACC,
especially as they celebrate their remarkable 10th year anniversary at our prestigious Plage
des Palmes venue. Together, we will foster engaging discussions and, unequivocally,
celebrate the vibrancy of the Arab film industry in all its brilliance.”
The Marché du Film – Festival de Cannes opens its doors on 14 May 2024, with the film
market running until 22 May and the Festival concluding its activities on 25 May.
NOTE TO EDITORS
About Marché du Film – Festival de Cannes
The Marché du Film, the business wing of the Festival de Cannes, is the industry’s largest international gathering
of film professionals, bringing together an impressive network of 14,000 film professionals spanning more than
140 countries. This includes buyers, sales agents, producers, distributors, festival representatives, financiers and
more. Each year, the film market hosts over 600 exhibitors, 1,200 screenings and introduces 4,000 new film
projects from the industry’s most vibrant talents. Additionally, it shines a spotlight on film institutions and
commissions from nearly 90 countries, represented across 60 pavilions. With a variety of tailored programs and
over 200 industry events & conferences, the Marché du Film is dedicated to strengthening the global film
community by fostering strategic partnerships, facilitating project financing, showcasing the latest innovations and
providing insights into the industry’s latest challenges and trends — all within the illustrious and iconic setting of
Cannes.
Website: www.marchedufilm.com
About Arab Cinema Center
The Arab Cinema Center (ACC) was established by MAD Solutions in 2015 as an international promotional and
networking platform for Arab cinema. Registered as a non-profit organization in Berlin, the ACC provides its
partner companies with a visible presence at all major film festivals and markets, connecting them with industry
professionals, organizing events and publishing special editions of the Arab Cinema Magazine.
Website: http://acc.film/
