BMW Group Middle East names judges for MINI Film Festival 2007

Ten finalist entries will be selected by the judging panel to be screened at an exclusive Gala Event on the 29th of November, with entries still remaining open until the 1st of November 2007.

The official MINI Film Festival 2007 judging panel are:- Nawaf Al Janhi (Head of Arabic Programming, Dubai International Film Festival; Jamil Abu Wardeh (Head of Original Production, Showtime Network); Arsalan Mohammed (Film Critic, Time Out Dubai); Alaa Karkouti (Film Critic, Emirates Today) plus Wissam Haroun & Dar S Danesh (Founders, eQuinoxe Arabiya).
'The judging panel for the MINI Film Festival 2007 has been selected for their expertise and in-depth knowledge of the global, regional and local film industries,' said Raymond Gedeon, MINI Brand Manager.

'We are grateful for their enthusiastic involvement in the development of the MINI Film Festival as a recognised platform for homegrown filmmaking talent, and look forward to their input in selecting the ten finalists.'

Nawaf Al Janahi is an Abu Dhabi-based actor, film director, and free-lance photographer. He has previously held a position in the Directing Department of Abu Dhabi TV and was the Artistic Director of the Emirates Film Competition from 2005 to 2007. He has directed several independent short films and worked in over 25 films, taking various parts as an actor, assistant director and still photographer.

Nawaf's latest film Mirrors of Silence has participated in many international film festivals around the world and was the only Emarati film screened in the official competition at Dubai International Film Festival (2006), which accepts only 10 Arab short films from around the world to compete for this section's awards.

Jamil Abu-Wardeh is the Head of Original Production for the Showtime Network in the Middle East, now based in Dubai. His position at Showtime is a natural progression from a rich and varied background in entertainment, as he has worked with and interviewed many big name stars on screen for the channel. Jamil has also managed the Production of TV content for the Dubai International Film Festival TV Channel (DIFF Channel), which ran 24 hours a day to compliment, entertain and inform the public on DIFF 2006.

Currently working as a Film Analyst for Emirates Today, Alaa Karkouti has worked for several publications throughout the Middle East. He was previously the Editor-in-Chief for Good News Cinema, Yalla Cinema and Studio & Cinema Online. In addition, he has written for the entertainment section of many publications such as Forbes, Al-Rajoul Al-Youam, Al Khaleej and Al Ittihad.

As an Editor of Time Out Dubai's film section, Arsalan Mohammad believes that events such as the MINI Film Festival are essential to develop and encourage the regional film industry.

As a fervant collector of short film, Wissam Haroun, founder of eQuinoxe Arabiya maintains an unstoppable drive to support the development of the budding regional film industry, and encourage young Arab filmmakers to have their voices heard. His co-founder, Dar S Danesh also lends his experience to the development of the regional film industry through talent discovery, mentorship and training.

Judges for the MINI Film Festival 2007 will be looking for compelling storytelling first and foremost - it will be up to avid young and young-at-heart directors to decide on the format of their films, which could include live action, animation, computer graphics or hybrid forays into short-form. Entries must abide by Islamic and local customs.