gulftoday.ae | Young filmmakers get a boost

DAY 3

Sharjah: The film industry is another area where the UAE will be known globally.

Photographer and executive film producer Beno Saradzic and three young aspiring movie directors gave this view to The Gulf Today when the third night of the “Twinge SHJ” rolled out seven short films for the “Reels of Sharjah” on Monday at the Maraya Art Centre of Al Qasba.
Saradzic, who hails from Slovenia and is an Abu Dhabi resident since 1991, said the movie industry in his adopted country was gaining ground.

With initiatives from both the government and private sectors, the scenario that the Emirati film industry would be at par or even much better than those from other countries was a possibility.

“Everybody wants to watch films and if one has the talent and the support he needs, then there is no reason for him not to be in the industry,” said Saradzic, whose 4.5-minute time lapse version of “Abu Dhabi 2011” shared centre stage with the short films of the University of Sharjah Electronic Media students Omar Tanira and Haneen Kanaan as well as Skyline University marketing degree holder Faisal Hashim.

Saradzic said his short movie is a collection of 21,000 photographs of the history of the capital collected in eight weeks.

Other short films shown ranging between an average of five and 10 minutes each were by Shahid Azam, Ashraf Ghori and Neel Kumar.

Hashmi said: “The UAE film industry is in its infancy but if you have a good one, it will be seen.” His film “Bubble” runs for eight minutes and is about two men caught in their respective dilemmas and how they cope with and overcome them.

Tanira and Kanaan are classmates. Tanira’s “Another Story”, which runs for six minutes and Kanaan’s “Al Shahid” that is also six minutes long, were made as part of their film class under Dr Fouad Abdul Aziz.

Asked how it feels at being invited to showcase their films to the urban and cultural art festival, Tanira said, excitedly: “It is a very good thing. It means we come from a good college.”

Both agreed their professor was a “really, really a very good professor with very, very good experience.”

Tanira said there were many budding filmmakers in the UAE.

For him, Emirati Hemaid Al Awadi was a “great, great director.”

“I hope people will love my movie,” said Kanaan.

She appreciated that young and unknown as they are now, they were invited to “Twinge SHJ.”

Maraya Art Centre curator Giussepe Moscatello said he was glad to be part of the festival since one of the missions of the gallery is to support emerging artists across the country.

For her, music is the food of creativity

By Mariecar Jara-Puyod

Sharjah: Make a statement. Be the statement. Salam Suwaidi does it through pieces of art jewellery. The dentist by profession was very precise, when asked for a description of her 19 pieces, currently on exhibit at the ongoing urban art and cultural festival, “Twinge SHJ,” at the Maraya Art Centre of Al Qasba.

“They are unusual. They are statement jewellery,” she said.

The 19 pieces are products of the imagination of the Sharjah

Calendar of events

Feb.28 - Laughter Therapy: A dose of comedy in Arabic, English and Urdu presented by Dubomedy.

Feb.29 - Kuttab Launch Night: Exclusive publishers’ night with Jamal Shihhi and Kuttab

Mar.1 - Rhythm Sessions: Night of music featuring The Abbo, Desert Heat, Tiny Hassan, Feras, Heba Rashid, Generation Band, and 4 Brownies.

Mar.2 - Magic of Poetry: Farrah Chamma, Muneer Jaehoon, Haneen Assaf, Abdulla Kassim, Shamma Kabital, Mohammad Azimudder, Asmaa and Afra Atiq will be taking the stage.

All events are being held at the Maraya Art Centre of Al Qasba. Doors open at 7pm and shows start at 8pm.

resident from Syria that is most active when she relaxes after her duty hours at the hospital, by listening to whatever music her gut feel dictates.

Through the flow of the rhythm and lyrics, Suwaidi merges and interweaves accoutrements collected from her forays in art and crafts stores.

These may be beads, buttons, shells, ribbons and ropes.

“Nothing is wasted. She is able to artistically (fashion) anything from whatever she can lay her on,” volunteered close pal Nadia El-Samsam.

“She does not even repeat anything. So each piece is definitely unique,” added El-Samsam.

To emphasise that Suwaidi’s musical-inspired creations are indeed statement pieces, El-Samsam shared her experience of getting the attention, as well as positive feedback, of colleagues and clients she had a business meeting with, when she wore a brooch, crafted by her friend, to securely clasp her scarf on her lapel.

For “Twinge SHJ,” Suwaidi’s interpretation of the song “Just Tonight,” is a set of brooches and pendants in black, silver and pearl.

Suwaidi explained “Just Tonight” is a song about sadness and despair.

As for the “Radioactive” set based on the song of the same title, the focus of attention is the shimmering triangle of a necklace, which for Suwaidi symbolises strength.

For her, “Radioactive” is a song about “desperate love.”

Suwaidi’s participation in the “Twinge SHJ” is her second exposure to activities that allow participants to display their talents.

Her first try was for her customised or personalised boxes at Dubai Festival City.

Suwaidi believes in the value of participating in exhibitions and the like, saying that if there is anything to show, then “why not?”

“If there is something that makes a person stand out, then, why not,” she continued.

When asked about her being a dentist and an art or statement piece jeweller on the side, Suwaidi who had enrolled in a “single silver moulding course” recently, replied, “Dentistry is also an art. They (profession and hobby) all match in the end.”

A recent study estimated that in general, the largest jewellery (whether these are genuine or fake gemstones or the ones belonging to the art noveau or art deco like statement pieces) market is the United States with a market share of 30.8 per cent.

The Middle East, Japan, India and China have a share each of eight to nine per cent