‘European Film Festival focuses on young people to attract wider audience’

AMMAN — In its 27th iteration, the European Film Festival is focusing on children and young people to attract a wider audience to its screenings in Amman and beyond, organisers said on Wednesday. 

“It is very important to be outside Amman because it is a good opportunity for us to show European values and culture in these cities. Last year’s experience was very successful and the theme will definitely bring more children and family members to the festival,” Ibrahim Laafia, first counsellor and head of the operations section at the EU Delegation in Jordan, said at a press conference held at the Royal Film Commission Jordan (RFC) in Amman.

The festival, which opens in Amman next Sunday, features screenings in Zarqa, Irbid, Karak and Jerash.

Nada Doumani, RFC communications and culture manager, said the films that will be screened in the governorates were carefully selected.

“Obviously that limits our choice of films, and they have to be subtitled in Arabic. That is why we have two European movies screened outside Amman,” she told The Jordan Times.  

“Lucky Loser” from the Czech Republic and “The Miracle of Bern” from Germany will be screened in the governorates this year.

Doumani noted that the number of audience members outside the capital has been on the rise in the past years. 

“We have seen a consistent increase in the number of viewers during the past years and this year will bring Jordanian film critics to the governorates to discuss the movies with the audience,” she added.  

The newly appointed head of the EU National Institutes for Culture (EUNIC) Maria Rosaria Papa described last year’s experience in Zarqa as successful, where the films met with a good reaction from the local community.   

Under the patronage of HRH Princess Rym Ali, the festival is scheduled to open at Haya Cultural Centre with a screening of the Dutch narrative feature “Regret!” which addresses the issue of school bullying.  

Laafia said the festival — organised in cooperation with the RFC — is a joint initiative between the EU delegation to Jordan, embassies of EU member states in Amman and EUNIC Jordan. 

He noted that there will be a photography competition as part of the festival and an exhibition will be held under the theme of the festival “Children and Youth”.

“A total of 13 European movies and one Jordanian movie will be screened during the festival. We will also screen movies at universities located in governorates such as Maan, Tafileh, Zarqa, Irbid and Ajloun,” Laafia added. 

The EU official said the festival is a tool to present European traditions to local communities in Jordan, stressing the EU’s support for the local cinema industry. 

“The United”, a film by Jordanian director Amin Matalqa, caps off the festival in Amman on September 19. It will be screened outdoors at the Hashemite Square in downtown Amman.

Screenings in the governorates will be between September 20 and October 14.

Doumani said screenings will be also held at the Zaatari Refugee Camp, Jordan’s largest camp located in the northeastern city of Mafraq.  

The screenings in Amman will take place every day at the Haya Cultural Centre at 8 pm and in EUNIC Cultural Centres such as Società Dante Alighieri, Institut Francais, Goethe Institut and Instituto Cervantes at 5pm, according to a statement from the organisers.

More information on the festival is available on its Facebook page, www.facebook.com/eufilmjo.