Qumra, the annual talent incubator event of the Doha Film Institute (DFI), has been cancelled due to concerns over the global coronavirus outbreak.
A DFI statement said the sixth edition, due to be held March 20-25, and all related activities had been cancelled. Directors Clare Denis and James Gray were among those set to attend.
“Although this is an extremely important event for our community and participants, the wellbeing of the residents and visitors to Qatar remains our first priority,” said the statement.
“Due to current global concern regarding the COVID-19 outbreak, with an awareness of our responsibility towards the health and safety of our valued guests and partners and in an effort to reduce travel during this time, the decision has been made to cancel the 2020 edition of Qumra and its related activities.”
This year’s edition was due to offer networking and development opportunities to 46 projects from 20 countries as part of its mission to support filmmakers from the region and beyond.
Projects in development would have participated in group and individual sessions with Qumra “Masters” and industry mentors to receive one-on-one advice.
This year, those Masters included French director Claire Denis (High Life), Greek cinematographer Phedon Papamichael (Ford V Ferrari), US director James Gray (Ad Astra), Austrian filmmaker Jessica Hausner (Little Joe) and Oscar-winning sound editor Mark Mangini (Mad Max: Fury Road).
“The 46 selected projects remain a priority for DFI this year,” the statement added. “We will work internally to find solutions to best support them through this period of new challenges.”
At Qumra, projects in post-production are presented in a series of closed rough-cut screenings to leading festival programmers, broadcasters, market representatives, sales agents and distributors. More than 100 industry experts were set to attend.
This year’s selection of projects would also have included seven TV series in development for the first time.
Talent from the region that were set to showcase their projects included Tunisian filmmaker Erige Sehiri, Lebanese directors Nadim Tabet and Mounia Akl, and Morocco’s Hicham Lasri as well as Syrian director Soudade Kaadan, who won Venice’s Lion of the Future award with The Day I Lost My Shadow in 2018.
The DFI added that it is “working in close collaboration with the Ministry of Public Health and the Communicable Disease Centre in Qatar to monitor developments and status regarding COVID-19. Our sympathies at this time are with those affected all around the world.”
The coronavirus outbreak has seen Hong Kong’s Filmart, Thessaloniki Documentary Festival and the Far East Festival in Udine, Italy postponed, and is already having a devastating effect on the Chinese film sector.
This year’s EFM saw 125 visitors cancel their badges at the last minute due to the virus. The Cannes Film Festival is still set to go ahead in mid-May.
Full statement
Over the past six years, Qumra has been a one-of-a-kind professional incubator crucial to the success of filmmakers from the Arab world and beyond.
Although this is an extremely important event for our community and participants, the wellbeing of the residents and visitors to Qatar remains our first priority. Due to current global concern regarding the COVID-19 outbreak, with an awareness of our responsibility towards the health and safety of our valued guests and partners and in an effort to reduce travel during this time, the decision has been made to cancel the 2020 edition of Qumra and its related activities.
The 46 selected projects remain a priority for DFI this year. We will work internally to find solutions to best support them through this period of new challenges and will inform you of opportunities where you can contribute to the success of this year’s selected projects. We thank all our Qumra Masters, filmmakers and industry participants for their ongoing passion and commitment to supporting our mission to reshape the global storytelling landscape and support emerging voices to create cinema, to exercise creative expression, and to transform inspired stories into acclaimed masterpieces.
The Doha Film Institute is working in close collaboration with the Ministry of Public Health and the Communicable Disease Centre in Qatar to monitor developments and status regarding COVID-19. Our sympathies at this time are with those affected all around the world.
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