Hindi
film
celebrities
Anil
Kapoor,
John
Abraham,
Nana
Patekar
and
Paresh
Rawal
will
attend
the
11th
edition
of
the
Dubai
International
Film
Festival
(DIFF)
along
with
international
stars
like
Emily
Blunt,
Kelsey
Grammer,
Eva
Longoria
and
Olga
Kurylenko.
The
festival,
which
starts
from
December
10-17,
will
feature
118
films
from
48
countries
in
34
different
languages,
read
a
statement.
This
year's
edition
of
DIFF
will
open
with
the
screening
of
James
Marsh's
"The
Theory
Of
Everything!".
The
biographic
film
is
inspired
by
the
book
"Travelling
to
Infinity:
My
Life
with
Stephen" written
by
Stephen
Hawking's
former
wife
Jane
Wilde
Hawking.
At
the
opening
ceremony,
DIFF
will
present
its
Lifetime
Achievement
Award
to
prominent
Egyptian
actor
Nour
El-Sherif
for
his
work
in
more
than
100
films
in
a
career
spanning
almost
five
decades.
Rob
Marshall's
Into
the
Woods
it'll
be
the
closing
film
for
this
year's
DIFF
and
will
premiere
internationally
here.
The
film,
featuring
Emily
Blunt,
Meryl
Streep,
Johnny
Depp,
Anna
Kendrick
and
Chris
Pine,
is
a
mix
of
classic
stories
from
Cinderella,
Little
Red
Riding
Hood
and
Rapunzel.
"DIFF
has
come
so
far
in
the
past
11
years,
introducing
new
audiences
to
Arab
cinema,
fostering
talent
and
welcoming
the
industry's
greatest
directors,
producers,
writers
and
actors.
I'm
proud
to
say
that
DIFF
has
contributed
to
putting
the
region's
film
industry
on
the
global
map," said
Abdulhamid
Juma,
DIFF
chairman.
A
panel
of
renowned
directors,
including
Lee
Daniels
of
Oscar-winning
films
Precious
and
The
Butler
fame,
will
comprise
the
prestigious
Muhr
Awards
jury.
The
awards
aim
to
recognise
talent
from
the
UAE
and
wider
Arab
world
and
have,
to
date,
highlighted
over
255
cinematic
works.
Daniels
will
be
joined
by
Dutch
cinematographer
and
film
director
Leonard
Retel
Helmrich,
acclaimed
Algerian
director
Malik
Bensmail,
Oscar
nominated
actress
Virginia
Madsen
and
Lebanese
director
and
actress
Nadine
Labaki.
Arab
celebrities
like
Mervat
Amin,
Samir
Sabri,
Daoud
Abdel
Sayed,
Laila
Taher,
Mohamed
Sobhi,
Lebleba
and
Jamal
Suliman
will
also
grace
the
red
carpet.