Joelyn Baluyut
Doha
Palestinian film actor and Head of Jury for Made in Qatar, Saleh Bakri, praised this year’s Ajyal Film Festival as a ‘beacon of hope’ for a world built on equality, justice, and fairness.
Speaking during the festival’s closing ceremony at Katara on Saturday, Bakri reflected on the importance of the festival in promoting creativity, humanity, and innovation in cinema.
"Ajyal is a festival where I have seen shining bright, the spirit of humanity and the spirit also of innovation and creativity,” Bakri said. "I have seen dreams shine bright as well in Ajyal Film Festival.”
He went on to emphasise the importance of the festival in revitalising the cinematic world. "DFI [Doha Film Institute] and Ajyal Film Festival gave cinema back its heart and its true meaning and its ingenuity as well,” he added, highlighting the festival’s commitment to providing a platform for diverse voices.
Bakri also underscored the festival’s global influence, noting how it helps amplify the voices of filmmakers from around the world. "Ajyal also plays an important role on all levels in raising the voices of all filmmakers,” he said.
This year, the festival included an initiative—Ajyal in Gaza—which, according to Bakri, carries a powerful message of resistance and resilience.
"Ajyal in Gaza is a message. It is a message of defiance, it is a message of resistance,” he declared, stressing the festival as a platform in advocating for freedom of expression and social justice through film.