HM Queen Silvia of Sweden, President of Mentor International (fourth right); Swedish Ambassador to Qatar H E Gautam Bhattacharyya (first right); Qatar Ambassador to Sweden H E Nadya Ahmad Al Shaibi (eighth right); CEO of Qatar Museums Mohammed Saad Al Rumaihi (sixth right) and other dignitaries during the Mentor Arabia’s 5th Youth Empowerment Film and Song Competition Award Ceremony held in Doha yesterday. Pic: Salim Matramkot/The Peninsula
Doha, Qatar: Youth from various Arab countries were honoured in Doha yesterday in recognition of their creative talents, with the presence of HM Queen Silvia of Sweden, President of Mentor International.
Some 12 talented young people aged between 18 and 30, were honoured during the Mentor Arabia’s 5th Youth Empowerment Film and Song Competition Award Ceremony in partnership with the Doha Film Institute and Qatar Museums.
Swedish Ambassador to Qatar H E Gautam Bhattacharyya; Qatar Ambassador to Sweden H E Nadya Ahmad Al Shaibi; CEO of Qatar Museums Mohammed Saad Al Rumaihi and several other dignitaries were present during the ceremony.
Award winner, Houcem Slouli from Tunisia
Mentor Arabia’s Youth Empowerment Film and Song Competition encourage young people to create artistic works that rise awareness about pressing social and humanitarian issues: as well as the opportunities and challenges they face. The competition also provides a safe space for youth to express their concerns, aspirations, and opinions on urgent social and humanitarian topics.
The fifth edition competitions were held under the theme ‘Towards Sustainable Societies.’
Head of Communication and Fundraising and Deputy CEO at Mentor Arabia, Bechara Ghaoui
Head of Communication and Fundraising and Deputy CEO at Mentor Arabia, Bechara Ghaoui speaking to The Peninsula said that the initiative aims at encouraging youth to adopt healthy lifestyles, inspiring them to excel in their professional journeys, and providing them with mentorship and guidance opportunities.
Award winner Sarah Bitar from Lebanon
“This is very important for young people, for them to unleash their creativity, to let the whole world know about the importance of their voices. So, it's a platform that can help them towards a better future. It opens for them lots of networking opportunities, give them a platform also to advocate about very important topics that are really addressed internationally,” he said.
The awards ceremony recognised outstanding creators of short narrative films, short documentary films, promotional films, songs, and animated films.
Elle Moon from Lebanon was recognised for her song ‘Prodigy’ an English- Arabic rap song.
“The song is essentially an anthem of empowerment for the Lebanese community during times of suffering. It serves as a reminder that everything we aim to accomplish comes from a place of love and compassion. If we believe in ourselves and continue working hard towards our goals, we will succeed,” she said.
Sarah Bitar from Lebanon won the award for her short film ‘The windows that I hate’ said, “My passion has always been filmmaking and acting. I used to think that this dream was out of reach, so I decided to bring it closer by starting my own YouTube channel and posting short films.”
Elle Moon from Lebanon
“At first, it was just a passion project, but then I realised that being recognised by amazing organisations like Mentor Arabia meant I had an opportunity to keep pushing myself further. Nothing is impossible to achieve if you stay focused and keep doing what you love. I was once at a point where I thought a dream was just that—a dream. But now I see that a dream is a purpose,” she added.
Another award winner, Houcem Slouli from Tunisia, was recognised for his short film In Three Layers of Darkness, which explores the theme of freedom of movement around the world. Slouli, as both the director and producer of short films, views the recognition from Mentor Arabia as encouragement to continue pursuing his passion for film making.
Mentor Arabia is a regional non-governmental and non-profit organization dedicated to empowering children and youth and protecting them from harmful behaviors, enabling them to live healthy lives and make sound decisions. Founded in 2006, it is chaired by Prince Turki bin Talal bin Abdulaziz. It is part of Mentor International, established in 1994 and chaired by HM Queen Silvia of Sweden, with branches in Sweden, Latvia, Germany, the United States, and Jordan.
Names of the 12 artists honoured during the Mentor Arabia’s 5th Youth Empowerment Film and Song Competition Award Ceremony:
Best Director in the Narrative Film Category: Ahmed Khalil for the film "Farikh Al-Asafeer" from Egypt.
Best Narrative Film: "Fi Zolomat Thalath" (In Three Darkneses) by Houcem Slouli from Tunisia.
Best Director in the Documentary Film Category: "Ardaha" (Her Land) by Ahed Najib and Mariam Benasser from Morocco.
Best Documentary Film: "Dhakirat Muhamasha" (Forgotten Memory) by Hayat Laban from Palestine.
Best Director in the Awareness Film Category: Anas Yahya from Jordan for the film "Taht Al-Ihtilal" (Under Occupation).
Best Awareness Film: "The Windows That I Hate" by Sarah Bitar from Lebanon.
Best Director in the Graphic Film Category: Asil Khalifa from Yemen for the film "Bara'a" (Innocence).
Best Graphic Film: "Majbour" by Ghadeer Abu Jamous from Jordan.
Best Qatari Film: "Bint Al-Sayyad" (The Fisherman's Daughter) by Abdulrahman Al-Mana.
Best Lyrics: "Kohk Sagheer" (A Small Hut) by Fadi Arabini from Syria.
Best Performance: "Prodigy" by Elle Moon from Lebanon.
Best Song: "Shu Bhib" (How Much I Love) by Sama Nasr from Lebanon.
