Emarati director Gamal Sleim won a Big Golden Rice Award Casablanca – Yousra Mostafa “Moot Bateaa” (Slow Death) by Emarati director Gamal Sleim won a Big Golden Rice Award, from the Arab World Festival in the short movie category. The 2012 festival is the 14th session in the ceremony\'s history and is organised in Azrou, Morocco between August 23 and 26. The Arab World Festival signed a partnership and cooperation agreement with the Cinema Festival in Gaza and honoured the Moroccan comedian actor Saeed al-Nasery who explained to Arabstoday that it is the first national honour he has received, so it left a strong effect on him in front of the nobility at the Festival.
The jury award went to “Khareg Al Abgadya” (Outside the Alphabet) by Syrian director Rola Kayal and the Script Award went to “el-Samt al-Akher” (The last Silence) for the Iraqi director Maged Aboud al-Rabeay. However the Moroccan hosts did not take any awards in the Golden Rice Competition, which was presented by the Moroccan director Edrees Showika.
The jury consist of Hosn Naris, Riyad Shahin and Taher Elwan who highlighted the following movies: “Ghyab Man Noheb” (The Absence of whom we love) by Syrian director Eva Dawood, “Karkouz” (Clown) by Algerian Abdel Nour Zahzah, and “Atsa” (Sneeze) by Kuwaiti Mekdad al-Kot for the importance of the topics and the creativity in its acting, photography and directing.
The big award for the Arab Daghmi competition for environmental movies went to “Bel Dam Bel Roh” (By Blood and Spirit) by Katia Gargora from Lebanon and “Proces vert” (Proces vert) by director Gamal al-Modn took the Jury Award.
The Scrip Award went to the feature “Hona Gaza” (Here is Gaza) by the new Palestinian director Mariam Majed.