Mentor Arabia Short Movie Competition winners announced

AMMAN — “Today will be a special day to see what our young people can do,” said Rami Farraj, chairman of the Royal Health Awareness Society at an event announcing the winners of the Mentor Arabia Short Movie Competition for Youth.

“This award seeks specifically to promote young people making very interactive and interesting awareness movies to help others dealing with the current challenges of having drugs all around,” stressed Farraj ahead of the event, which was organised by the Mentor Arabia Foundation and the Royal Health Awareness Society. 

The doctor noted that drug addiction is a big problem in Arab countries and a growing one in Jordan, where availability of these substances has increased recently. 

“It is important to make sure that our kids are immune by providing the proper knowledge of the harms that these drugs cause before they start taking them and get addicted to them,” Farraj said. 

In this first edition, over 100 movies from 12 Arab countries have competed in the contest, with only 14 of them making it to the finals. 

Choosing the winning films has not been an easy decision for the jury, which was composed of 15 well-known Arab figures in the field of cinema, including Jordanian director Ahmad Al Khatib, Lebanese director Sophie Boutros and Syrian actor Qays Sheikh Najib, among others. 

The winner of the competition, “Human” by Algerian Issam Taachit, tells the story of a boy with Down syndrome being discriminated against by his peers. 

Wining the second place, “Estrox”, by Egyptians Ahmad Hendawi and Aasmaa Gamal, follows a drug addict in his therapeutic journey to overcome his addiction. 

“I.D.E.A.L” directed by Lebanese Joy Hallak got the third place. The short movie focuses on a young woman who tries to find her place in the world by following influencers to become “ideal”. 

The fourth position was given to “Choose your life” by Egyptian Ahmad Nour, which discusses the extent to which individuals are affected by their environment and its effects on the development of delinquent behaviours. 

Finally, in the category of best Jordanian movie, the winner was “The white funeral” by Rama Sahuni, a film that addresses the topic of rapists who marry their victims and the laws protecting them.  

“It feels really great to receive this award and makes me want to do more for my community and for people in the Middle East,” Sahuni told The Jordan Times at the event. 

“I chose this topic because I am a woman, I stand by women and want to empower them by shedding light on some of their problems, especially when the law does not support them,” the young director explained. 

The winners received prizes between $1,000 and $4,000, in addition to receiving a year-long mentoring by experts from the field.