THE OSCAR WINNER AND IWC BRAND AMBASSADOR WILL RETURN TO DIFF FOR THE SIXTH EDITION OF THE AWARD THAT CELEBRATES ASPIRING GULF FILMMAKERS.
SHORTLISTED CANDIDATES FOR THE USD 100,000 PRIZE WILL BE ANNOUNCED SOON.

Dubai, UAE, September 13, 2017:  Swiss luxury watch manufacturer IWC Schaffhausen and the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) have confirmed Academy Award-winning actress and IWC Schaffhausen brand ambassador Cate Blanchett as head of the IWC Filmmakers Jury for the sixth IWC Filmmaker Award. The renowned award gives cinematic talent from the region the chance to bring their projects to the silver screen. It will be presented during DIFF, which takes place from 6 to 13 December 2017.

Marking her third appearance on the DIFF red carpet, Cate Blanchett joins the jury panel that will select a winning project from the shortlisted entries. A USD 100,000 cash prize will be awarded to one feature-length film project in development to help the winning filmmaker bring their idea to fruition on the big screen. Previous years have seen winning scripts from Emirati directors Abdullah Hassan Ahmed and Layla Kaylif, Kuwaiti director Abdullah Boushahri and British-Iraqi director Maysoon Pachachi.

Commenting on this year’s award, IWC CEO Christoph Grainger-Herr said: “Filmmaking is an integral part of cultural creation – it is an art form that allows us to look in the mirror and gives us an important opportunity for reflection. Being storytellers ourselves, we deeply appreciate the creativity, courage and passion that talented filmmakers invest in their work to enchant and captivate their audiences. IWC is a passionate brand and our involvement in this festival is for the love of cinema. For this reason, we are proud to support yet another promising film project with the sixth IWC Filmmaker Award later this year.” DIFF Chairman Abdulhamid Juma added: “Each year, the bar is set higher by the scripts we receive for the IWC Filmmaker Award and our expert jury members have tough decisions to make. We are privileged to welcome back an icon of the silver screen to Dubai to lend her insight to the distinguished jury and inspire new emerging talent from the region.”

Two-time Oscar winner Cate Blanchett is an internationally acclaimed star with a long and illustrious career and has featured in an array of successful films including “The Aviator”, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”, all three “The Lord of the Rings” films, “Carol” and “Blue Jasmine”. The Australian actress has broken multiple Academy Awards records, including being the only actress in history to be nominated more than once for the same role, having played Elizabeth I in both “Elizabeth” (1998) and “Elizabeth: The Golden Age” (2007), and being the first person to win an Oscar for portraying another Oscar winner for her performance as Katharine Hepburn in “The Aviator”.

The IWC Filmmaker Award will be presented to the winning filmmaker at a star-studded gala on 7 December 2017, during the 14th edition of DIFF.