• Selected films underline DFI’s mission to champion important voices and amplify authentic storytelling from the Arab world and beyond
  • Ninth DFI supported film selected to compete for the prestigious Palme d’Or award

Doha Film Institute (DFI) today announced that eight films supported through its grants programme have been selected for the 78th Cannes Film Festival, reaffirming the Institute’s enduring commitment to nurturing bold, original voices in world cinema.

Spanning a wide spectrum of genres, styles, and cultural narratives, this year’s selected films reflect the richness of global storytelling and underscore DFI’s mission to champion compelling, underrepresented perspectives from the Arab world and beyond.

The selected projects will be unveiled to global audiences across various sections of the festival, including the official programme with one in Official Selection Competition and three in Un Certain Regard. Four additional titles will screen across the parallel sections of Critics’ Week (La Semaine de la Critique), Director’s Fortnight (La Quinzaine des Cinéastes), and ACID, highlighting the artistic excellence and global relevance of the filmmakers. DFI’s strong presence at Cannes 2025 builds on its legacy of empowering emerging talent and contributing meaningfully to the global film landscape.

Fatma Hassan Alremaihi, Chief Executive Officer of DFI, said: “We are incredibly proud to attend the 78th edition of Cannes with another selection of outstanding films supported by the Institute. This recognition speaks to the power of authentic storytelling and the importance of amplifying diverse voices. Most importantly, they exemplify cinema’s profound power to connect us while revealing the beauty and complexity of our varied experiences. By empowering visionary filmmakers, we nurture creativity and promote compelling stories that have the potential to shape world cinema.

Official Selection Competition:

  • ‘Renoir’ (Japan, France, Singapore, The Philippines, Indonesia, Qatar) by Chie Hayakawa is about a quirky and sensitive 11-year-old girl who deals with her terminally ill father and stressed-out working mother over one summer in Tokyo in 1987, while each of them thirsts for human connections.

Official Selection Un Certain Regard:

  • ‘Aisha Can’t Fly Away’ (Egypt, Tunisia, KSA, Sudan, Germany, France, Qatar) by Morad Mostafa follows Aisha, a Somali caregiver in Cairo, who becomes entangled with an Egyptian gang while navigating love, fear, and tension among African migrants.
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  • ‘Promised Sky’ (Tunisia, France, Qatar) by Erige Sehiri follows three Ivorian women from different generations—a pastor, a resourceful businesswoman, and a student who live together in a house in Tunis that doubles as a church.
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  • ‘Once Upon a Time in Gaza’ (Palestine, France, Germany, Portugal, Qatar) by Tarzan & Arab Nasser set in Gaza in 2007 and follows a young student, a charismatic dealer, and a corrupt cop. Murders, revenge, it all ends badly.

Critics’ Week (Semaine de la Critique): 

  • ‘Sleepless City’ (Spain, France, Qatar) by Guillermo García López is set in the outskirts of Madrid, where 15-year-old Tonino’s world unravels as his best friend prepares to leave, challenging his understanding of home, friendship, and the gypsy legends that shaped his childhood.
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  • ‘L’Mina’ (Morocco, France, Italy, Qatar) by Randa Maroufi is set in Jerada, Morocco, and captures the town's decline after its mine closure in 2001, exploring the socio-economic impact of shifting away from fossil fuels through archival storytelling and residents' memories.

Director’s Fortnight (Quinzaine des cinéastes):

  • ‘The President’s Cake’ (Iraq, USA, Qatar) by Hasan Hadi narrates the story of nine-year-old Lamia, who must use her wits to gather ingredients for the mandatory cake to celebrate President Saddam Hussein’s birthday.

ACID:

  • ‘Life After Siham’ (Egypt, France, Qatar) by Namir Abdel Messeeh chronicles his decade-long grief journey after losing his mother. Through cinema, he confronts trauma, preserves memory, and explores the meaning of family and the fleeting beauty of life.