Ayny by Ahmad Saleh Screens at the Palm Springs International ShortFest, USA

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Ayny by Ahmad Saleh Screens at the Palm Springs International ShortFest, USA


The Palm Springs International Shortfest in California, USA has selected Ahmad Saleh's animated short film Ayny to compete in its Face the Music programme of the festival's 23rd edition that is going to take place on June 20-26, 2017. An Oscar and BAFTA-qualifying festival, ShortFest has presented more than 100 shorts that have gone on to receive Oscar nominations and/or awards. The festival receives around 4,200 submissions from over 100 countries around the globe. Approximately 325 shorts are selected and screened in 90-minute themed programs to an audience of 22,000 avid filmgoers.

Last month, Ayny won the Best of the Best award at the 8th Zayed University Middle East Film Festival (ZUMEFF) in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

Based on true events, Ayny follows two young boys who run away from their mother's protection and slack line on the danger of war to play music with the instrument they always dreamt to own. The film is written, directed, edited and voiced by Ahmad Saleh, music by Nizar Rohana, animated by Frank Pingel, DOP Lionel Poutiaire Somé, produced by Stefan Gieren, and its Arab world distribution is handled by MAD Solutions. The film is a co-production between Germany, Jordan, and Palestine.

Ayny has won the Best Third Movie - Film Competition from Outside Iraq at the 2nd Qumrah International Film Festival in Iraq and the Student Academy Award for Best Foreign Animation. Most recently, the film received the main award (Amarji Alsumaria) at the 2nd Amarji International Film Festival For Short Films in Al Najaf, Iraq. The film made its world premiere in the Muhr Short competition of the 13th Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF). The film was also screened at the Beirut Cinema Days, Sudan Independent Film Festival (SIFF), Animate. Ps (Palestine Animation Festival), ALFILM - Arab Film Festival Berlin, Ismailia International Film Festival for Documentaries and Shorts, Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film, International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and the Festival Ciné-Palestine in Paris.

Recently, he finished another Master's study in Film, in which he wrote the short film Circle, directed the short film MaaBaa and started writing his first feature. His graduation project Ayny won a Golden Oscar at the Student Academy Awards 2016 in the Foreign Animation category.

Screening Time of Ayny at the Palm Springs International Shortfest
Thursday, June 22, 10:30 AM (GMT-7) at Camelot Theatres