The European Film Screenings just concluded its 3rd round with a resounding success on Thursday, 27 October, as Polish film MIASTO 44 by director Jan Komasa was screened at Novo Cinemas, Ibn Battuta Mall, Dubai, followed by the Danish film Men & Chicken by director Anders Thomas Jensen. The screenings were directly preceded by the announcement that the Spanish film La Isla Minima by director Alberto Rodríguez Librero has won the Audience Award following a voting process conducted among screening audiences in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

On her part, Alessandra Priante, Founder and Artistic Director of European Film Screenings, expressed her happiness at the success of the 3rd round, "I am incredibly pleased with this year's edition. The quality of the programming thanks mainly to the European Film Academy has been outstanding, our partners Novo Cinemas, Tharwa Productions and Aramex have been incredible but mostly the affection from the people who came and attended tirelessly and joyfully is the biggest reward. This proves more and more that there is always space and time for culture and for cultural diversity, especially through cinema."

Patrizio Fondi, Head of the EU Delegation to the UAE, said,"By hosting the European Film Screenings for the third year in a row, our mission to build a cross-cultural bridge through films became clearer as a result of the diversity of views and different experiences the audience get from watcing the list of European films. These films give them a new cultural perspective by exposing them to diverse cultures, which completely agrees with the delegation's strategy where culture comes as a priority in the European Union's external relations, and plays a vital role in supporting and strengthening global partnerships."

The third edition of the European Film Screenings (EFS/03), took place in the UAE (19 -27 October, 2016), boasting a collection of 17 European films under the European Film Academy selection and the participating European Embassies in the UAE. The programme also screened five Arab feature films from Algeria, Jordan, Qatar, Lebanon and the UAE, along with a bundle of short films from Switzerland.

The third edition of the European Film Screenings (EFS) is held under the patronage of H.E. Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Culture and Knowledge Development, and is hosted by the EU Delegation to the UAE and the Embassy of the Slovak Republic to the UAE, in collaboration with Novo Cinemas in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

The European Film Screenings is now recognized as one of the most esteemed independent cultural events in the UAE. This year's edition operates under the support of the European Film Academy, for the first time in its history, and, Eurimages, two of the most prominent cinema institutions in Europe, and is sponsored by Tharwa Productions, Aramex and Jumeirah.

The film screenings were hosted by Novo Cinemas at its Abu Dhabi-based venue, the World Trade Center Mall Abu Dhabi in Abu Dhabi from 19-26 October, 2016, and at Ibn Battuta Mall and Dubai Festival City Mall in Dubai from 20-27 October, 2016.