Part of his diverse activities at Berlin International Film Festival, Film Analyst Alaa Karkouti, CEO and Co-founder of MAD Solutions, will be part of the World Cinema Fund (WCF) within Berlinale 2015. Hosting high-caliber film professionals from across the globe, the WCF will be held for only one day on February 11th, 2015.

Karkouti will be part of a panel discussion under the title of Priority: Distribution, which will address the visibility of cinema of the Arab World, Latin America, Africa and other regions in Europe and outside of Europe. Featuring a number of cinema professionals from Europe and Latin America, the panel discussion will be moderated by Italian filmmaker Vincenzo Bugno.

Founded in 2004 as an initiative of the German Federal Cultural Foundation (KSB) and the Berlin International Film Festival, WCF works to flourish and support cinema in developing countries and regions with a weak film infrastructure.

This year, MAD Solutions will launch the 1st Arab Cinema Center (ACC) within the European
Film Market (EFM) at Berlin International Film Festival. Standing as part of MAD Solutions' long-term strategy to back and promote Arab filmmaking industry in the Arab world, ACC is the first Arab platform promoting Arab cinema industry at the heart of Berlinale where 11 Arab organizations and film production companies will take part in this event.

The ACC is going to function as an international platform to promote Arab cinema and a channel to provide access to Arab films. Through its diverse activities, it will disseminate information internationally concerning film production in the Arab world, creating an opportunity for Arab filmmakers to explore and network with the international film industry professionals, production companies' representatives, distribution slates and the organizations investing in co-productions.

The ACC's activities will vary between hosting market screenings for Arab films at the EFM, organizing networking sessions and meetings with international film companies and organizations throughout the days of Berlinale and publishing the Arab Cinema Guide to be distributed among the festival's guests.

Berlin International Film Festival is regarded as an exciting, cosmopolitan cultural hub as it annually attracts 20,000 film professionals and media figures from all over the world. It is one of the biggest cinema platforms with more than 300,000 sold tickets from 400 films, taking part in each edition. In 2014, Berlinale attracted nearly 490,000 cinephiles and its EFM (5-13 February) is considered one of the most 3 important film markets in the world.

The panel discussion will be held at 01:00 pm (Berlin Time) on February 11th, 2015 at Berlin International Film Festival - Deutsche Kinemathek