Gulftainer supports Sharjah International Children’s Film Festival 2015
Sharjah-headquartered Gulftainer, the largest privately-owned, independent port operator in the world, has supported the Middle East’s dedicated first-of-its-kind film festival since its inception, in an effort to promote the media and arts among children and young people.
The third edition of Sharjah International Children’s Film Festival (SICFF) was inaugurated by His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi and his wife, Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher Bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, who is also the patron of the festival.
With a focus on strengthening bonds with the local arts and youth community, Gulftainer’s support of SICFF 2015 reflected its strong Community Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives which support numerous non-governmental organisations based in the Emirate.
Peter Richards, Managing Director of Gulftainer, said: “The Sharjah International Children’s Film Festival is dedicated to creating awareness of the arts to children in order to nurture their creativity and showcase the best in filmmaking for children. SICFF has proved to be an inspiring platform that encourages and supports all aspects of imaginative film making for and by children. We are honoured to have had the opportunity to support this educational venture that underlines Sharjah’s reputation as a cultural hub, since its inception.”
The screening of 175 films, selected from 286 films submitted from nearly 50 countries, was held at the Novo Cinemas in the Sahara Centre, and at the Al Jawaher Reception and Convention Centre. In addition, outdoor screenings were organised in seven towns outside Sharjah. The festival this year attracted international and local visitors from across the UAE and covered short and animated films, features, fiction movies and documentaries that touched a wide variety of topics.
Gulftainer operates the Khorfakkan Container Terminal and the Sharjah Container Terminal at Port Khalid, the first dedicated container terminal in the Arab world, on behalf of the Sharjah Port Authority. Its current portfolio also covers operations at Umm Qasr Port in Iraq, Recife in Brazil, Jeddah and Jubail in Saudi Arabia; and in the USA, where the company recently began operations at the Canaveral Cargo Terminal in Florida. Gulftainer is also expecting to commence operations in Tripoli Port in Lebanon by the end of 2015.