Emirati Saeed Salmeen’s new film Sun Dress hits the big screen

Another Emirati movie wins a full local cinema release when Saeed Salmeen's Sun Dress hits cinemas across the UAE on Thursday.

Sun Dress came into being as one of the very first batch of Abu Dhabi Film Festival Sanad-funded projects in 2010 – 2014's fifth round of recipients were announced last week – and went on to screen at the Gulf and Abu Dhabi film festivals, as well as other festivals in 2012.

Now, thanks to Thursday’s efforts of Abu Dhabi’s Real Dream Media, the movie is set to launch in Vox, Novo, ­CineRoyal and other cinemas across the UAE (see listings for details), according to Real Dream Media’s Dhekra Ouali.

"Real Dream is a media production company specialising in the production of documentary, 2-D and 3-D films and distributing UAE movies of all genres to festivals and cinemas," explains Ouali. "Our dream is to see UAE films monthly and then weekly in cinemas and to get audiences to watch these films outside of the festival periods. It's a challenge to help UAE filmmakers reach the box office, but we were the distributors of the box-office hit Grandmother's Farm, which spent four weeks in cinemas, and then Sun Dress. There are many UAE films on the 'coming soon' list and we are running a social media and PR campaign for Sun Dress, too."

Sun Dress is a story of hardship and disability, which charts the unfulfilled dreams and daily struggles of the characters as they find their place in society and endure their life's journey under the desert sun. The film stars Neven Madi, most recently best known for her appearance in Nawaf Al Janahi's Sea Shadow, and the veteran Emirati actor Marei Al Houlian.

Salmeen is a graduate of the New York Film Academy in Abu Dhabi, and is probably best-known as the director of 2008's multi-award-winning Bint Mariam. He also won the Best Director award at The Digital Studio Middle East Awards in 2007, and Best Emirati Director at Dubai International Film Festival 2008.

Salmeen says: “This film brought together the best of both worlds from the United Arab Emirates and Syria. Locations can have a lasting impact on a film and both the Red Island and the countryside around Damascus breathed new life into our story and allowed us to create both dramatic reality and fantasy with our own Arab touch.”

cnewbould@thenational.ae