The Hollywood Arab Film Festival Foundation is pleased to announce the unveiling of the 2nd edition of the Hollywood Arab Film Festival (HAFF), scheduled in April 2023, as part of the celebration of the Arab Heritage Month, held every year in April.
The Hollywood Arab Film Festival is born right at the heart of Hollywood City, with the aim of providing Arab and North African filmmakers with the opportunity to gather, create and showcase their work. The festival seeks introducing world cinema professionals to the Arab film industry, shedding light on its uniqueness and distinction. It also aims at discussing the challenges facing the industry and ways to develop it.
In recognition of the region’s wealth of the film industry, HAFF aims at creating a platform through which Western audience can directly meet with Arab filmmakers to learn more about their cultural identity and the issues they are facing.

Strategic Objectives
Build
To build the learning capacity and skills of Arab artists and filmmakers to stay on top of film and art trends and create stronger relationship within the American industry. In addition to building a central network for knowledge exchange between Arab and American artists.

Educate
To Educate westerner on Arabic film culture by becoming a resource for them to learn and introduce them to new films and Arab artists and creators.

Advocate
To advocate for Arab filmmakers’ work within the American industry by gaining recognition in the Hollywood film circuit and to help Arab filmmakers get mainstream media coverage and more distribution deals with major Western networks and media outlets.

The festival will provide extensive media coverage through a wide range of Western media platforms specialized in the field of cinema, in order to achieve maximum exposure for the participating works of art.
It will also hold a number of activities, including a "festival market" and much more.
The festival will provide extensive media coverage through a wide range of Western media platforms specialized in the field of cinema, in order to achieve maximum exposure for the participating works of art.
It will also hold a number of activities, including a "festival market" and much more.

The festival reserves the right to use all materials for promotional purposes and for the Festival Catalogue. During the Festival, selected films will be available in the digital video library, open exclusively to accredited film professionals’ journalists and festival organizations, through HAFF’s own closed-circuit server. By accepting to participate in HAFF, submitters grant permission for their film to be included in the video library, unless otherwise mentioned in the entry form.

Awards Categories: TBA.

How do I submit?
We accept films via FilmFreeway. You must submit officially to be considered. Vimeo screeners are preferred.

Do you accept works-in-progress?
We prefer not to receive works-in-progress. You may submit an unfinished film with notes on missing components, but new cuts are not guaranteed to be viewed after the film has been submitted.

What are the submission requirements?
Completed entry on FilmFreeway.
Digital screener - Vimeo link
What are the requirements to submit?
Films must have been completed in 2021 or 2022.
If selected, films must be available for projection in DCP.
All non-English-language films must have English subtitles.
Submissions must be uploaded and submitted no later than the deadline date to qualify for the respective entry fees.