Under the Patronage of HRH Prince Ali bin Al Hussein, Chairman of the RFC’s Board of Commissioners, and under the theme of “Power of Resilience”, Mentor Arabia foundation in partnership with the Royal Jordanian Film Commission hosted the 4th edition’s awards ceremony of the “Youth Empowerment Films and Songs Competition” on Monday 4 March, 2024 at King Hussein Business Park Theatre in Amman – Jordan; with the attendance of more than 500 esteemed guests from the art, culture, social, media, and youth communities and related entities.
During the ceremony, 20 Arab young talented winners aging 18 to 30 years old were awarded for the main competition categories: Narrative short films, documentary short films, PSA films, songs, and films and songs in development. In addition, 4 special awards were given to the young talented Palestinian participants. As a side event, Mentor Arabia in partnership with Zain Jordan hosted an inspirational panel dialogue titled “Mental Health and Youth in Drama and Songs” with esteemed panelists and celebrities from the competition Jury members. Additionally, and in partnership with the Royal Jordanian Film Commission and the Royal Health Awareness Society, a series of technical masterclasses were conducted for youth by industry professionals about filmmaking, directing, scriptwriting, acting, and composing, as a strategic partner, the RFC hosted the workshops for this year’s edition of the competition at its premises, in correspondence to its belief in supporting creative initiatives that empower youth.
The theme of the competition’s 4th edition is “Youth Wellbeing”, which aims at shedding light on the challenges facing Arab youth, celebrating their strength and resilience, and giving them hope for a better future. It also aims at spreading awareness about prevention from risky behaviors, advocating for healthy lifestyles, encouraging art, innovation and creativity, inspiring youth to excel in their careers, and providing promising talents with mentorship and guidance opportunities.
The competition idea was initiated back in 2017 due to the imminent need to support young Arab artists to unleash their talents and voice out their opinions. Soon enough, the idea evolved into a prominent regional initiative and a leading platform aimed at encouraging young talents to explore their artistic potential and create meaningful short films and songs; as well as providing them with a safe space to express their aspirations and views around pressing social and humanitarian issues.
The competition was launched in partnership with more than 80 strategic partners including the Jordanian Royal Film Commission, Zain Jordan, Anghami, IEFTA, and Sundance Film Festival; among other local and regional organizations and institutions; and a number of governmental and non-governmental entities, universities, academies, media agencies, and private companies.
The competition became popular, as the number of participants exceeded 4,000 youth and 32 winning emerging artists. Furthermore, the competition not only awarded the winners, but also provided technical masterclasses and workshops by top-notch artists and industry professionals, attracting so far more than 200 young attendees. Furthermore, the closing ceremony of the competition’s 1st edition was held in Jordan in 2017 under the patronage of His Royal Highness Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II, Crown Prince of Jordan. The closing ceremony of the 2nd edition took place in Kuwait in 2019 under the patronage of the Minister of Information and Youth, and the closing ceremony of the 3rd edition was held in Amman in 2022 in the presence of Her Majesty Queen Silvia of Sweden.
The competition jury includes esteemed artists, celebrities and industry professionals respectively as follow: Abu, Ahmad Al Khatib, Amin Dora, Bashar Al-Shatti, Carla Aad, Chaker Khazaal, Daniella Rahmeh, Darin Sallam, Essam Youssef, Fayez Al Saeed, Hamad Alsarraf, Hend Sabri, Karess Bashar, Lamia Guiga, Lianne Llewellyn, Michel Fadel, Milad Abi Raad, Mohamed El-Bassiouni, Mohamed Hefzi, Mohammad Mashish, Nassif Zeytoun, Nizar Francis, Qays Sheikh Najib, Rahma Riad, Rahma Soliman, Ramy Koussa, Said El Marouk, Sam Lahoud, Sophie Boutros, and Souad Massi.
Finally, Mentor Arabia foundation would like to thank each and every individual or entity or institution that supported the initiative and contributed to the success of the ceremony.
Mentor Arabia is a regional non-governmental &non-profit foundation founded in 2006, which envisions an Arab world where children and youth are empowered to lead healthy lives and make sound decisions. It is chaired by HRH Prince Turki Bin Talal bin Abdulaziz, and it is a branch of Mentor International, founded in 1994 and headed by H.M. Queen Silvia of Sweden; which includes Mentor USA, Mentor Sweden, Mentor Germany, Mentor Latvia, and Mentor Jordan.
