With five days gone and just two to go, the Festival is in its final stretch and is offering viewers the chance to add a slice of cinema to their weekend. Russian tankmen, extraterrestrials, big-wave surfers, reluctant fundamentalists and homegrown stars all waiting for you. If you want Hollywood classics, contemporary cinema, family friendly flicks or compelling local and international films – we’ve curated your filmic Friday. And keep Family Days in mind – it’s all about the youngsters for the last two days of DTFF.

Audiences are thrown into the deep end with ‘Storm Surfers 3D’ (2:00 PM at the Katara Opera House), which follows two big-wave surfers on their quest to push their limits, surfing some of the world’s biggest and most treacherous waves. The repeat of our opening night film, ‘The Reluctant Fundamentalist’ (4:00 PM at the Katara Drama Theatre) sees Changez on his journey to obtain the American dream, which begins to dissolve as fear and prejudice take hold in the west after 9/11. Layered with traditional Pakistani songs, the film shifts from the grey skyscrapers of the Wall Street to vibrant streets of Lahore.

‘Silver Linings Playbook’ (6:00 PM at the Al Rayyan Theatre) offers a hilarious look at troubled protagonist Pat (Bradley Cooper), and his battle to get his life back assisted by his parents (Robert De Niro and Jacki Weaver) and an odd young widow (Jennifer Lawrence). Moving from the funny to the fierce, ‘White Tiger’ (6:30 PM at the DFI Cinema at MIA) follows a tank commander who is nearly killed in an explosion and suffers memory loss and develops the mystical ability to understand the language of the tank he is determined to destroy. ‘The Nouba of the Women of Mont Chenoua’ (9:00 PM at the MIA Auditorium) continues the theme of resistance, capturing the stores of Algerian grandmothers who tell personal histories intertwined with tales of revolution. ‘Children of Sarajevo’ 6:00 PM at the MIA Auditorium) also deals with themes of war as it portrays a shattered society in transition and the story of two orphans of the Bosnian War. If Hollywood classics are more up your alley, ‘What Maisie Knew’ (8:30 PM at Katara 12) offers a melancholy portrait of shattered family life framed by an unforgettable performances.

Conme down to Katara for Family Days, today from 2:00 PM until midnight, and tomorrow, Saturday, 24 November from noon until 8:00 PM, offerings for kids include free film screenings, arts and crafts, rocket-making, sports, storytelling, puppetry, music, dance and kite-making. It will be a rollicking good time for the whole family. Kids will feel like movie stars on a special kids’ red carpet for two films – bring them on down and give them an early taste of glamour and glitz!

On Saturday, 24 November at 5:00 PM at the Katara Opera House, kids will love ‘Rise of the Guardians 3D’, Peter Ramsey’s eagerly anticipated, animated extravaganza based on William Joyce’s immensely popular books about Jack Frost, the Easter Bunny and other beloved legends saving the world from the evil plotting of Pitch, the Nightmare King.

It’s also time for the Best of the Fest screenings. Our Arab Film Competition winners were announced at the Awards Ceremony yesterday evening, so now is your chance to see several of the films our jurors selected as the very best, if you didn’t manage to catch them earlier in the week. Here’s a rundown:

‘The Lebanese Rocket Society’, which was named Best Documentary Feature Film, screens this evening at 6:00 PM at Katara 12; also today, catch the Best Narrative Film and the Best Short Film together – ‘The Repentant’ and ‘The Forgotten’ show at 9:30 PM, also at Katara 12.

Tomorrow, you can have a look at ‘In the Shadow of a Man’, whose director Hanan Abdalla took the Best Documentary Filmmaker award, at 6:00 PM, at Katara 12; head to the same cinema at 9:00 PM to check out ‘Horses of God’, which won the Best Narrative Filmmaker award for Nabil Ayouch.

Speaking of awards, it’s time to tally up the ballots – today the Audience Award announcements will be made – get back online later this afternoon to find out what DTFF attendees thought were the best narrative and documentary films of the fest – if you didn’t make the screenings of it over the week, you’ll be able to see them tomorrow – best narrative screens at 5:15 PM, best doc at 8:30 PM, both at Katara 12.