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Doha, Qatar; November 30, 2015: On the second day of the third Ajyal Youth Film Festival, presented by the Doha Film Institute, the young jurors of the festival had the opportunity to interact with Academy Award nominated director Hany Abu-Assad and the ‘Arab Idol’ champion Mohammed Assaf.

This followed the festival’s opening gala of The Idol (Palestine, UK, Qatar, The Netherlands; 2015) by Hany Abu-Assad, which charts the story of Assaf. Young jurors of Hilal, and Bader, two of the three in-competition segments at the Ajyal Youth Film Festival, interacted with Abu-Assad and Assaf, probing them on the film and their views on cinema.

Urging them to work hard, Abu-Assad said the success of any film depends on a well-written story, good acting, strong technical detailing and treating the movie with a humanitarian perspective. He told the jurors that The Idol is an inspirational story of hope and optimism, and while it reflects the suffering of thousands of Palestinians, it also shows that they have the right to accomplish their dream of living peacefully and fulfilling their aspirations.

Responding to the request of the jurors, Assaf sang a traditional Arabic song that was received standing applause. The young jurors also had a photo opportunity with Assaf and Hany Abu-Assad.