NEW DELHI: Six feature and four short films will be screened at the 12th annual Arab Film Festival Australia to be held in Sydney next month.

The Festival will be held in Sydney from 13 to 16 August, Melbourne from 21 to 23 August, and Canberra from 28 to 30 August.

From a small Lebanese coastal village, to the racetracks of Palestine, to the iconic backdrop of the Arabian dessert, the Festival will give audiences the best of contemporary Arab films. Whilst conflict and instability continue to be the dominant representation of the Arab world, the filmmakers are uncovering rich and rare stories and capturing them in unique ways.

Festival co-director Mouna Zaylah said, “Arab filmmakers are reflecting exciting and sometimes volatile times, and through cinema they are making powerful statements, challenging stereotypes, and creating conversations about the future they dream for .We’re proud to showcase the diversity of the region with films from Jordan, Iraq, UAE, Palestine, Egypt and Lebanon.”

Festival co-director Fadia Abboud added, “In 2015, the Festival explores taboos from small towns to big cities: Arab chicks’ car racing in the West Bank; Arab boys taking a road-trip partying across borders and check-points. There’s a theme of pushing boundaries both physically and ideologically.”