Source : @Variety
DOHA, October 26, 2026 – Acclaimed Japanese filmmaker Naomi Kawase will preside over the main competition jury of the upcoming Doha Film Festival, which is set to run from November 19 to 27 in the Qatari capital.
The appointment was reported by Variety on Monday and shared on X by the entertainment publication.
Kawase, regarded as Japan’s best-known female film director and a regular at the Cannes Film Festival, has a close relationship with the Doha Film Institute (DFI). She joined the institute’s Qumra programme, which mentors emerging filmmakers, in 2016.
A decorated festival career
Based in her hometown of Nara, Kawase first rose to international prominence when she won the Caméra d’Or for best debut feature at Cannes with “Moe no Suzaku” (1997). She went on to win further awards at Cannes for “Mogari no Mori” (2007) and “Hikari” (2017).
In 2000, her film “Hotaru” won the FIPRESCI award at the Locarno Film Festival, and her latest feature, “Yakushima’s Illusion”, premiered in competition at Locarno in 2025. She is also an experienced juror, having served on the Cannes competition jury in 2013.
Kawase was also chosen as the official filmmaker for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, directing the two-part documentary on the event.
The rest of the jury
Joining Kawase on the jury will be rising French-Tunisian actor Adam Bessa, known for “Ghost Trail”; pioneering Tunisian producer Dora Bouchoucha; award-winning Italian documentary filmmaker Gianfranco Rosi, director of “Fire at Sea”; and prominent Palestinian filmmaker Kamal Aljafari, whose work includes “With Hasan in Gaza”.
“We are immensely proud to welcome friends of the Institute who share our vision and have dedicated their lives to nurturing independent cinema,” said Doha Film Institute chief executive Fatma Hassan Alremaihi in a statement.
“Their collective experience and artistic integrity embody the spirit of DFI and DFF: championing original voices, creating space for bold ideas and ensuring that powerful stories find their way to audiences around the world,” she added.
A revamped festival in its second edition
The revamped Doha Film Festival grew out of the DFI’s existing Ajyal Film Festival, which was dedicated to youth and family-friendly cinema, and has been transformed into a more ambitious international event aimed at a broader audience. This year marks its second edition.
As previously announced, Yemeni-Scottish filmmaker Sara Ishaq’s drama “The Station”, which looks at the impact of Yemen’s civil war on the country, will open the competition.
The festival’s top prizes carry significant cash awards: best narrative film is worth US$75,000, best documentary US$50,000, the artistic achievement award US$45,000 and the gender-neutral performance award US$15,000.
Besides the Doha Film Institute, the festival’s key partners include Katara, Media City Qatar – Film Committee, and Visit Qatar.
The appointment of a filmmaker of Kawase’s standing underlines Qatar’s ambition to position Doha as a significant stop on the international festival calendar, particularly for independent and Arab cinema, in the run-up to the busy awards season.
Source: Variety
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