PROGRAM

Sofia El Khyari, born in Casablanca, is an award-winning artist, director, and animator whose work blends handcrafted animation with poetic narratives. She holds Master’s degrees in Cultural Management and Animation from Bordeaux Business School and the Royal College of Art, London. Her films have been screened at nearly 200 festivals worldwide and are exhibited in galleries such as the Musée du Quai Branly and the Institut du Monde Arabe. She founded Oneiris Animation, Morocco’s first production company dedicated to auteur animation.

Boukef Shawki Mohamed Taher is an award-winning independent Algerian animation director and visual designer renowned for his socially conscious films like Olivia and Just a Show. With ten short films securing over 50 global awards, he earned the Algerian Presidential Prize (Ali Maâchi Award) in 2021 and was appointed Jury President for the 17th Sofia International Animation Film Festival (Golden Kuker 2026) in Bulgaria. Beyond directing, Boukef serves on the Algerian Ministry of Culture's screening committee, designs visual identities for major film festivals, and is currently developing his first feature-length animation film.

Backer Fares and Mahmoud Alfatahli are the visionary Libyan animators and digital artists who co-founded Desert Monkeys, an independent animation studio based in Tripoli, Libya

Mohamed Ghazalais an award-winning Egyptian animation director, academic, and cultural promoter who currently serves as the Chair of the School of Cinematic Arts at Effat University in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. He is globally recognized as the Vice President of the International Animated Film Association (ASIFA) and the founder of its first Arab-African chapter, ASIFA Egypt. He directed several acclaimed independent animated shorts, including Honayn’s Shoe (2009) and The Pyramid (2021), which have been featured in many film festivals. Besides filmmaking, he is a dedicated researcher in the history of African and Arab animation, frequently serving as a jury member at prestigious global film festivals like Annecy and Zagreb.

Ahmad Saleh is an award-winning German-Jordanian writer, director, and art director of Palestinian origin who transitioned from electronics engineering to filmmaking after winning a Young Writer’s Award in Palestine for his short story collection Zouadeh (2004). Born in Saudi Arabia in 1980, he pursued his artistic passion in Germany, earning a Master’s degree in Digital Media from the University of the Arts Bremen and a second Master’s degree in Film Writing and Directing from the Academy of Media Arts Cologne. His cinematic achievements include his debut short House (2012), which was runner-up at the German Short Film Awards; his second film Ayny (2016), which won the prestigious Golden Medal at the Student Academy Awards; and his acclaimed third short Night (2021).

Chadi Aoun is passionate about the many facets of audio-visual creation. Born in Beirut, he grew up in several Mediterranean countries and was influenced by the rich visual cultures that shaped his artistic profile. After spending two years studying fine art in Paris, he returned to Beirut, where he obtained a master’s degree in animated film from the Lebanese Academy of Fine Arts. In 2004, he co founded the YELO label, a collaborative design and animation company.His most recent projects include working on the short film Waves 98 by director Ely Dagher, which won the Palme d’or Court Métrage at the Cannes Film Festival in 2015, and creating the Haneen exhibition for UNICEF at the Civil War Museum in Beirut, his award-winning short animated film SAMT (Silence) on the theme of dance as a means of resistance.

Jalal Maghout is an independent filmmaker from Syria, who began his film career in 2010 after receiving his Bachelor's degree in visual communication from the University of Damascus. He has produced several short animated films that have been shown at festivals around the world. He also sat on the juries of some international film festivals such as Stuttgart and Annecy. Jalal completed his master's degree in animation directing at the Film University Babelsberg in 2019 with his film "Have a Nice Dog!"

Oday Abd Al Kahdim is a prominent Iraqi director and animation artist who plays a pivotal role in advancing 3D animation and digital cinema in Iraq. A graduate of the College of Fine Arts at the University of Baghdad, he currently serves as the head of the animation department at Karbala Satellite TV Group, where he pioneered the introduction of advanced motion capture technology to local studios. Throughout his career, he has directed acclaimed animated projects, including the 2026 classic-style cartoon series Labib and Marmar and award-winning short films like Ball (2022), The Summit, and Sketch, the latter of which competed in the 2026 Algeria Days for Contemporary Cinema.

Tariq Rimawiis an award-winning Jordanian independent animation director, scriptwriter, and academic who currently serves as the Section Head of Multimedia and Video Production at Qatar University. After earning a Ph.D. in Animation from Loughborough University (UK) in 2014, he went on to found the Animation Department at the University of Petra in Jordan, establishing himself as a key educator in the region's creative industries. He is globally recognized for his deeply symbolic, thought-provoking animated shorts—such as Missing (2010) and Zoo (2022). His highly acclaimed films have been screened at over 250 international film festivals and have earned dozens of prestigious global awards.

Yousef Al-Bagshi is an award-winning Kuwaiti digital artist, illustrator, and animation filmmaker who graduated with a degree in Theatre Design before teaching himself traditional 2D animation techniques. Recognized globally for his emotionally charged, dialogue-free short films like Sandarah (2014) and For the Sake of Yousef (2019), he specializes in concept art and character design to tell profound stories about human emotion and social issues. His impactful visual storytelling earned him Kuwait's prestigious State Creativity Award in 2018, establishing him as a leading figure in the Gulf animation industry.

Raghad Albarqi is an independent filmmaker and visual artist based in Jeddah. She holds a degree in Visual and Digital Production from Effat University, where she created her graduation film Social Moulds Manual. The film has been screened at several international festivals, including the Annecy International Animation Festival. She later earned a master’s degree in animation from the Royal College of Art, further developing her interdisciplinary practice across animation, illustration, and filmmaking. Her work involves social issues through visually driven storytelling, combining technical precision with narrative depth.