What’s On has news about the Kicking+Screening Film Festival in Abu Dhabi. The free film screenings in the capital will celebrate football.

Football fans can get their fix of films free of charge next week in Abu Dhabi.

The Kicking + Screening Film Festival, which runs from March 12 to 14 at New York University Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Campus, will screen sports based movies at the two-day event.

The global festival, which began in 2009, has previously hosted events in New York, London, Amsterdam and Rio de Janeiro and aims to showcase the best global football films.

Opening night will see the screening of Blue Moon Rising, a documentary that follows five Manchester City devotees through the 2009-10 campaign, the first season after Abu Dhabi purchased the club and turned the team into a powerhouse of the Premier League.

 

Other films showing include the family-friendly feature, Will. Directed by Ellen Perry, the movie follows 11-year-old Will Brennan and his father as they try to see Liverpool play AC Milan in the 2005 Champions League Final in Istanbul.

 

Three other documentaries will be shown during the event including Soka Afrika, winner of the Best Picture Award at the Palermo International Sports Film Festival. Directed by Suridh Hassan, the 76-minute film follows a group of aspiring African footballers in the run up to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

 

Mission Tuvalu follows Dutch student Paul Driessen as he represents the national football team of one of the most isolated island countries in the world – Tuvalu.

 

The closing film, Four Year Plan, sees a group of wealthy businessmen – Flavio Briatore, Bernie Ecclestone, Lakshmi Mittal and Amit Bhatia – purchase the Queens Park Rangers in 2007 in an attempt to revitalise the almost bankrupt English football club.

 

In addition to the screenings there will be a photography exhibition featuring images from filmmaker Andrew Dosunmu. The exhibition, called ‘The African Game,’ will see how the sport has made an impact on modern African life and culture. The exhibition opens on March 4 and will run until Saturday 14 March.

“Our goal with this festival (pun intended) is to create a programme that not only speaks to fans of contemporary film, but also to tap into the broad passion for football which will resonate through so many communities in Abu Dhabi and the UAE,” adds Bill Bragin, Executive Artistic Director, NYUAD Arts Center.

For more details about the festival and how to book a seat, free of charge, visit nyuad-artscenter.org