Filmmakers will showcase their art, engage with audiences from Sept. 13-20 SAFAR From Home program will be entirely online due to COVID-19 restrictions LONDON: The UK’s only film festival dedicated to cinema from the Arab world will begin next week — and the entire program of events will be free, online and accessible to all. For the latest updates, follow us on Instagram @arabnews.lifestyle Run biennially since 2012 by the Arab British Centre, the SAFAR From Home film festival enables audiences to connect with, explore and celebrate the diversity of Arab cinema. Five films will be shown from Sept. 13-20, and there will be five events featuring leading filmmaking talent from the Arab world and the UK. Taking the entire program online due to COVID-19 restrictions, this year’s festival will explore the theme of journeys. ****** READ MORE: UK-based Arab film festival to go digital due to COVID-19 pandemic Saudi Film Festival goes live on YouTube with six-day celebration of regional talent ****** “In a year when travels became impossible, we are inviting you to travel with us to the Arab world and beyond through your screens at home,” said SAFAR curator Rabih El-Khoury. “SAFAR From Home explores Arab cinema through the theme of journeys — physical, emotional, transformational.” Among the showcased films will be Ismael Ferroukhi’s “The Great Journey,” in which young Reda accompanies his father on a long pilgrimage to Makkah. Throughout the week’s evening events and talks, audiences will be invited to get involved in the discussion and reflect on the filmmaking landscape of the UK and the Arab world. Interested viewers can access the festival’s films from the UK and events from anywhere in the world by registering at safarfilmfestival.co.uk.