REPORT: Iraq's political turmoil put on show in film festival

Iraqi film students managed to portray the realities of the country's prolonged political turmoil through 74 films shown in a film festival in Baghdad.

The 33rd edition of the International University Festival of Cinema and Television was organized by Baghdad University's Department of Cinematic and Television Arts.

Among the films played in the three-day event was “Yova,” which was directed by a film student and depicts three real stories that happened in Mosul.

It specifically focuses on a Yazidi girl called Yova, who fell out of a pickup truck when the Yazidis were withdrawing from Sinjar, said director Maythem Khalif.

In addition to the locally-produced films, the festival saw the participation of 22 Arab and international productions.

The festival's panel of judges included filmmakers from Tunisia, Morocco, Libya and Lebanon, according to the dean of the Fine Arts College in Baghdad University.

Qadim Mou'nis Aziz said he would have liked to see more participation from the Arab world and Europe. “But you know the exceptional circumstances that the country is going through,” he added.

The festival comes months after organizers of the Baghdad International Film Festival (BIFF) announced a halt of activities, citing lack of funds.    

In December 2017, the Iraqi government declared victory in the war against the Islamic State militants, who controlled as much as a third of the country's territory three years ago.

The government invited foreign investors in January to help in the reconstruction process, adding that $100 billion will be needed to rebuild its war-torn cities.