Dubai, 21 May 2015 – As Official ‘Festival-Time’ Partner and ‘Supporting’ Sponsor of the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF), Swiss luxury watch manufacturer IWC Schaffhausen today announced that submissions are now open for the highly anticipated fourth annual IWC Filmmaker Award, to be presented on 10 December in Dubai. The winning filmmaker will receive a grant of USD 100,000 to help them bring their ideas to life on screen. This collaboration reinforces IWC’s global commitment to promoting the film industry and supporting the most promising young and up-and-coming talent in cinema.

Karoline Huber, Brand Director IWC Middle East & India, is delighted with the ongoing collaboration: “IWC is proud to be partners with the DIFF for the fifth consecutive year; this is our fourth Filmmaker Award and it is a great honour to be contributing to films in the Gulf. IWC Schaffhausen has beautiful stories to tell and the directors in this region have even more.”

Entries for the fourth IWC Filmmaker Award can be submitted online at www.dubaifilmfest.com from now until 1 August 2015. Three submissions will be shortlisted by an independent jury in October 2015, and IWC Schaffhausen will present the award to the winner at the annual “For the Love of Cinema” dinner during the 12th Dubai International Film Festival, which will be held from 9 to 16 December 2015.

DIFF Chairman and Member of the IWC Filmmakers Jury Abdulhamid Juma is extremely proud of the partnership with IWC: “To have reached a stage where films are being picked up for distribution and theatrical release is incredibly exciting and will help find new audiences around the world while enriching film culture in the region. We look forward to working with IWC to further build upon this valuable collaboration in the coming years.”

During the 11th DIFF last year, Golden Globe winner and IWC Schaffhausen brand ambassador Emily Blunt presented the IWC Filmmaker Award to Abdullah Boushahri for his film “The Water”. At the same event, Emirati filmmaker Waleed Al Shehhi – who received the IWC Filmmaker Award in 2013 from Head of the IWC Filmmakers Jury and IWC brand ambassador Cate Blanchett – premiered his feature film “Dolphins” to a sold­out audience. Following the world premiere, Dubai­based exhibitor and distributor VOX, which operates cinemas in the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Lebanon, picked up Al Shehhi’s debut feature and will release it in the Gulf later this month.