Zayed University will officially launch the UAE National Film Library and Archive (UNFLA) today, under the patronage and in the presence of His Excellency Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Minister of Culture, Youth and Community Development. The first of its kind in the Gulf, the archive will be a permanent home for the work of Emirati funded and made films for generations to come.

The inauguration of the UNFLA will be followed by the Zayed University Middle East Film Festival (ZUMEFF) Awards Celebration in H.H. Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Hall, Zayed University, Khalifa City.

The 12 ZUMEFF Finalists for 2013 will be assessed by  three industry judges: Jason Mirch, a production executive from Imagenation, Lotfi Bencheikh, co-founder of Aflamnah, and Saleh Karama, the programming director of Emirates Film Competition for Abu Dhabi Film Festival. The judges will select the winners of a variety of awards including: Best of the Best, Best Narrative, Best Documentary Film, New York Film Academy/ZUMEFF Aspiring Filmmaker, the new TwoFour54 Creative Lab/ZUMEFF Filmmaker.

The finalists come from seven MENA countries including the UAE, Egypt, Jordan, Palestine, Lebanon, Qatar, and Morocco. Overall, nearly sixty films from ten countries will be showcased during the festival.