Scandar Copti

Copti is an Oscar-nominated Palestinian filmmaker born and raised in Yafa. In 2009, his first full-length feature film "Ajami" won the Camera d'Or Special Mention at the Cannes Film Festival. His film was also nominated for the 82nd Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Film category and won more than 15 awards worldwide. Formerly a mechanical engineer, he has also written, directed and edited several fiction, documentary and experimental short films. Copti was on the jury of the Tribeca film festival as well as at the Thessaloniki film festival in 2010 and President of the Human Rights Award in the Istanbul International film festival 2011. Copti was part of the team that launched the Doha Tribeca Film Festival and the Doha Film Institute (DFI) and he headed the DFI's education department until November 2011. Currently Copti is developing his next feature film project.