June 2025

“It's a bright June afternoon, it never gets dark
Wah-Wah! Here comes the sun
Get your green green tambourine, let's play in the park
Wah-Wah! Here comes the sun”
June Afternoon, Roxette (1995)

The month of May felt like it came and went with a blink of an eye, so please excuse me for not sending out a newsletter last month.

Shortly after I sent out the April edition, I travelled for a couple weeks. I went to Amsterdam to attend a few days of The Lady with the Torch - 100 Years of Columbia Pictures film retrospective. Five days of old Hollywood, especially watching Jean Arthur, Cary Grant and Gary Cooper on the big screen made it feel like all is good in the world.

I also visited London, to visit a few exhibitions and watch more films. You can read about everything I watched here.

As for May, my biggest highlight was hosting the first Collected Histories: Personal Archives and Documentation event with Jasmine Soliman at 421 Arts Campus in Abu Dhabi.

It included a screening of four short films, a talk and a workshop. It was one of the most rewarding event I worked on, there was such a warm and kind energy in the room, and the feedback we got after was overwhelmingly positive. I wrote all about it here, and we’re hoping to do more, so please watch this space.

I was also busy working on a new film program - Jameel Arts Centre invited me to curate a film series for the summer, as a collaboration with The Culturist Film Club. It will take place between June 21 and August 2, keep scrolling to read more about this.


Just over a week ago, I went to The Courtyard Playhouse with friends to attend Powerpointless - The Improvised Powerpoint Presentation, described as “the hilarious antidote to dull corporate presentations”.

Each month, fearless speakers step into the unknown, presenting slides they’ve never seen before on a topic chosen at random by our infamous Wheel of Destiny. From a high-stakes Movie Pitch to an over-the-top Motivational Speech, they’ll have to think fast, impress our panel of judges, and battle it out for the title of PowerPointless Champion of the Month.

It’s held monthly, and looks like it has a regular and supportive audience. It was our first time, and happy to go again. We all had an absolute blast. Hearing “we have the cleanest toilets in Al Quoz” during the welcome intro already made it worth stepping out for me.

I didn’t take any photos, but this is what the theatre we were in looks like. Lovely and cosy.

Jameel’s Summer Cinema, in collaboration with The Culturist Film Club, will take place on alternative Saturdays between June 21 and August 2.

Each screening will include a selection of themed short films, preceded by an introduction by me, and followed by a post screening discussion between me and invited speakers.

The screenings will be on between 7.30pm - 9.30pm, free to attend, but pre-registration is required.

June 21 – Cities, Cinema and People

• Behind the Sun (Bentley Brown, 2023, USA, 17 min)

• Cairo, As Told By Chahine (Youssef Chahine, 1991, Egypt, 23 min)
  

July 5 – In Memory of David Lynch

• A selection of works by David Lynch
  

July 19 – Rematerialising the Archive

• The Flowers Stand Silently, Witnessing (Theo Panagopoulos, 2024, UK, 17 min)

• Scenes of Extraction (Sanaz Sohrabi, 2023, Canada, Iran, 43 min)
  

August 2 – Home, Longing and Solitude

• Why is My Grandfather’s Bed in Our Living Room? (Sarah Alhashimi, 2021, UAE, 7 min)

• Practical Dreams (Yulia Piskuliyska, 2019, UAE, 9 min)

• The Tobacconist (Keifer Nyron Taylor, 2024, UK, 22 min)

• Tender Loving Care (Kalina Pulit, 2023, UK, 20 min)

If you are in Dubai this summer, please join us. More details on jameelartscentre.org.

A couple of other film events I’d like to recommend, and hope to attend myself:

Cineolio’s Cinenights
June 20, Mohammad Bin Rashid Library, Dubai
Free entry.

Korean Film Festival
June 19 - 22: Manarat Al Saadiyat, Abu Dhabi
June 27 - 29 June: Mohammed Bin Rashid Library, Dubai
Free entry.

I’ve made a few more tweaks to the blog, you will notice a new welcome page that features a banner to promote upcoming event(s) I’m working on, a summary of latest updates, and a link to read all blogposts. Take a look.

Film Series: AT THE MOVIES
Le Cinema Club is streaming a series of films “dedicated to the joys and thrills of moviegoing” between May 30 - July 3. A new film is added each week. Free to watch. http://lecinemaclub.com.


Exhibitions:
If in Dubai, you can see a list of recommended exhibitions to visit this summer, read it here.

Agnès Varda’s Paris
Carnavalet Museum, Paris
Until August 24

Polaroids, Small Prints and Ephemera
Webber Gallery, London
Until June 26

Cecil Beaton’s Garden Party
The Garden Museum, London
Until September 21