Last year Abu Dhabi Film Festival had Hollywood bigwigs like Uma Thurman, Clive Owen, and Gerard Depardieu as high profile visitors, but the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (Adach) and the festival's organizers are in a different mood. Apart from mainstream actors, they have set their eyes for different types of behind the screen celebrities- they want to ensure maximum number of filmmakers to attend the fest. Director Peter Scarlet said that the festival this year would focus on international as well as Arab filmmakers.

To woo Arab producers to the fest, a new category of award ‘best producer from Arab world’ has been introduced along with a ‘special Jury award’. The usual prize money for the fest an amount more than $1 million (Dh3.6m) did not change. Like every year, the festival is going to be held in the prestigious Emirates Palace hotel.

According to Peter Scarlet this ‘best producer from Arab world ‘ is going to prove to be an important one to encourage Arab producer to come forward and make daring and independent Arab cinema.