Dear Festival Guests,

Here we go again, and for the 9th time in a row, we are launching a new edition of Tripoli Film Festival! Every single edition brings with it immense challenges at various levels and most importantly on the financial level. The past three years were overwhelming as the Lebanese people have been striving to overcome the economic crisis that has brutally affected the country since 2019. After the pandemic, and as the global economic crisis strikes, regions far from the center of Lebanon, such as Tripoli, were the first to suffer from the tough situation since we live in an extremely centralized country. Moreover, the cultural sector has been adversely affected by the crisis given that we have no financial support from the public and private sector. Unfortunately, this is what Tripoli is confronting nowadays and these are the conditions in which Tripoli Film Festival is rising.

Yet, we would like to extend our sincere gratitude to the International Community and NGOs as with their help and support we are still holding on. If you are reading this right now, this means that we have conquered our biggest challenges with the support of our partners, staff, and volunteers and that we have delivered once again a new festival edition. Hence, we have proven to be trustworthy of the people of Tripoli and Lebanon and their aspirations.

I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the SEE Change Program organized by COSV and funded by the European Community and to the Cultural Affairs Department of the U.S Embassy in Lebanon who have played a vital role in the accomplishment of the 9 th edition of TFF.

Looking forward to meeting you all.

Let’s celebrate cinema and enjoy the festival.