IBDAA AWARDS PARTICIPATION GATHERS MOMENTUM Dubai Media City receives over 840 entries three weeks before deadline

Participation in Dubai Media Citys Ibdaa Media Student Awards has gathered momentum with the Awards attracting huge interest from media students in key media markets across the region. The Ibdaa organising committee said that they have already received over 840 entries. The entries cover all the categories of the Awards: Animation, Journalism, Radio, TV, Film Production, Photography, Graphic Design and Advertising

DUBAI: Wednesday, October 9, 2002

Participation in Dubai Media Citys Ibdaa Media Student Awards has gathered momentum with the Awards attracting huge interest from media students in key media markets across the region.

The Ibdaa organising committee said that they have already received over 840 entries. The entries cover all the categories of the Awards: Animation, Journalism, Radio, TV, Film Production, Photography, Graphic Design and Advertising.

Dubai Media City attributed the huge participation to a massive promotional campaign conducted across a wide cross-section of media markets in the region. Ibdaa roadshows travelled to schools and universities in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Iran, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Bahrain, Kuwait and the UAE. This years Ibdaa programme was able to build on the enormous popularity of the first Ibdaa Awards, which attracted the cream of the regions media student talent.

The first Ibdaa Awards were launched by Dubai Media City in June last year under the patronage of His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and UAE Defence Minister with the mission of discovering, showcasing and fostering student media talent in the region. Named after the Arabic word for creativity, the Ibdaa Awards seek to unearth young talent for the benefit of the media industry, which needs a constant supply of quality skills.

Ibdaa has emerged as the most celebrated platform for showcasing young media talent in the region," said Abdulhamid Juma, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Media City. The large response to the Awards reflects the enthusiasm for creative excellence among media students in the region. It is the ideas and spirit seen in these entries that will shape the future of the regions media industry. We are sure that among the entries there are several gems of talent waiting to be discovered," he added.

The Ibdaa Awards are an exciting and rewarding opportunity for media students on the threshold of their professional careers to demonstrate creative excellence. Prestigious internships with global media giants are part of the rich array of prizes that await winners of the Awards. The prize sponsors include CNN, Disney Channel -- Middle East, FilmWorks, Gulf News, Jumbo Electronics, Saatchi and Saatchi, Team/Young and Rubicam and Virgin Megastore.

A judging panel of regional and international media experts will shortlist 24 media projects - three from each of the eight categories - for the final round of the Awards. All the finalists will be flown to Dubai for an exhibition of their entries from December 14-16, 2002. The winners will be announced at a gala Award ceremony, which will be held on the evening of December 16, 2002.

The Second Ibdaa Awards have attracted the sponsorship of leading media companies in the region. Key sponsors include leading Arabic daily Asharq Al Awsat of the Saudi Research and Publishing Company (SRPC), major Dubai-based English daily the Gulf News, Pan-Arab broadcasting giant MBC and leading regional publishers Motivate Publishing.

About Dubai Media City
Strategically located in Dubai at the crossroads of the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, Dubai Media City is rapidly emerging as a global media hub. The City provides an advanced infrastructure and supportive environment for media-related businesses to operate globally out of Dubai. Dubai Media City is the place where every kind of media business, specifically - Broadcasting, Publishing, Advertising, Public Relations, Research, Music, New Media and Production and Post Production will thrive. The facility offers an environment that allows companies and individuals to operate with collective synergy and freedom. Dubai Media City - The Freedom to Create
For further information please contact:
Amira Abdulla
Assistant PR Manager
Dubai Media City
Tel: +971 4 3914578
Fax: +971 4 3914589
e-mail: amira.abdulla@dubaimediacity.co.ae
web: www.dubaimediacity.com