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Cinema by the Sea

Join us on the beautiful West Bay Beach for a fun, family-friendly cinema experience. Set along the shores of Doha’s stunning skyline—DFI is proud to present ‘Cinema by the Sea’, an outdoor screening series of films for the whole community to enjoy.

Upcoming Screenings:

The Doha Film Institute invites you to another instalment of our beloved ‘Cinema by the Sea’ series. Join us on the picturesque shores of West Bay Beach for an unforgettable family-friendly experience, featuring classics like ‘Matilda’ (1996), the animated adventure ‘Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs’ (2009), and the heartfelt ‘Dounia and the Princess of Aleppo’ (2022). Set against Doha’s iconic night skyline and the tranquil Arabian Gulf, this event promises evenings of entertainment for the whole community to enjoy.

Please note a fee of 30 QAR is required to enter West Bay Beach, which can be paid upon arriving at the venue. Children under 12 years can enter for free.

• Wednesday, 19 June, 7 PM, West Bay Beach

Matilda (1996)

Directed by: Danny DeVito

This whimsical film adaptation of Roald Dahl’s beloved book tells the tale of Matilda Wormwood, a precocious girl with a love for books and a knack for telekinesis. She contends with her boorish, neglectful parents and the tyrannical school principal, Agatha Trunchbull. As Matilda discovers her telekinetic powers, she becomes a pint-sized superhero, defending her friends from Trunchbull’s menacing tactics and plotting to reclaim joy and justice in her life. Filled with magic and mischief, it’s a delightful story of empowerment and courage.

• Thursday, 20 June, 7 PM, West Bay Beach

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009)

Directed by: Christopher Miller, Phil Lord

When hard times hit Swallow Falls, its townspeople can only afford to eat sardines. Flint Lockwood, a failed inventor, thinks he has the answer to the town’s crisis. He builds a machine that converts water into food and becomes a local hero when tasty treats fall from the sky like rain. But when the machine spins out of control and threatens to bury the whole world under giant mounds of food, Flint finds he may have bitten off more than he can chew.

• Friday, 21 June, 7 PM, West Bay Beach

Dounia and the Princess of Aleppo (2022 / Arabic Version)

Directed by: Marya Zarif, André Kadi

Six-year-old Dounia loves playing, learning, and discovering new recipes in Aleppo, where she lives with her grandparents and father. She cherishes stories of her late mother. One night, uniformed men take her father away, marking the start of the war. Her grandparents try to shield her from the chaos, but as bombs fall, they flee with a few possessions and a bit of magic. Joined by other refugees, they find solace through shared songs and stories. Despite the heavy themes of displacement and loss, the film’s magical realism and optimism shine through.

Past Screenings:

Please note a fee of 30 QAR is required to enter West Bay Beach, which can be paid upon arriving at the venue. Children under 12 years can enter for free.

• Friday, 28 April, 7 PM, West Bay Beach

Rio (2011)

Directed by: Carlos Saldanha

Captured by smugglers when he was just a hatchling, a macaw named Blu never learned to fly and lives a happily domesticated life in Minnesota with his human friend, Linda. Blu is thought to be the last of his kind, but when word comes that Jewel, a lone female, lives in Rio de Janeiro, Blu and Linda go to meet her. Animal smugglers kidnap Blu and Jewel, but the pair soon escape and begin a perilous adventure back to freedom and Linda.

• Thursday, 4 May, 7 PM, West Bay Beach

Made in Qatar: Short Films Programme

• Emsahar by Hassan Al-Jahni
• Hope by Abdulla Al-Janahi
• Yahoota by Latifa Al-Darwish and Abdulaziz Yousif
• Khurshid by Mazen Shafea
• Al-Johara by Nora Al-Subai

• Thursday, 11 May, 7 PM, West Bay Beach

Ponyo (2008)

Directed by: Hayao Miyazaki

During a forbidden excursion to see the surface world, a goldfish princess encounters a human boy named Sosuke, who gives her the name Ponyo. Ponyo longs to become human, and as her friendship with Sosuke grows, she becomes more human-like. Ponyo’s father brings her back to their ocean kingdom, but so strong is Ponyo’s wish to live on the surface that she breaks free, and in the process, spills a collection of magical elixirs that endanger Sosuke’s village.

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