The Middle East International Film Festival is entering into its third edition. For its first two years, the fest was produced by Pyramedia, the production company of Oprah-esque media multi-hyphenate Nashwa al-Ruwaini, which is also responsible for Prince of Poets, a Eurostar-esque competition dedicated to original poetry that draws huge TV audiences in the region. From what I’ve gathered in my short time on the ground here, the consensus seems to be that while al-Ruwaini and crew put on a good show, their iteration of MEIFF had little interest in making a mark on the international film festival landscape, or participating in the wider conversation about film culture.

This is one thing that the new creative minds behind the festival, led by former Tribeca artistic director Peter Scarlet, seek to change. At a press briefing here today, consultant Lucius Barre, who has been tasked by the festival with hiring and training a permanent, year-round communications team, aligned the mission of the new MEIFF with what he described as the original charter behind the Cannes Film Festival: “To gather films from as many parts of the world as possible, show them under the best technical circumstances possible, and thereby foster goodwill” to the peoples of the world. “My aim,” he went on, “is to show the world the welcoming face of Abu Dhabi” to the international film community. Whereas other artistic initiatives in Abu Dhabi (including the upcoming branches of the Louvre and Guggenheim museums set to open in the emirate within the next three years) are sponsored by the Abu Dhabi tourism agencies and thus are primarily  a one-way gesture of pulling people and money in, it seems that MEIFF is interested in forming lasting two-way connections between this region and the wider world.

If that’s the lofty theoretical agenda, the practical agenda seems to be two-fold: to make MEIFF more like a blue chip international film festival (and thus more welcoming to international press, industry and filmmakers who are used to a certain kind of social atmosphere and/or hospitality), and to begin to develop a year-round film culture locally. The first part of that agenda came at least partially to fruition this year with the establishment of The Tent, a hospitality space on the terrace of the massive Emirates Palace hotel complex, where the festival can hold informal panels during the day and transform into a low-key social lounge at night. As Thursday night’s massive opening night celebration in the balmy gardens outside the Palace began to run out of steam, festival staff and guests migrated over to the air conditioned tent, where Scarlet was holding court. The idea for the space, he said, came to him when he visited the festival last year and was told that if he wanted something to eat and drink at 10pm, he’d have to go back to his hotel room. “This is what we always wanted,” he said, gesturing at the filmmakers and assorted friends of the festival, gathering at small tables over champagne and cigarettes. The space is welcoming, and yet unexpectedly exclusive: there’s no need to be on a list or to show any sort of credentials to get in, but once you’re there, those glasses of champagne cost roughly forty US dollars a pop.

As for the second point of the program — the part about establishing a film culture in a place where there’s very little knowledge of cinema beyond Hollywood, Bollywood and Egyptian blockbusters — on Thursday night Scarlet and MEIFF programmer Kellen Quinn (also recently employed by Tribeca) both spoke passionately about the opportunities afforded by an event geared towards a local audience with no cause for cynicism about cinema. They’re particularly excited about bringing selections that might elicit yawns in New York to fresh eyes (case in point: Scarlet says MEIFF’s program of silent comedy shorts with live piano accompaniment next Friday will be for most of the audience their first ever exposure to silent film).

And if this film missionary project doesn’t catch on right away, that’s fine—Scarlet says he’s in it for the long haul. I asked him if he plans to stay in Abu Dhabi year round, and he responded, “Moved here in June. Found a house in April. Probably never going to leave.” Maybe it was the champagne, but I believed him.

Above: a standup pointing the way to the Empire Palace’s exhibit of plans for Saadiyat Island, a plot of land that’s being developed to become “Abu Dhabi’s cultural center” by the end of the 2010s. Saadiyat is scheduled to host a number of attractions in partnership with Western institutions, including the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi (billed as the largest Guggenheim in the world), and New York University Abu Dhabi Campus.