06/10/2026
Fragile World, Unbroken Voices: SIFFA Founder on Cinema as a Bridge Between Britain and the Muslim World
In an interview with Tatar-inform, SIFFA’s Founder and President, Luba Balagova Kandour, reflects on her visit to the Altyn Minbar International Muslim Film Festival in Kazan, where she served on the documentary jury.
At the heart of the conversation is Muslim culture and its expression through cinema: stories that illuminate compassion, human dignity and our responsibility towards one another.
As the festival’s President, Grand Mufti Sheikh Ravil Gaynutdin, emphasised, cinema helps us see the world through the eyes of another people and discover what unites us across languages, faiths and nationalities. This spirit shapes the festival’s motto: “Through the dialogue of cultures to the culture of dialogue.”
Luba also shared that London remains a meeting place for many cultures and faiths. From this diverse city, SIFFA brings together communities across the UK and connects them with filmmakers and audiences worldwide.
She expressed her readiness to connect producers and film projects across the Muslim world and Western Europe, creating opportunities for international co-production, creative collaboration and the exchange of expertise.
For SIFFA, light symbolises this shared purpose: cinema helps us see one another more clearly. In a fragile world, these encounters keep dialogue alive and voices unbroken.
Read the interview in Russian via the link in our comments.
📍 SIFFA 2026 | 19–22 November
Vue Piccadilly
19 Lower Regent Street, London SW1Y 4LR
🎟 Tickets available on Eventbrite from 15 October 2026.
Join us where cultures meet and stories bring us closer.
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