Darine Hotait

Darine Hotait is an American Lebanese writer and film director. Born in Beirut, her family emigrated to the America when she was 11 years old. At that time, Darine discovered her love for writing. She started writing her diaries and poetry at her grandmother’s home in Detroit. Later, Darine relocated to Los Angeles to attend the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, where she completed her MFA in screenwriting and film directing. Darine wrote and directed a number of award-winning short films such as I Say Dust, Beirut Hide and Seek and more. Her films went on to screen at notable film festivals and received prestigious distribution. Her work mainly focuses on bridging literature and cinema while embodying a scientific approach by giving predominance to the science fiction genre. She is currently working on her debut science fiction feature film, Symphony of a Flood, which was recently selected at the International Scriptwriter’s Pavilion in the Cannes Film Festival and was one of five finalists of the Hearst Screenwriting Competition. Darine is also the founder of Cinephilia Productions, an incubator and frequent contributor to the development of filmmakers from the Middle East and Africa through its various initiatives, occupying the space between ideation and production. She resides in New York City and frequently travels across the Middle East.