Nujoom Al-Ghanem

Nujoom Alghanem (born 24 October 1962) is an Emirati poet, artist and film director. She has published eight poetry collections and has directed more than twenty films. Alghanem is active in her community and is considered a well established writer and filmmaker in the Arab world. Her achievements in the arts have been recognized both nationally and internationally. She is the cofounder of Nahar Productions, a film production company based in Dubai. Currently she works as a professional mentor in filmmaking and creative writing, as well as a cultural and media consultant.

She was one of the founding members of the Emirates Writers' Union in 1984 and used to be a board member of Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage. In 2019, she was the solo artist of the UAE National Pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Additionally, along with four other artists, she took part in the UAE National Pavilion in 2017. She is the recipient of the Pride of the UAE Medal through the Mohammed bin Rashid Government Excellence Award in 2018.

Early life and education Alghanem was born in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates and was raised there, being the fourth child out of eleven siblings. As a young adult, she enjoyed reading about mysticism, theology, philosophy, and poetry. Later on, she was able to get access to her reading through the Sharjah International Book Fair. Arabic poetry inspired her when she was a girl, later causing her to write her own poetry. She also enjoyed painting because her aunt was a painter, as well as a photographer. Before her professional writing career, her work was published in local newspapers and magazines. Alghanem said, "Opportunities are not free. You have always to work hard. You have to read, to teach yourself, to learn about the world and to be very sensible about what you publish". Masaa Al-Janah (Evening of Heaven), 1989. Al-Jarair (The Consequences), 1991. Rawahel (Journeyings), 1996. Manazel Al-Jilnaar (Homes of Pomegranate Blossoms), 2000. La Wasf Lima Ana Feeh (No Description for What I Am In), 2005. Malaikat Al-Ashwaaq Al-Baeeda (Angels of Distant Longing), 2008. Laylon Thaqeelon 3la Alayel (A Heavy Night on the Night), 2010. Asqoto fi Nafsi (I Fall into Myself), 2012.

Masa’a Al Jannah (The Night of Heaven) was Alghanem's first book of poetry, which was published in 1989. The Night of Heaven presented her to the Arab world as a professional writer. "Dancing with Shadows", 2016, short experimentational film. "Honey, Rain, & Dust", 2016–2017, feature documentary. "Sharp Tools", 2017, feature documentary. "Writer's Room", 2018, video art. "Rain on my Skin", 2018, video art. "Forest Under the Sea", 2018, video art. "Passage", 2019, video art.

Alghanem's 2015 film Nearby Sky is a documentary about Fatima Ali Alhameli, the first Emirati women to have her camels be a part of local auctions and beauty pageants. According to Alghanem, it was simple to convince Alhameli to join the film project. Both Nearby Sky and her earlier film Sounds Of The Sea have to do with an aging generation being nostalgic about their past. Nearby Sky won Best Non-Fiction Film at the Eleventh Dubai International Film Festival. Alghanem won the Best Emirati Female Filmmaker Award at the Fifth Dubai International Film Festival for her film Al Mureed.