«Latifa, Rashid, Salama and the three trustees» .. symbols of the values ​​of the UAE at «Expo 2020 Dubai»

In the presence of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, accompanied by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council, unveiled yesterday the «Expo 2020 Dubai» figures, within the The event was held at the Dubai World Trade Center.

During the event, which was attended by His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of Expo 2020 Dubai, Minister of State for International Cooperation and Director General of Expo 2020, Reem bint Ibrahim Al Hashimi, and members of the Higher Committee, a film was presented to tell the story of the key figures of the big world event The event, which will be held in Dubai from October next year for six months, will include the two children, Rashid and Latifa, Al Ghaf Tree, Salama and the Three Secretaries, responsible for the opportunities, mobility and sustainability of the event. In the Middle East and North Africa Iqia and South Asia, which is expected to attract about 25 million visits from within the country and across the region and the world.

Purposeful characters

His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum said: “The major event figures are usually a means of connecting the event with the host country and embodying its spirit. We wanted to provide a distinctive and extraordinary addition through purposeful personalities with authentic values ​​and meanings that tell the story of the UAE and its history. You may face them in a way that is not without suspense. Emirati and international personalities par excellence, and embody the passion of new generations of achievement, knowledge and ambition, and aspirations towards tomorrow full of opportunities ».

The choice of personalities reflects the keenness to ensure a better future for future generations in the UAE and across the region, as well as the world at large, which is the focus of Expo 2020 Dubai, in an effort to be a target event to be a milestone in the history of the most prestigious exhibition in the world This is a factor that contributes to shaping the awareness of these generations and monitoring the best ways in which they can be prepared to deal efficiently and efficiently with the challenges that the future may carry, while these characters will have a positive impact in communicating with one of the important segments targeted by the event, which is young, close to the distance. M mind They are appointed and to absorb the values ​​that symbolize their personalities and those which represent the main values ​​of the Expo 2020 Dubai.

The journey of exploration

The film, which was watched during the event by a group of school students, showcased the young Rashid and Latifa on a journey of exploration and learning as part of an adventure to take them to the future, during which they face many challenges and overcome them with the help of «Salama», the magic edge of the site Expo 2020 Dubai, and three secretaries Guards the secrets of safety.

Rashed and Latifa are two brothers, aged nine and eight, respectively, who are passionate about exploration, adventure and learning, and dream of becoming inventors and innovators, thanks to the love and intelligence of God, as well as their innate attachment to nature and their strong desire to protect it.

Rashed, Latifa and Ghada remain safe to protect, with a whole generation of dreams and hopes of an entire generation, with the perfect opportunity to learn from Expo 2020, and the creative ideas, unique innovations and perceptions of what can be done to ensure the happiness and progress of humanity.

The film also tells the story of Salama, the Ghaf tree; a symbol of peace and tolerance, which has been preserved in its place at Expo headquarters to protect its priceless value and to ensure that the construction work does not affect it, with Ghaf tree connected to the land, heritage and culture of the UAE, in an attempt to look through the story of That tree is a past, a sense of the present, and a vision of the future that Expo 2020 seeks to shape and define, in the hope of all humanity of prosperity, progress and prosperity.

Salama has grown on the land of the UAE, witnessed generations passing through this land, and lived with them and their children and grandchildren, and like the sons of this land, resisted the harsh conditions, and grew and prospered.

Ambition and aspirations

The choice of these characters reflects the fact that Expo Dubai is an event that reflects the ambitions and aspirations of the UAE for the good of its people and to ensure the well-being of the people around the world. Therefore, the desire for Expo characters to be inspired by the originality of the UAE and its openness to the world, and reflects the passion of the new generation for achievement and knowledge. And this is achieved by the novel «Rashed and Latifa and Ghaf Salama and the three secretaries».

25 million visits

Expo 2020 Dubai will run from October 2020 to April 2021.This global destination is expected to attract more than 25 million visits and 70% of its visitors will come from outside the UAE, the highest percentage of international visitors in Expo history. More than 190 countries, each with their own pavilion, will set out for the mega event, another precedent for the first time at the World Expo.

Safety .. the drought that represents us

“The basic idea started by thinking about how to find content that translates Expo values, as well as local values ​​in a fun way,” said Amna Abulhoul, Creative Director - Protocol and Al Wasl Square.

`` We were thinking about how to represent the UAE as a whole.We found there a Ghaf tree in the site, which is hundreds of years old, and did not want to change its location and move, but we wanted to preserve its existence, especially as it remained steadfast, so we found this Ghaf represents us and represent our values ​​and customs, and we named Salama), to bear the name of the mother of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God rest his soul, as it means (the mother of peace), especially since she witnessed the union and state-building ».

Abulhoul noted that this is a novelty, the grandmother who is close to the grandchildren, the pillar of the house, hence the idea came a nice and rational addition to this tree, they represent us, explaining that all this story was presented in a fun and entertaining, and to provide a dose of fun on the characters The story has created three robots representing mobility, sustainability and opportunity. Abulhoul spoke about the characters that have been created and their qualities, explaining that they are characters that complement each other.A series of films will be produced.The film is the one that was launched during the event and reflects the continuous minds, while others will offer sustainability, opportunities and mobility. She pointed out that the completion of the characters and the idea took eight months, and the aim of the characters to reach each house, the goal is to feel all citizens and residents that they are part of the Expo. She noted that before drawing the characters were considered the values, customs and traditions that will represent, and the beginning of the safety of the drought, and then the other characters were experimented with children and students visiting the Expo, and when the characters met the demand was announced.

Abulhoul stressed on their work on the production of four films, and will be presented to people in batches in order to communicate with the public gradually, in order to communicate these characters appropriately in the event, pointing out that the first film embodied continuous minds, and will be working on the production of other films with the names of characters and what they represent, The latest film will be titled "Creating the Future," which will see the light before the opening of the Expo.

Abulhoul considered that the characters were placed in a way that represents the state as a whole, some of which represent the UAE and have a clear nationality, and some that do not represent any nationality at all.