Love certainly is a universal theme in cinema, but Emirati filmmaker Jamal Salim found it a little challenging to make a romance film in his country.

“In my country, an unrelated man and woman may not be alone together,” the director said in an interview with The Korea Herald in Seoul on June 5. “Imagine how hard it would be to make a romance movie without a single scene where a man and a woman are together alone.”

Salim, who is also a writer, visited Seoul earlier this month to attend the opening ceremony of the Arab Film Festival. His romance film, “Royal Love,” was screened as the festival’s opening movie. The filmmaker graduated from the Media College of UAE University and earned a diploma in filmmaking from New York Film Academy in Abu Dhabi. He’s worked for TV, radio and theater for many years in his country.

The romance drama is a first-love tale about a shy university student who falls for his classmate. The protagonist is almost reminiscent of the main character of last year’s local romance “Architecture 101,” which also featured a timid university student who finds it difficult to tell his feelings to the girl he likes.

In Salim’s movie, the protagonist’s love interest never notices him, and gets engaged to a wealthy man. But shortly after the engagement, she gets into a car accident and falls into a coma. Devastated, the protagonist visits her in the hospital every day, late at night, and tells her how he feels about her ― while she’s unconscious in bed.

“I think the protagonist would’ve kissed her in the hospital room if this was a Hollywood film,” Salim said.

“But he does not in this movie. Everything is platonic. And because an unrelated man and woman aren’t allowed to be alone together, I had to create a nurse character who always accompanies the protagonist whenever he visits her in the hospital.”

Although the film reflects the UAE’s Muslim culture, Salim said the movie was not based on his personal experience in any way. “I am a writer,” he said. “So it is easy for me to create stories.”

“Royal Love” is the second film that Salim has made. It is also his first feature film. His first film, “Slow Death,” was made in 2011 about a Pakistani migrant worker who works as a grave digger in the UAE. He is forced into retirement after 30 years of service, and asked to return to Pakistan. He considers the UAE his home, and the plot of the short movie develops as he refuses to leave the country. The film received a special mention at Gulf Film Festival. Last year, the UAE was ranked the least friendly country in the world for expats, according to findings by American business magazine Forbes.

“I’m always up for new challenges,” he said. “I’ve made a film about expat workers, and a romance film. I’d like to make an action movie next.”

The Seoul edition of the Arab Film Festival ended on June 9. A separate Busan edition will be held from June 25 to 30 at Busan Cinema Center. For the festival’s full lineup and the screening schedule, visit fest.korea-arab.org.

By Claire Lee (dyc@heraldcorp.com)