Between sand and skyline: NetWorkers weaving dreams on the world stage
A story that proves the talents of our people go far, far beyond payments
An award-winning short film. International festival honours. A team addressed on a global stage as "Dream Weavers." Not the storyline you'd expect to begin in the acquiring business of a payments company — and that's exactly the point.
Between Sand and Skyline, a short film written and directed by Sherin Paul and produced by and starring Jamila Alblooshi, both from the UAE Acquiring Team, has been collecting recognition far beyond the world of payments. Released for UAE National Day 2025, it has since travelled from Dubai to festival stages across the world — proof that the talents of our people stretch well past the day job, and that a workplace can be a launchpad for them rather than a limit.
A story rooted in heritage
At its heart, the film captures a young Emirati woman standing between sand and skyline — a single image holding two ideas in balance: heritage on one side, ambition on the other. It's a tension every fast-growing society knows, and few places embody it like the UAE.
The inspiration came from somewhere personal. During the writing process, Sherin found himself drawn to the role of grandmothers within UAE families — their quiet resilience, their wisdom, their unwavering belief in the generations coming after them. His own grandmother's values became a guiding force in the narrative, shaping a story about pursuing dreams with dedication and integrity.
Every story begins with a place, but its true destination is the human heart. This film is my way of celebrating the values that bring people, cultures and nations closer together. – Sherin
That grounding in culture is what has carried the film so far. This isn't a generic short with regional scenery; it's a culturally rooted story about identity, told with pride — and international audiences have responded to precisely that authenticity.
From personal project to international stage
What began as a personal creative pursuit has become an internationally recognised work – and the recognitions keep coming.
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UAE National Day 2025
Film released
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MEI International Film Festival 2026, Chennai
Best First-Time Filmmaker (Short) – Sherin Paul
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Mumbai International Film Awards 2026
Special Jury Award — team addressed as the “Dream Weavers”
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Bollywood International Film Awards 2026
Best Actress — Jamila Alblooshi; team officially invited to the ceremony
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Indo Dubai International Film Festival 2026
Honorable Mention — Best International Short Film
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LK International Film Festival 2026, Kochi
Trophy and certificate for creative contribution
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Sharjah Magazine 2026, UAE
Featured interview with Jamila Alblooshi
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Lift-Off Global Season Awards @Pinewood Studios, United Kingdom 2026
Official Selection for First-Time Filmmaker Sessions
Two colleagues from the same acquiring business, one behind the camera and one in front of it — building something together that now carries the UAE's story, and a little of Network's, onto international screens.
Creativity and the day job
It would be easy to frame this as a story about what our colleagues do outside work. The more interesting truth is what it says about creativity inside structured, dynamic work environments.
Sherin describes the film as proof that creative expression can meaningfully coexist with a corporate career — not as a distraction from professional discipline, but as an extension of it. The same qualities that carry a film from script to festival stage — vision, collaboration, persistence, the ability to rally people around an idea — are the qualities that move any ambitious project forward, in payments or anywhere else.
That's why stories like this one matter to us. A culture that encourages people to bring their whole selves to work — their heritage, their creativity, their ambitions beyond the role — is a culture that produces better ideas everywhere, including in the day job. Multidimensional people build multidimensional companies.
I am honoured to represent both my organisation and my country through this work. – Jamila
The values in the frame
There's a neat symmetry in the film's central image. Standing between sand and skyline — honouring where you come from while reaching for what's next — describes not just a young Emirati woman's journey, but the story of the UAE itself, and of any organisation growing with it.
We're proud that two of our colleagues told that story so beautifully, and prouder still of what their recognition represents: talent, nurtured with discipline and intent, finding its stage.
To Sherin, Jamila, and everyone behind Between Sand and Skyline — congratulations, Dream Weavers. Keep weaving.
Between Sand and Skyline was released on the occasion of UAE National Day 2025. You can watch the film:
