The El Gouna Film Festival (GFF), which has established itself as an unmissable event for cinema in the MENA region, innovates for its seventh edition by launching a program dedicated to short films: “Cinegouna Shorts”. This program, which will take place from October 25 to 31, 2024, aims to support and highlight young Egyptian talents in an often underestimated cinematographic format, but carrying a great creative wealth.
“Cinegouna Shorts” was designed to offer young Egyptian filmmakers a unique platform where they can not only present their projects, but also benefit from financial support and exceptional visibility. The program begins with a call for candidates, open from August 22 to September 7, 2024, inviting directors of fiction short films under production to submit their projects. This call is specifically intended for Egyptian talents, in order to stimulate and energize local cinematographic production.
One of the most remarkable aspects of “Cinegouna Shorts” is the substantial funding made available to participants. Thanks to the support of O West, an integrated city developed by Orascom Development, an envelope of 2,250,000 EGPs (around 140,000DT) is dedicated to this program. This amount will be divided between three prices: the first price, with 1,000,000 EGP, the second of 750,000 EGP, and the third of 500,000 EGP. This financial support represents a rare opportunity for young filmmakers to materialize their projects, by offering them the means necessary to carry out their productions.
But “Cinegouna Shorts” is not content to provide financial support. Awarded films as part of this program will also benefit from an exceptional exhibition. Indeed, the winning works will have the opportunity to make their world premiere during the next edition of the El Gouna film festival, as part of the official short films. This competition is a prestigious space where some of the most remarkable short films of the year are projected, thus offering increased visibility to young directors.
This visibility is not limited to the El Gouna festival. Award-winning short films will also be offered to other film festivals around the world, which will allow them to reach an international audience and gain recognition beyond Egyptian borders. For many directors, this is an opportunity to make a name for yourself on the world scene, by presenting works that reflect their artistic vision, often outside the constraints of commercial cinema.
The launch of “Cinegouna Shorts” is a continuation of the efforts of the El Gouna film festival to encourage the new generation of filmmakers. AMR Mansi, executive director of the GFF, stressed the importance of this new program by declaring: “The decision to dedicate a special section to short films is part of the GFF strategy to motivate and support young filmmakers while contributing to the development of the film industry. This program also reflects the growing partnership with O West, already engaged in several initiatives aimed at promoting cinema and culture in Egypt.
Marianne Khoury, artistic director of the GFFexpressed his enthusiasm for “Cinegouna Shorts”, stressing the importance of creating spaces dedicated to short films, which are often the springboard towards greater cinematographic projects. For Mariam Naoum, director of the Cinegouna forum, this program is particularly significant because it highlights a format which, although often neglected, has an invaluable value for directors. Mariam Naoum recalls that in recent years, Egyptian short films have won international distinctions, thus proving their quality and their potential on the world scene.
The collaboration between O West and the GFF, which materializes once again with “Cinegouna Shorts”, is not new. Last June, the two entities had already united their forces to organize “Cinegouna in O West”, an event that made it possible to discover the activities of the festival to the public Cairote, thus strengthening the links between the festival and the Egyptian capital.
This new initiative confirms the will of O West and the GFF to promote Egyptian cinema by offering young talents the means of their ambitions. The festival, which is already distinguished by its rich and diversified programming, thus marks one more step towards consolidating its position as leader in the promotion of filmmakers in the region, while strengthening cultural dialogue through cinematographic art.
“Cinegouna Shorts” is much more than a simple support program for short films. It is a real expression platform for young directors, a springboard towards international recognition, and a strong sign of the commitment of the El Gouna film festival and its partners for the development of cinema in Egypt.
