The list of cinematographic projects selected to participate in the 9th edition of the Cairo Industry Days which will be held during the 44th International Film of the Cairo film (CIFF) which will take place from November 13 to 22, 2022, has just been unveiled.
This list includes 15 projects of feature films in development and post-production phases throughout the Arab world: Egypt (5 projects), Tunisia (2 projects), Jordan, Yemen, Lebanon, Algeria, Morocco, Sudan, Palestine and Saudi Arabia.
Eight of these film projects are in competition in the fiction feature films section:
- Two in post-production, namely: Inshallah a boy (Jordan) of director Amjad al Rasheed and Red Path (Tunisia) of the director Lotfi Achour.
- Six in development, namely: Bad Friend (Egypt) of director Ahmed El Ghoneimy, More than three days of the director Tamer Ashry, Cotton Queen (Sudan) of director Suzannah Mirghani, Jannet’s seasons (Tunisia) of director Mehdi Hmili, Aziz hala (KSA) by director Jawaher Alamri and Bella (Morocco) of the director Mohcine Besri.
Seven film projects in competition in the documentary feature films section:
- Three projects in post-production: Let’s Play Soldiers (Yemen), directors Mariam al-Dhubani and Mohammed al-Jaberi, The Last Man (Egypt) of director Muhammad Salah and Suspected (Lebanon) of director Myriam El Hajj.
- Four development projects, namely: A butterfly Hug (Egypt) of director Sally Abo Basha, My father is a farmer of the director El Kheyer Zidani, SEarching for Woody (Egypt) of director Sara Shazli and Theft of Fire (Palestine) of director Amr Shomali.
It should be noted that during the 43rd edition of the Cairo Film International Film Festival, the two Tunisian directors, Lotfi Achour and Mehdi Hmili had films in competition and won prizes: the Youssef Chahine Prize for best short film for Dead angle De Lotfi Achour and the Prix of Best Actress, Horizons section of Arabic cinema, for Afef Ben Mahmoud in the film Streams Directed by Mehdi Hmili.
Amir Ramses, director of the Cairo International Film Festivalunderlined the role played by the Cairo Film Connection section to further support Arabic cinema. He also expressed his joy for continuous support received by the various partners and sponsors. He also added that the membership of new partners to Cairo Film Connection reflects their confidence in the selection of film projects from the most remarkable projects in the Arab world.
On the other hand, Lynda Belkhria, director of Cairo Film Connectionsaid: “ Through Cairo Film Connection, we want to consolidate the relationship between Arab industry and international cinema by proposing a selection of promising projects from ten countries in the Arab world which highlight different stories reflecting the reality of the situation faced by these countries. This balanced selection between documentaries and fiction stories reflects the desire and urgency of a diverse approach to narration, from realistic to pure fiction. We have tried to create an organic selection in which each film is represented through its unique voice. Projects that reflect both the innovation strength of the voice of new generations of filmmakers, in a specific context where the industry faces harsh difficulties while the desire for original stories and cinematographic creation continues to grow ».
Organized as part of the Cairo Industry Days, Cairo Film Connection offers an important space for discussions, networking, meetings, workshops, master classes and partnership and co -production opportunities. It aims to establish links between Arab talents and the main regional and international professionals in industry, in order to further support Arab cinema.
To be able to be submitted to Cairo Film Connection, projects must be carried out by filmmakers of nationality or Arab origin and be feature films of fiction or non-fiction in the development or post-production phase. In addition, the director of the project must have previously made at least one film, whether it is a short or a feature film.
The Cairo Film International Film Festival is one of the oldest film festivals in the Arab world and Africa and the only festival in the region to be accredited as a festival A by FIAPF – the International Federation of Film producers.
