The 42nd edition of the Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF)ended with a ceremony, during which the juries of the various competitions announced the winning films.
It’s the British drama Limbo From Ben Sharrock who released the big winner of this edition by winning three prizes: the golden pyramid for best film, the Henri Barakat Prize for the best artistic contribution and the Fipresci Prize.
This film, which would compete in the International Competition section, made its first MENA in the CIFF. Limbo tells the story of four refugees installed on an island far from Scotland and who take cultural awareness lessons there, pending the processing of their asylum request.
Despite the severity of its subject and its deep treatment, this beautiful and different film is not without satirical comic time, which pushes to laugh at a time when the situation of these refugees arouses sympathy, compassion and sometimes tears. A cinematographic presentation which is distinguished in terms of content and dramatic construction, and surpasses the technical level in filming, assembly and representation on the part of all, whether the officials of the insulation camp or refugees.
Limbo was part of the official selection of the 2020 Cannes Film Festival,, But unfortunately could not be scheduled since the festival had to be canceled.
The film Conferenceproduced by Ivan I Tverdovskiy, also presented in first Mena, won two awards: the silver pyramid, special jury prize and the price of the best actress ex æquo.
Conference was co-produced by Russia, Estonia, the United Kingdom and Italy. He follows Natasha, who many years after a deadly terrorist seat in a Moscow theater, returns to crime scene to organize a commemorative evening.
Director Ivan Tvradovsky revives this real incident with a different approach, not using archive scenes or reconstruction of the event, but places the spectator in the theater with the survivors and their different memories of what happened. The meeting, which seems warm at first, develops in lively accusations, and the dialogue that begins in calm and sadness turns into hard confessions.
The bronze pyramid, rewarding the best first or second feature of a director, was awarded to the Egyptian filmmaker Mayyy Zayed for his documentary Lift like a girlwhich follows the Olympic ambitions of a weightlifting teenager. The film, which was presented at first in Toronto, also won the Public Prize Youssef Cherif Rizkallah ($ 15,000) and the ISIS Prix ($ 10,000), for the best Egyptian film highlighting the economic and social role of women.
The Egyptian film Curfewdirected by Amir Ramses, and which has been programmed world premierewon only the prize for the best actress, in ex aequo, for Ilham Chahine.
Events curfew took place during a night in fall 2013 during the period of curfew in Egypt. Faten comes out of prison after 20 years and finds her daughter Laila unable to overcome the past and forgive him for having killed his father, especially in the face of the total refusal of Faten to reveal the cause of the crime, which puts the girl in a conflict between her resentment towards her mother and her heart which tends towards her gradually.
The jury of the international competition, led by Russian director Alexander Sokurov, awarded a special mention to the Palestinian drama Gaza my loveproduced by the Arab brothers Nasser and Tarzan Nasser.
Gaza my love was also appointed best Arab film, all competitions, a shared honor ex aequo with the Lebanese documentary We come from there from Wissam Tanios.
International competition:
- The golden pyramid of the best film for Limbodirected by Ben Sharouk;
- The silver pyramid, special jury price for Conference Directed by Evan I. Tafradovsky;
- The bronze pyramid awarded to the director for his first or second film for Mayyy Zayed for his documentary film Lift like a girl;
- The Henri Barakat Prize for the best artistic contribution to Limbo by Ben Sharrok;
- The prize for best actress was awarded to two ex æquo actresses: Ilham Chahine, for her role in the Egyptian film Curfewdirected by Amir Ramses, and actress Natalia Pavlenkova, the heroine of the Russian film Conference Directed by Ivan I. Tafradovsky;
- The price of best actor was awarded to Julian Farjoff for his role in German Lessonsproduced by Pavel G. Vesnakov;
- The Naguib Mahfouz Prize for the best scenario for 50 or Two Whales Meet On The Beach by Jorge Kochi.
- Special mention for Gaza my love Directed by Arab Nasser and Tarzan Nasser.
Horizons of Arab cinema:
- The Saad Eddin Wahba Prize for the best Arab film, awarded to the film Under the concretedirected by Roy Arida;
- The Salah Abu Seif Prize, special jury prize for Hadd El-Tar-The drum of punishment Directed by Abdulaziz al-Shalahi;
- The prize for the best documentary film for We come from theredirected by Wissam Tanios;
- The prize for the best interpretation to the actor dokhi actor for his role in the film Hadd al-Tar-The drum of punishment Directed by Abdulaziz Al Shalahi;
- Special mention for The Fall of Apples Treesproduced by Muhammad Muftakir
Criticism:
- The Shadi Abdel Salam Prix for best film for The Best is and to come Directed by Jing Wang;
- The special price of the Fathi Farag jury for Gold Directed by Roger HESB.
International competition for short films Cinema of tomorrow::
- Prix Youssef Chahine for best short film: Isabel from Sarah El-Shazly;
- Special jury prize: The match Directed by Roman Hoddle;
- Special mention: Life on the Horn Directed by Mo Hrawi;
- Special mention: Girls who burned at night Directed by Sarah Mesfer.
Various prices:
- Prize of the International Federation of “Fipresci” criticism: Limbo Directed by Ben Sharrock;
- ISIS price: Lift like a girl Directed by Mai Zayed. This 10,000 dollars award is granted by the Arab Women Projects Fund, for the best Egyptian film highlighting the economic and social role of women;
- Prix Youssef Sherif Rizkallah (public): Lift like a girl Directed by Mai Zayed. This $ 15,000 award is awarded to one of the films in the international Cairo Film Festival International Film Festival, equally between the producer and the company that will distribute the film in the Arab Republic of Egypt;
- Prize for the best Arab film: shared equal parts between films Gaza my love Directed by Arab Nasser, Tarzan Nasser, and We come from there Directed by Wissam Tanios;
- Prize for the best film for “Human Trafficking”: Along the Seadirected by Akio Fujimoto. This prize of 50,000 Egyptian pounds is offered by the National Committee for the Fight against illegal Migration and the Trading of Human beings.
Neïla Driss
