The 8th El Gouna Film Festival, running from October 16 to 24, 2025, will welcome Tunisian director Amel Guellaty’s debut feature Where the Wind Comes From in its Feature Narrative Competition, marking the film’s Arab World premiere.
Since its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, the film has attracted critical acclaim on the international stage. It has screened at major festivals including Rotterdam and Istanbul, praised for its delicate balance of humor and emotion, powerful performances, and striking cinematography. Along its journey, the film has won several awards, including the Golden Bee for Best Film at the Mediterranean Film Festival in Malta and the Best Narrative Feature Award at the Toronto Arab Film Festival.
International critics have unanimously celebrated the film. Variety called it “a visually striking film that packs in many themes within the simple framework of the road trip movie.” Cineuropa highlighted its depiction of “a lost generation that wants to reinvent itself.” The Hindustan Times described it as “a small miracle of a film with a giant, giant heart,” while Fasllah praised it as “a fresh new voice in Tunisian cinema,” noting that it is unlike most recent Tunisian films.
It is in this momentum that the film arrives at El Gouna. Upon the announcement of the selection, Amel Guellaty shared her pride and gratitude: “I am deeply honored to present my film at El Gouna Film Festival, a place that has supported it from the early stages of development through post-production. I feel proud and grateful to finally share the result of years of work here. Bringing the film back to the MENA region means a great deal to me, and I can’t wait to present it to the audience.”
Where the Wind Comes From tells the story of 19-year-old Alyssa and 23-year-old Mehdi, two young people dreaming of escape. When they discover a contest offering them the possibility of leaving their lives behind, they embark on a road trip across southern Tunisia. Their journey soon turns into an initiation, full of challenges, encounters, and revelations about who they are and what they long for.
Produced by Asma Chiboub for Tunisia’s Atlas Vision, the film stars Slim Baccar, Eya Bellagha, Sondos Belhassen, and Lobna Noomane. Cinematography is by Frida Marzouk, editing by Amel Guellaty, Ghalya Lacroix, and Malek Kammoun, with music composed by Omar Aloulou and sound by Aymen Labidi. Arab world distribution and international sales are handled by MAD Distribution.
Born in 1988, Amel Guellaty studied law at the Sorbonne before turning to cinema. She worked as an assistant on Olivier Assayas’s Après Mai and Raja Amari’s Foreign Body. In 2017, she directed her debut short Black Mamba, selected at more than 60 international festivals, winning 20 awards, and later acquired by Canal+ and Italy’s RT Channel. Her second short, Chitana (2022), also garnered international acclaim. In parallel, she has directed campaigns for leading brands including Dior, Montblanc, and IWC. With Where the Wind Comes From, her first feature, Guellaty establishes herself as one of the most promising new voices in contemporary Arab cinema.
By joining the Feature Narrative Competition at El Gouna 2025, this Tunisian film not only reinforces its international acclaim but also reaffirms the vitality of a new generation of Arab filmmakers making their mark on global cinema.
Neïla Driss
