A few weeks before the opening of the 46th edition of the Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF), which will be held from November 12 to 21, 2025, the Cairo Film Connection (CFC) has revealed the projects selected for its 11th edition, scheduled for November 17 to 20. Integrated within Cairo Industry Days, the CFC is a platform dedicated to co-production, development and networking for Arab and international filmmakers.
This year, 15 projects from 10 countries were selected, covering different stages of production, from development to post-production. Among them, we count four projects from Egypt, three from Lebanon, two from Iraq, two from Palestineas well as one project each of Tunisia, Jordan, Sudan, Algeria and Yemen. Adds Alicanteof Lina SoualemAlgerian-French co-production integrated thanks to the partnership between the CFC and Amman Industry Days.
In category Post-Productionthe selection includes All That the Wind Can Carry of Maged Nader (Egypt), Asphalt of Hamza Hamid (Jordan), The Color of Our Time of Hayder Helo (Iraq, Belgium, Egypt), The Day of Wrath of Rania Rafei (Lebanon) and Revolutionaries Never Die of Mohanad Yaqubi (Palestine, Belgium).
The category In-Development Non-Fiction brings together projects Aman of Maythem Ridha (Iraq, Egypt, United Kingdom, Jordan), Dance with Me of Leila Basma (Lebanon, Czech Republic), Goodbye Party of Sarra El Abed (Tunisia, Canada), I Have Other Friends of Yomna Khattab (Egypt) and Where Do I Belong ofIbrahim Mohamed (Sudan).
Finally, the category In-Development Fiction includes Al-Madeeneh 2008 of Youssef Assabahi (Yemen), The Side Effects of Trusting Life ofAhmad Ghossein (Lebanon, Germany, Norway), Rainbows Don’t Last Long of Mayye Zayed (Egypt), Rock Paper Sea of Randa Ali (Egypt) and Ping-pong of Saleh Saadi (Palestine).
The director of the Cairo Film Connection, Rodrigo Brum, emphasized that this selection reflects the collective work and attention given to each project: “Our choices are the result of months of collective work and in-depth observation. What excites me is that behind each title is not only a filmmaker with a vision, but also the collaborators, communities and stories these films highlight. This year, we wanted to build a selection that reflects both the realities of the region and its capacity for cinematic innovation.»
With this 11th edition, the Cairo Film Connection confirms its role as an essential platform for Arab cinema, offering filmmakers a space to develop their projects, strengthen regional and international co-productions, and promote meetings between talents, producers and professionals from around the world.
Neila Driss
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