The Carthage Cinematographic Days, in their 36th edition, celebrate this year two emblematic figures of the 7th art: Claudia Cardinale, world icon and daughter of Tunis, and Walid Chmait, pioneer of film criticism in Lebanon. Two exceptional journeys, united by the same love of cinema and a deep attachment to Arab culture.
The tribute dedicated to Claudia Cardinale takes on a very special dimension. The one the whole world knows as the icon of the films of Visconti, Fellini or Leone is honored in the country where she was born and to which she has never ceased to be attached. His cinematic story begins and ends in Tunisia, between fidelity, memory and emotion.
Three screenings accompany this tribute: The Golden Rings (1956) by René Vautier and Mustapha El Fersi, Claudia Cardinale: The most beautiful Italian in Tunis (1994) by Mahmoud Ben Mahmoud, and Claudia Cardinale: Tunisia… splendor and beauty (2025) by Lotfi Bahri. Three works which tell, each in their own way, a lasting love story between a woman and her native land.
It was in Tunisia, in the heart of Tunis, that it all began. As a teenager, Claudia Cardinale won the competition for “the most beautiful Italian in Tunis”, organized by the Italian embassy. This prize opened the doors of cinema to her: she then shot her very first film, The Golden Ringsmade partly in Sidi Bou Saïd. This short film, produced by the National Center of Tunisian Cinema, was the starting point of an exceptional career. From this shoot, she will always keep a particular tenderness – that of a Tunisian youth lulled by the light, the Arabic language and the familiar streets of her hometown.
Decades later, Claudia Cardinale continues to return to Tunisia, to recharge her batteries and to tour there. His latest film, The Island of Forgiveness (2022) by Ridha Behi, brings her back once again to this country that she has never left in her heart. Between this first role in Sidi Bou Saïd and this last filming in Djerba, a whole life of loyalty and love takes shape – that of an artist who, while belonging to the world, has never ceased to belong to Tunisia.
By paying her this tribute, the Carthage Cinematographic Days salute not only an international star, but also a girl from Tunis, symbol of an unwavering attachment and a living link between Tunisia and world cinema.
The same edition also pays tribute to Walid Chmait, pioneer of film criticism in Lebanon and respected figure of the 7th Arab art, through the screening of the documentary Walid Chmait, a life at the heart of cinemadirected by his son Selim Saab Chmait. A sober and fair tribute, in the image of a man who devoted his life to making people love cinema and passing on his passion.
Neila Driss
