Friday, November 29, 2019 ended the 41st edition of the Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) after a nine -day marathon including dozens of films, discussions, conferences and other events.
153 films (long and short films, fiction, documentaries and even virtual reality films) of 63 countries have been screened, with several sessions with closed counters every day.
In the opinion of all festival -goers, this edition was a real success in all levels, especially by the number of spectators, in clear growth for two years.
During the festival, the late artistic director, Youssef Cherif Rizkallah to which this edition is dedicatedwas honored first during the opening ceremony and then during a special evening with the projection of a documentary retracing his life and giving the floor to several filmmakers, directors, actors and criticisms, who told his efforts and his influence in the development of the cinematographic culture of the Egyptians thanks to its television programs. Youssef Cherif Rizkallah had been a member of the CIFF artist commission since 1987 and had taken the presidency since 2000. Having attended this evening several personalities including the Minister of Culture Ines Abdel-Dayem, The screenwriter, producer and president of the Mohamed Hefzy festival and the Egyptian actress Lebleba.
This edition was a real challenge for the new president Mohamed Hefzy and his team. They knew how to continue on the momentum of 2018 and attract a greater number of spectators, but also of artists such as the British filmmaker Terry Gilliam, the Mexicans Guillermo Arriaga, Michel Franco and Gabriel Ripstein, the American Billy Zane and the Lebanese Nadine Labaki, honored during the closing ceremony.
A magnificent decor of red carpet, with in its center a golden tree at the ISIS trunk, to recall the poster of this edition, was built and has seen almost every evening of celebrities, team teams from several countries and prestigious guests, came to participate in this festival in its new and “modern” version, which has perfectly combined cinema quality and beautiful festivities.
During the closing ceremony, Egyptian actress Laila Eloui said that for her who has been witnessing the CIFF for very long years, this 41st edition is most successful, especially by the presence of a general public of young people. She then thanked ” Mohamed Hefzy, who in all simplicity, with great efforts and intelligence, his smile, his calm, his modesty, and despite all the difficulties he had to face, was able to achieve us with the help of his whole team, an important and different edition and was able to have Ciff made ahead, in a short period ».
As for Mohamed Hefzy, he announced that for this edition, around 40,000 tickets had been sold, compared to 15,000 tickets two years ago. He also recalled that cinema was the most important tool to counter any fundamentalist or reactionary idea.
During this ceremony, an honorary prize was awarded by the Egyptian director Kamla Abu Zekri to the Lebanese Nadine Labaki. Director, screenwriter and actress, the latter is known for having broken the taboos and tackled fundamental questions in her films, making her one of the most admired filmmakers of her generation in the Arab world. Each of his films was successful in both cinema festivals, as well as the public. His latest film Shambleswhich had won the jury prize in 2018 at the Cannes Film Festival and had been nominated for the 2019 Oscars had a planetary success and more particularly in China where he brought back 53 million dollars in a few months, 73% of his global revenues.
An honorary prize was also awarded by Mohamed Hefzy to the director of Italian photography Vittorio Storaro, who won the Oscar for the best photography for films three times Revelation Now (1979), Reds (1981) and The last emperor (1987).
The list of this 41st edition of the Cairo International Film Festival:
International competition:
The golden pyramid of the best film :: I’m no length here by Fernando Frias.
The silver pyramid, special jury price for best director : to the Director Bas Devos for his film Ghost Tropic.
The bronze pyramid of the best first or second film : ex aequo for director Michal Hogenauer for his film A certain kind of silence And for directors Zhang Chong and Zhang Bo for their film The Fourth Wall.
The Henry Barakat Prize for the best artistic contribution :: Mindanao From the brilliant director Mendoza (Philippine).
The price of best actress : Judy Ann Santos for her role in the film Mindanao
The price of best actor : Juan Daniel Garcia Treviño for his role in the film I am no long.
The Naguib Mahfouz Prize for the best scenario :: Between heaven and earth from Najwa Najjar (Palestine).
Cinema competition of tomorrow (short films):
Honorary mention: The trap of Nada Riyadh (Egypt)
Honorary mention: Contact Samir Syriani (Lebanon).
The special jury price: The Wonders of the Lady of Pierre de Gabriel Abrantes (Portugal)
The Youssef Chahine Prize for the best short film: Ambience by Wisam Al Jafari (Palestine).
International film’s film week:
The Fathy Farag Prize for the best artistic contribution :: Arrest of director Andrei Cohn (Romania).
The Shadi Abdel Salam Prize for best film :: In the land of ashes de Sofía Quirós úbeda (Argentina).
Horizons of Arabic cinema:
The price of the best non-fiction Arab film :: Beirut Terminus Elie Kamal (Lebanon).
The price of the best actor: Ali Thamer (Iraq) for his role in Haifa Street.
The Salah Abu Seif price for the best artistic contribution :: A son de Mehdi M. Barsaoui (Tunisia).
The Saad Eldin Wahba Prize for the best Arab film :: Haifa Street by Mohanad Hayal (Iraq).
Various other prices:
The Prix of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) :: A son de Mehdi M. Barsaoui (Tunisia).
The price of the best Arab film, all sections combined: A son de Mehdi M. Barsaoui (Tunisia).
The Prize of the International Federation of Cinema Critics (FIPRESCI) :: Son of Denmark from Ulaa Salim (Denmark).
The price of the public Youssef Cherif Rizkallah: Let’s Talk by Marianne Khoury (Egypt).
Congratulations to all the winners and in particular to the young Tunisian director Mehdi Barsaoui, including the first fiction feature film A son won three prizes!
Neïla Driss
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