CFC is targeted at supporting talents in the Arab world and this year's selection stands out with the presence of strong female-driven projects.
The Cairo Film Connection (CFC) has revealed the projects that have been chosen to take part in the 10th edition of Cairo Film Industry Days, scheduled to take place within the proceedings of the 45th Cairo International Film Festival, which will be held from November 15 to 24, 2023.
The list includes 15 cinematic projects from eight countries in post-production and development phases; five from Egypt; two each from Tunisia, Iraq, and Lebanon; and one each from Sudan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia and Algeria. Nine of the 15 films are helmed by women directors.
The films chosen in the post-production phase include Yomna Khattab’s documentary Fifty Meters (Egypt), Angie Obeid’s documentary Yalla, Baba! (Lebanon), Oday Rasheed’s feature film Songs of Adam (Iraq), Ali Toffan Al-Fatlawi’s feature film Al Baseer – The Blind Ferryman (Iraq), and Sara Labidi’s feature film Wear & Tear (Tunisia).
The projects selected in the development phase are: Helmy Nouh’s feature film Garden of Freedom (Egypt), Asmaa Gamal’s documentary My Dream Is to Fly (Egypt), Dessil Mekhtigian’s documentary Ya Balady (Egypt), Khaled Mansour’s feature film After Midnight (Egypt), Alyaa Musa’s documentary Becoming Omar Khairy (Sudan), Rania Refai’s documentary The Day of Wrath: Tales From Tripoli (Lebanon), Firas Khoury’s feature film Dear Mister Tarkovsky (Palestine), Mujtaba Saeed’s feature film Drowning (Saudi Arabia), Sarah Kechemir’s Echoes (Algeria), and Amine Boukhris’ documentary Solo (Tunisia).
Speaking on the occasion, CIFF’s President Hussein Fahmy stated: “CFC is regarded as a breathing room for Egyptian and Arab filmmakers, which leads to supporting and developing their films. Indeed, I was so glad with the discussions of the past edition. I’m pleased with the success that CFC achieves each year. Eventually, this is reflected in the film industry in Arab countries through the powerful and influential projects that the festival supports”.
CIFF’s Director Amir Ramses added: “I’m glad with the strategic role of CFC. A significant number of unique Arab works and guests took part in the ninth edition. This year, we are keen to repeat this concept through providing the best possible support to Arab filmmakers. We aim at helping them to present and develop their films in order to take part in prominent global forums, as was the case with “Inshallah a Boy” and “Four Daughters” which received 3 awards at the Cannes International Film Festival.
Further, CFC’s Manager Lynda Belkhiria stated: “Marking a decade of excellence in supporting Arab film projects, CFC has established itself as a globally renowned platform since its inception, contributing to the international success of a number of films on an international scale. In addition to presenting a variety of poignant narratives and highly diverse themes, this year’s selection stands out with the presence of strong female-driven projects, achieving gender balance among participants—a challenge often faced in the cinema industry. This is a strong indicator of the constant progress of Arab women in the film industry”.
CFC is held within the proceedings of Cairo Film Industry Days as a platform that offers a space for discussions, communication, meetings, workshops and sessions. It is targeted at drawing attention to talents in the Arab world and supporting them. The director of a participating project is required to be an Arab. Furthermore, a film must be a long feature or documentary in the development or post-production phases. A project director must have presented at least a single film, whether it was long or short.
CIFF is one of the most prestigious and long-standing festivals in the Arab World and Africa. It is unique as it is the only festival in the Arab and African region accredited as category “A” by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF) in Brasilia, France.
