Zaki is known for her roles in films including 'Seidy fe Gamea Amrekiya', 'Africano', 'Taymour w Shafika', and 'Abu Ali'.
The Cairo International Film Festival has announced that it will award Egyptian actress Mona Zaki with the Faten Hamama Award for Excellence during the opening ceremony of the 42nd Edition in recognition of her career and outstanding body of work. The film festival is scheduled to take place from December 2 to 10.
Zaki started her career early in her teens. She played her first role with the prominent actor and director Mohamed Sobhi in “Bel Arabi El-Faseeh”. Some of her films include Seidy fe Gamea Amrekiya, Africano, Taymour w Shafika, and Abu Ali. Among Mona’s iconic roles is the one she played in Cinderella. She also played a complex character of a kind and sweet femme fatale in Afrah Al Qobba.
Zaki won an award for her role in Dam El Ghazal, where she portrayed the character of a young underprivileged neighbourhood sweetheart living amidst political turmoil and terrorism.
Aside from her acting career, Zaki is a UNICEF ambassador who has contributed to raising awareness on many national charity and advocacy campaigns, many child-related topics, including child labour, malnutrition, poverty, the effects of violence on children and FGM.
“Mona Zaki is the quintessential star of her generation. Through her work she has become a role model setting a great example of success for women working in Egyptian cinema,” said Mohamed Hefzy, the festival’s President. He also added, “With her daring and intelligent career choices, she has been able to achieve the difficult balance of both critical and commercial success.
“She always knows when to say no, and therefore she retains her glamour and stardom in addition to the respect and appreciation of the public even if she is absent for some time. Cairo International Film Festival is happy to award her the Faten Hamama Award for Excellence at the opening ceremony of the 42nd edition”.
On receiving the award, Zaki said that to be honoured with a great award from the Cairo International Film Festival makes her feel proud, content, grateful and thankful for every effort she has made in her career. “I will always be proud of my belonging to Egyptian cinema, and I hope that I have contributed even if just a small part to support this important industry. I promise the public that I will continue to do my best to work hard and help Egyptian cinema reach a level that is impactful not just locally but also beyond our borders,” she said.
