The film centres around Aisha, a 26-year-old Somali caregiver living in a Cairo neighbourhood populated by African migrants.
Egyptian filmmaker Morad Mostafa is set to make history with the world premiere of his debut feature film Aisha Can’t Fly Away at the 78th Cannes Film Festival, where it will compete in the Un Certain Regard section. This marks Egypt’s return to the festival’s second-most prominent competition for the first time in nearly a decade, following Clash in 2016.
Running from May 13 to 24, this year’s Cannes Film Festival will spotlight Mostafa’s gritty thriller, which delves into Cairo’s shadowy underworld. Aisha Can’t Fly Away follows the story of Aisha, a young Sudanese woman living in the marginalised neighbourhood of Ain Shams — home to a large African migrant community. When her job as a caretaker puts her in a precarious position, Aisha is forced to rely on Zuka, a local gang leader, for protection.
The film is a multi-national co-production with backing from Egypt, France, Germany, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Sudan. It has attracted major international support, including grants from the Doha Film Institute, Cultural Resource Fund, El Gouna Film Festival, Locarno Academy, Cannes’ Cinéfondation, La Fabrique des Cinémas du Monde and Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole. Aisha Can’t Fly Away has already made waves on the festival circuit, taking home top honours at the Red Sea Lodge and multiple awards at Venice’s Final Cut, as well as the Atlas Award at the Marrakech International Film Festival.
Returning collaborators from Mostafa’s short I Promise You Paradise are central to the project, including cinematographer Mostafa El Kashef (The Village Next to Paradise), production designer Eman Elelaby (Feathers), costume designer Nayera Eldahshoury, sound engineer Mostafa Shaban and editor Mohamed Mamdouh.
The ensemble cast is led by Buliana Simon as Aisha, with Egyptian rapper Ziad Zaza making his feature film debut, alongside Emad Ghoniem and Mamdouh Saleh.
The production is spearheaded by Sawsan Youssef (Bonanza Films), alongside an international team including Tunisia’s Dora Bouchoucha and Lina Shaban (Nomadis Images), Amjad Abu Alala, Faisal Baltayour (Cinewaves), Ahmed Amer (A.A. Films), May Odeh and Zorana Musikic (Mayana Films), Laura Nikolov (Co-Origins), Sherif Fathy (Shift Studios) and Alaa Karkouti and Maher Diab of MAD Solutions — whose subsidiary MAD World is handling global sales.
Born in Cairo in 1988, Morad Mostafa brings over a decade of industry experience as an assistant director. A graduate of top international programmes including Berlinale Talents and Cinéfondation Cannes, he was named one of Screen International’s Arab Stars of Tomorrow in 2023 and recognised among the 100 most influential cinema figures in the region by the Arab Cinema Center.
His latest short, I Promise You Paradise, won the Rail d’Or at the 77th Cannes Critics’ Week and was shortlisted for the César Awards. With Aisha Can’t Fly Away, Mostafa not only marks his feature-length debut but also reaffirms Egypt’s evolving presence on the global film stage.
