The film is a co-production between Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
Venice Film Festival’s Final Cut, dedicated to films in post-production from African and Arab countries, has awarded Inshallah a Boy, directed by Amjad Al-Rasheed, with the La Biennale di Venezia Prize and a cash award of € 5,000.
Inshallah a Boy competed in the Final Cut section, which was presided over by jurors Claire Diao, Rasha Salti and Gaetano Maiorino.
The film, a co-production between Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, is overseen by Jordan-based producer Rula Nasser for The Imaginarium Films.
The film tackles the problematic issue of women and inheritance in Jordan, an issue which is prevalent throughout the Arab world, where, due to antiquated laws, men inherit twice as much as women.
The film was also awarded by El Gouna Film Festival and Festival International de Films de Fribourg, as well as supported by Oticons, which will allow it to collaborate with the composers represented by the company.
Inshallah a Boy won financial support from El Gouna Film Festival worth $5000.
MAD Solutions announced the feature film project Black Light by Algerian director Karim Bensalah as the winner of its award, for promotional and distribution services in the Arab world.
The film is produced by Oualid Baha for Tact Production and scored prizes from Laser Film, which offers a € 15,000 award for the colour correction.
Black Light tells the story of Sofiane, an Algerian student enjoying a relatively easy life in France as a diplomat’s son. Suddenly falling a victim to an administrative decision, he becomes illegal. In order to legalise his situation, he finds a job in a Muslim funeral home, to be a life-changing experience.
Aside from the official awards, the Egyptian documentary Land of Women by directors Nada Riyadh and Ayman El Amir managed to grab the attention of both MAD and Lagoonie companies that will collaborate in the distribution of the film in the Arab world. The film is produced by Felucca Films, with Dolce Vita Films and Magma Films co-producing.