MAD Distribution’s acquisition spree underscores its commitment to bringing a rich variety of films to audiences in the Arab world, enhancing the region's cinematic landscape.
MAD Distribution, the MENA releasing arm of Cairo-based indie studio MAD Solutions, has acquired the Arab distribution rights to over 30 titles from 16 different countries. These films are set to be rolled out across the Arabic-speaking world in 2024 and 2025, according to a report by Screen Daily.
Among the newly acquired titles, four were showcased at this year’s Cannes Film Festival: Ghost Trail by Jonathan Millet, which opened Critics’ Week; Mo Harawe’s The Village Next to Paradise, the first film shot in Somalia to screen at Cannes; Saif Hammash’s Palestinian short Deer’s Tooth, selected for La Cinef; and Rayane Mcirdi’s Algerian-French short After the Sun, featured in Directors’ Fortnight.
The films originate from a diverse array of countries including Egypt, Tunisia, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Qatar, Morocco, and Algeria. Some are still in various stages of production, spanning multiple storytelling tones and genres. Notably, many of these films are directed by women, such as Anne Marie Jacir’s All Before You, Amel Guellaty’s Tunis Djerba, and Nada Mezni Hafaiedh’s Take My Breath, which has seen significant box office success in Tunisia.
Ten of these titles will not only be released in the Arab world by MAD Distribution but will also be handled for international sales by MAD World, the company’s new film sales division launched at Cannes.
These ten titles include The Return of the Prodigal Son by Rani Massalha; the Lebanese vampire sci-fi feature The Last City by Ghassan Salhab; the Tunisian comedy feature A Bird from Paradise by Murad Ben Cheikh; the Tunisian feature film Girl of Wind by Moufida Fedhila; La Zone by Lassaad Dkhili; the Syrian feature This is My Night by Jafra Younes; Thank You for Banking with Us by Laila Abbas; Hiding Saddam Hussein by Halkawt Mustafa; the Lebanese feature-length documentary Diaries from Lebanon by Myriam El Hajj; and the Tunisian feature Exile by Mehdi Hmili.
Several acquisitions reunite MAD with previously collaborating filmmakers, including Once Upon a Time in Gaza by Tarzan and Arab Nasser, Under One’s Breath by Leyla Bouzid, The Vanishing by Karim Moussaoui, and Hisham Lasri’s Happy Lovers.
The lineup also features female-directed works such as Yasemin Şamdereli’s biopic Samia, and Maha Haj’s short drama Upshot. Additional documentaries include Omar Mouallem’s The Lebanese Burger Mafia and Maggie Morgan’s The Memoirs of M. A. Draz.
Two Tunisian features previously awarded MAD Distribution Grant awards are Mehdi Hmili’s The Seasons of Jannet and Sara Abidi’s Wear and Tear, which won MAD’s distribution award at the MAFF Industry Days.
Rounding out the slate are Marya Zarif and André Kadi’s animated film Dounia and the Princess of Aleppo; Koutaiba Al-Janabi’s thriller The Window; Hind Meddeb’s feature Sudan, When Poems Fall Apart; and Ameer Fakher Eldin’s Yunan, filmed in Germany as a follow-up to his award-winning The Stranger.