Written by: Mohammed Omran
I continued Egyptian cinema Her remarkable presence on the Arab scene after the film “Complaint No. 713317” by director Yasser Shafie won the Grand Prize at the seventh edition of the Casablanca Arab Film Festival, an achievement that reflects the growing status of Egyptian film production in regional festivals.
The festival concluded in Casablanca, Morocco, after eight days of film screenings, seminars and meetings with filmmakers, with 29 films participating in the official competition, including 12 feature films and 17 short films, in addition to a number of special screenings outside of the competition.
Notable Egyptian presence
The Egyptian success was not limited to the grand prize, but artist Mahmoud Hamida was crowned with the Best Actor award for his role in the film “Complaint No. 713317”, confirming the film’s strong presence in terms of directing and acting.
In the short film competition, Egypt continued its success after Marwan El Shafei’s film “I Owe You a Touch” won the grand prize, while the Egyptian film “32B” by Mohamed Taher received a special mention from the jury.
Various Arab awards
The seventh edition witnessed the crowning of a number of Arab works, as the Iraqi film “Fulana” by director Zahraa Ghandour won the Special Jury Prize, while the Moroccan film “Ants” by director Yassine Fennane won the Best Screenplay Award.
Tunisian actress Zainab Al-Maliki won the Best Actress award for her role in the film “Looking for Aida,” while the Saudi film “Anti-Cinema” by director Ali Saeed received a special mention, and the Best Documentary award went to the Moroccan film “Lake of Orphans” by director Salem Bilal.
In the short film competition, the Syrian film “My Name is Amal” won the award for best cinematography, while the Iraqi film “Noah” won the award for best screenplay.
A platform to support Arab cinema
The jury for the feature film competition was headed by Palestinian director Rashid Masharawi, while the jury for the short films was headed by Egyptian artist Samah Anwar.
The festival's president, Fatima Nawali, confirmed that the seventh edition achieved its goals by providing a space for dialogue between directors, producers and critics, enhancing the presence of Arab cinema, and discovering new experiences from different countries.
The festival concluded its activities by honoring the Moroccan director Nabil Ayouch, in recognition of his artistic career and his contributions to the development of Moroccan and Arab cinema.
The crowning of Egyptian films in more than one category reflects their continued strong presence in Arab festivals, and their ability to compete with works that combine artistic quality and humanistic themes, thus enhancing the status of Egyptian cinema as one of the most prominent pillars of the film industry in the region.
