Ahmed Youssef
The curtain ended on Friday evening at the El Gouna Film Festival in Egypt, which succeeded in just a few years to become one of the most prominent festivals in the Middle East.
The organizing committee said that the festival "aims to bring together filmmakers in the region with their counterparts from all countries of the world in order to develop the spirit of cultural exchange among them by presenting their best cinema creations."
El Gouna Festival has received wide media coverage over the past few days, and has taken up space from social media discussions.
This may at first glance be a celebration of the art of cinema, and the ability of the festival to attract some of the most important films of the year, but in fact the attention of the local press and the discussions of the media sites about the dresses of artists and Red Carpet.
This constant debate about the El Gouna festival throughout its presentation is a deserving success for its organizers, especially since the star and red carpet looks are a key part of any festival around the world.
So what's the problem? The problem lies in the fact that the local newspapers are satisfied with publishing the news of the stars, analyzing their fashion and the size of their elegance.
Movies shown
The list of films screened at the festival included nine films previously screened at the Festival de Cannes, most notably the film Parasite (parasite) won the Palme d'Or, and a number of others received a warm welcome and official awards from the festivals of Berlin and Venice, but that the most important aspect of any festival did not receive due coverage.
The festival featured more than 80 films from the latest Arab and international productions, and its third edition was marked by the presence of a remarkable mass audience, which is the main objective of any film festival to provide an artistic cinema distinct from diverse cultures, which succeeded the festival this year.
The festival program consists of three official competitions (feature films, documentaries, short films), the official program outside the competition, and the special program, in addition to the "Cinema for Humanity" award, which is awarded by public vote for feature films of a humanitarian nature.
Festival Awards
El Gouna Film Festival announced its awards for this year at the closing ceremony held yesterday, which was attended by a large number of stars from Egypt and the Arab world.
Feature Film Competition
- Golden El Gouna Star Award and was awarded to the Sudanese film "You Will Die in the Twentieth" directed by Amjad Abou El Ala.
- The El Gouna Silver Star Award was awarded to Corps Christi (Eucharist) directed by Jan Kumasa and co-produced by Poland-France.
- El Gouna Bronze Star Award and earned by Moroccan film Adam directed by Mariam Touzani.
- Star of El Gouna Award for Best Arab Film, awarded to Algerian film Babisha, directed by Monia Medawar.
- El Gouna Star Award for Best Actor and won by Bartos Bellenia for his role in Corpus Christi.
- El Gouna Star Award for Best Actress and won by Hind Sabry for her role in the film Nora Dream.
| Mariam Touzani, director of Moroccan feature-length feature film Adam (Reuters) |
Documentary Competition:
- Golden Star El Gouna Award and was awarded to the Sudanese film about trees directed by Suhaib Al Bari.
- Silver Star El Gouna Award, deserved by the Algerian film 143 Desert Road, directed by Hassan Ferjani.
- Bronze Star El Gouna Award, won by Afghan film, Kabul, directed by Abuzar Amini.
- El Gouna Star Award for Best Arabic Film, awarded to "Ibrahim, Indefinitely" directed by Lina El Abed, co-produced by Lebanon, Palestine, Denmark and Slovenia.
Short Film Competition
- Golden El Gouna Star Award and earned by the Dutch film "Exam" directed by Sonia K. Smith.
- Silver Star El Gouna Award won by the Lebanese film "Mom" directed by Wassim Geagea.
- The El Gouna Bronze Star Award was awarded to the film "Meat" directed by Camilla Cutter, co-produced by Brazil and Spain.
- El Gouna Star Award for Best Arabic Film, awarded to "Salam" by Zain Derai, co-produced by Jordan, Germany, Sweden and UAE.
- Cinema for Humanity Award, awarded to the French film Les Miserables, directed by Ledge Lee.
The third round of the El Gouna Film Festival has come to an end with the presence of a remarkable Arab presence on the podium.