A modern miracle unfurled in the heart of Cairo, where the echoes of ancient civilizations murmured through the busy streets: the International Film Festival—a celebration of cinematic brilliance that transcended boundaries and brought hearts together in a common passion for the beauty of narrative. Filmmakers and cinema aficionados alike travelled from other regions, lured to the allure of the silver screen, which knows no borders. The festival, a vibrant mosaic of diverse voices and viewpoints, offered a glimpse into the vibrant realm of cinema, where imaginations and emotions soar profoundly.
Screenings under the glowing night sky at the foot of the majestic Pyramids of Giza, where history and modernity converged in a timeless dance, captured hearts and minds in a symphony of light and shadow. The ancient stones bore witness to the unfolding tales of love, loss, and redemption, echoing the sentiments of humanity across the ages.
After a tumultuous year of darkness and uncertainty, the Cairo Film Festival emerged from the shadows with a renewed sense of purpose and a commitment to celebrating the power of cinema in all its glory. Despite the lingering echoes of war in Gaza, the festival remained resolute in its mission to illuminate stories and amplify voices. Under the guidance of the newly appointed artistic director, Essam Zakarea, the festival took on a super-sized form, a testament to its unwavering dedication to the art of filmmaking. “We have to compensate,” says Zakarea. “We need to create a larger edition featuring an unprecedented number of films. We cancelled last year’s edition in solidarity with Gaza, and we are doing the same for this edition. Film festivals serve more than just providing entertainment. They also can play a crucial role in politics, in making people more human and promoting more faith in justice and in good.”
The 45th edition of the Cairo Film Festival promised to be a unique cinematic spectacle, offering a staggering array of 194 titles carefully curated across 15 distinct sections from 72 countries, including 37 world premieres and 8 international debuts, along with 119 films making their first appearance in the Middle East and Africa. Filmmaker Danis Tanović, who led the jury last year, oversaw an international competition that included festival standouts like Adam Elliot’s Memoir of a Snail and Constance Tsang’s Blue Sun Palace, as well as world premieres like Shankha Das Gupta’s Dear Maloti from Bangladesh and Khedija Lemkecher’s 4 O’Clock Flowers from Tunisia.
The festival honoured local superstar Ahmed Ezz and heralded auteur Yousry Nasrallah with tributes, while this year’s international guests of honour included Gaspar Noé, Jim Sheridan, Eric Roberts, and Chen Sicheng, showcasing the festival’s diverse range. Additionally, the Cairo Film Festival finally commenced its operations, opening its doors to the public for the first time in over a decade.
The 45th Cairo Film Festival closed with the highest award, the Golden Pyramid Award, going to Bogdan Mureșanu’s The New Year That Never Came. The macabre comedy, which previously won the Horizons sidebar at the Venice Film Festival, takes place in 1989, during the holiday season preceding the overthrow of Romanian tyrant Nicolae Ceauşescu. Russian filmmaker Natalia Nazarova received the Special Jury Award for Best Filmmaker, the Silver Pyramid, for her film Postmarks, which also won Best Actor for Maxim Stoyanov and a special mention for the female lead, Alina Khojevanova. Lee Kang-Sheng won the other male lead prize for his performance in Blue Sun Palace.
Pedro Freire’s Malu was also awarded the Bronze Pyramid for best début or second feature by the International Jury, which was chaired by Danis Tanović (No Man’s Land). De Novaes was also in receipt of the award for the best actress. The best screenplay award went to the Italian film Vittoria, a captivating examination of adoption. Casey Kauffman and Alessandro Cassigoli wrote the film, and the individuals who experienced the actual events on which the film is based were the actors.
Below are some of the winners:
The Golden Pyramid Award for Best Film
The New Year That Never Came Director and producer: Bogdan Mureșanu
The Silver Pyramid Award
The Special Jury Award for Best Director
Director: Natalia Nazarova for the film Postmarks.
Pedro Freire Malu received the Bronze Pyramid Award for the best first or second work of a director. And the Naguib Mahfouz Award for best screenplay went to Vittoria.
Screenplay by Alessandro Cassigoli and Casey Kauffman. Best Actor Award: Lee Kang-Sheng for his performance in Blue Sun Palace. Best Actor Award: Maxim Stoyanov for his performance in Postmarks, and Best Actress Award: Yara De Novaes for her performance in Malu.
Best Actress Award (Special Mention): Alina Khojevanova for her performance in Postmarks. The International Critics Prize (Fipresci Prize). Film: Spring Came on Laughing, directed by Noha Adel
The documentary film Dahomey, directed by Mati Diop, received the 45th Cairo International Film Festival African Feature Award. And Bassam Mortada’s Abu Zaabal 89 won the special jury prize. 45th Cairo International Film Festival Network for the Promotion of the Asia Pacific Cinema Award. Lin Jianjie’s Brief History of a Family, an Outstanding Asian Feature Film, was the recipient of this award.
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