44th CIFF: Golden Pyramid Award for Lifetime Achievement Goes to Lebleba

The organizers of the 44th Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) announced during a press conference on Wednesday that this edition will honor the talented actress Lebleba with the festival's highest recognition, the Golden Pyramid Award for lifetime achievement.

Best known for playing a lady thief character in "Hamda and Toto Bang" (1982), Egyptian-Armenian Lebleba took part as a festival jury member in six international film festivals, including Cairo International Film Festival, as well as 16 Arab film festivals.

The second Lifetime Achievement Award will go to the legendary Hungarian filmmaker Béla Tarr, who will also hold a masterclass that will follow the screening of his film Werckmeister Harmonies.

Moreover, the Faten Hamama Excellence Award will be awarded to Kamla Abu Zekri, an Egyptian film director whose extensive repertoire encompasses several masterpiece films.

The titles include Sana Oula Nasb, her film debut in 2004, followed by a plethora of films where she contributed as the film director and writer, namely: Malek we Ketaba (2005) and A’n El Eshq Wel Hawa (2006), Wahed Sefr (2009), 18 Days (2011), and Youm Lelsetat (2016).

They also revealed their lineup of film projects that have been selected to take part in its 9th edition which will be held during the 44th Cairo International Film Festival (13 – 22 November) as part of Cairo Industry Days.

The shortlisted film projects feature 15 documentary and feature narrative projects in development and post-production phases from across the Arab world; Egypt (5 film projects), Tunisia (2 film projects), Jordan, Yemen, Lebanon, Algeria, Morocco, Sudan, Palestine, and KSA.