The 41st edition of the Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) will conclude its activities Friday evening at the Grand Theater of the Cairo Opera House.
Many public figures, Egyptian, Arab, and global stars are expected to attend the ceremony including “Game of Thrones” star Nathalie Emmanuel.
Emmanuel has announced her arrival to Egypt in a series of photos on Instagram from her trip to El Gouna Resort-town in Red Sea governorate and Luxor.
Egyptian TV presenter Jasmine Taha Zaki will host the festival’s closing ceremony; it will be directed by Hisham Fathy.
“The ceremony will be simple and fast, and will not contain artistic shows as was the case in the opening,” Fathy revealed.
He added: “It is scheduled for the ceremony opening to be limited to handing the prizes to the winners, while celebrating the jury committees; the jury will announce the reasons for winning each award,”
“Game of Thrones” star will have a special appearance during the ceremony.”
The closing ceremony will witness the screening of a short video reviewing what happened during the 41st edition; it will be followed by handing the awards to the winners of the festival’s competition.
CIFF 41st edition held under the name of Youssef Cherif Rizkallah
The 41st edition, ran from November (20 -29), headed by producer Mohamed Hefzy, and held the name of Youssef Cherif Rizkallah, late critic and CIFF’s artistic director.
CIFF paid tribute to the late Egyptian critic and godfather Rizkallah with screening documentary “Rizk Cinema”.
He was honored for his long commitment and dedication to the festival since its inception and despite the succession of its presidents.
The documentary included remarks by filmmakers and artists, all of whom are his followers, with a plethora of commemorative photos from his 40-year journey with cinema, showing his shift from politics to cinema, research and media coverage, on his trip with the festival as an art director and godfather to portray critics.
Rizkallah’s name has always been associated with the Cairo Film Festival since its first sessions.
He began his participation in the Film Selection Committee, before being selected as the artistic secretary of the festival in 1987, then as an art director in 2000 until his departure last July.
Honoree
Italian cinematographer, Vittorio Storaro, one of the greatest cinematographers in the world, will be honored at the closing ceremony. He won more than 50 international awards, including three Oscars, for “Apocalypse Now” (1979), ” Reds” (1982), and “The Last Emperor” (1988).
Moreover, Hollywood star Billy Zane received a special tribute award before the screening of film “The Friendly Man”, on Wednesday 27th.
The festival opening ceremony witnessed the honoring of American-British legend Terry Gilliam and the Egyptian director Sherif Arafa with "Faten Hamama Honorary Award", while Egyptian actress Menna Shalaby was honored with "Faten Hamama Excellence Award" for her rich cinematic career.
In addition, the event will witness the honoring of late artist Ezzat Abou Aouf, and the late artist Haitham Ahmed Zaki.
"Let’s Talk".. An Extension of Youssef Chahine’s Life Story
Producer Marianne Khoury presented her documentary film “Ehkeely” (Let’s Talk) in the festival's International competition.
The two-hour film tells the autobiography of the family of late international director Youssef Chahine in the form of a realistic humanistic analysis of the lives of the different generations of that family.
Guest of Honor
CIFF has chosen the Mexican cinema as the Guest of Honor for its 41st edition.
The festival featured 8 Mexican films and honored two of its makers, screenwriter and director Guillermo Arriaga, and director Carlos Reygadas.
Cairo Days for the Film Industry
It also held the second edition of Cairo Days for the Film Industry (CFC), which ran from November (21-26).
CFC hosted a range of cinematographic activities, such as seminars, workshops, discussion panels, meetings, and training workshops.
Cairo Days for the Film Industry provides professionals with opportunities for partnership and networking with the international film community.
Opening ceremony
The festival kicked off on November 20 with the screening of Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman”.
Many public figures, Egyptian, Arab, and global stars had attended the opening ceremony, including Yousra, Lebleba, Nadia El Gendy, Laila Elwy, Elham Shahin, Sherif Mounir, Dorra Zarrouk, Ayten Amer, Sherif Arafa, Radwa Al Sherbeny, Rania Youssef, Sherine Reda, Heba Magdi, Lekaa Elkhamissi, Hana El Zahed, Hana and Hala Sheha, Khaled Selim, Mai Selim, and others.
It was also filled with many celebrity couples such as Ahmed Dawood and his wife actress Ola Roshdy, Ahmed Helmy and his wife actress Mona Zaki, Asser Yassin and his wife Kenzy Abdallah, Hussein Fahmy and his wife, Hanan Motawie and her husband Amir El Yamani.
The opening ceremony was hosted by the three Egyptian stars, Khaled El Sawy, Dina Elsherbiny, and Ahmed Dawood.
It also witnessed celebrated the film industry with a show and the Mexican cinema, as well as the screening of a documentary about Rizkallah entitled “Rizk Cinema”.
During the ceremony, El Sherbiny had paid a tribute to her late friend, actor Haitham Ahmed Zaki, who passed away earlier this month.
CIFF screened over 150 films, which includes 130 feature films, 20 short films, 18 world premieres, and 17 International premieres.
Moreover, 63 countries participated in the festival, including 84 MENA premieres, 5 African premieres, and 7 Middle East premieres.
CIFF Gets “Oscar” Qualifying Film Festival Status
The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has awarded the festival Oscar-qualifying film festival status.
The winner of the Best Short Film award in the Short film competition ‘Cinema of Tomorrow’ section will eligible for consideration in the Animated and Live Action Short Film categories of the Academy Awards without the standard theatrical run, provided the film otherwise complies with Academy rules.
DMC will broadcast the closing ceremony at 6:00 PM (Cairo local time), say tuned!
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