The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) awarded OSCAR® qualifying film festival status to the Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF).
Cairo International Film Festival
The Cairo International Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Cairo, Egypt. It was established in 1976 and was the first international film festival held in the Arab world.
Cairo International Film Festival started in 1976 and takes place in Cairo, Egypt
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Martin Scorsese’s THE IRISHMAN will Open Cairo International Film Festival
The Irishman The 41st edition of the Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) will open on the November 20th with a premiere gala screening of Martin Scorsese’s eagerly awaited ‘The Irishman’ starring Academy Award winners Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci at the prestigious Cairo Opera House.
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Cairo International Film Festival Features Six Foreign Language Films Submitted for the 2015 Academy Awards
Charlie’s CountryThe 36th Cairo International Film Festival taking place November 9 -18, 2014, will feature 6 international films, submitted for the Best Foreign Language Film award at the 2015 Oscars, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The films include Charlie’s Country (Australia), Eyes of a Thief (Palestine), The Light that Shines Only There (Japan), Rocks in My Pocket (Latvia), Timbuktu (Mauritania) and Little England (Greece).
Charlie’s Country (Australia – 2013) International Competition: Directed by Rold de Heer, the film tells the story of a warrior named Charlie, who lives in a remote indigenous community within the northern region of Australia. As the government increases its stranglehold over the community’s traditional way of life, Charlie becomes lost between two cultures. The film’s leading star, David Gulpilil, earned the Best Actor Award at Un Certain Regard within Cannes Film Festival in 2014.
Eyes of a Thief (Palestine, 2014)| International Competition: Directed by Najwa Najjar, the film stars Khaled Abol Naga and Souad Massi. Filmed in the heart of the occupied territories of Palestine over the course of 25 days, Eyes of a Thief is based on a true story during the upheavals of the Palestinian Uprising in 2002, offering a glimpse into the Palestinian society and their options of survival and resistance.
The Light that Shines Only There (Japan, 2014)| Festival of Festivals: Directed by Mipo Oh, the film follows a young man called Tatsuo, who becomes head over heels with his friend’s sister, who is clearly older than him and strives to make a living to save her poor family. The film was showcased at the closing of Osaka Asian Film Festival and received the Grand Prix at the Montreal World Film Festival.
Rocks in My Pocket (USA – Latvia, 2014) | Festival of Festivals: Written, produced and directed by Signe Baumane, the animated picture is set in the late 1920s Latvia, where a pretty young lady, Anna, falls in love with an adventurous entrepreneur. Following their marriage, the husband’s jealousy drives him to hide Anna away in the forest far from other men, where she bears 8 children. The film earned the FIPRESCI award and a Special Jury Mention from Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
Timbuktu (Mauritania, 2014)|Prospects of Arab Cinema: Directed by Abderrahmane Sissako, the film traces the vivid transformation of the city of Timbuktu, which lies on the Mauritanian borders with Mali. A popular city recognized for its illustrious culture and openness to the world; it’s even said to be the place where African and Arab heritage and civilization were born. Timbuktu has turned into a bloodbath by extremist groups, which banned everything – starting from music to football and cigarettes. Sissako garnered two awards from Cannes Film Festival namely; the Francois Chalais Prize and the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury. He also won the Best Feature Film Award at Jerusalem Film Festival.
Little England (Greece)|Festival Closer: Directed by Pantelis Voulgaris, the film is set during the interwar period in the Greek island of Andros, where two sisters living in the same house fall in love with the same man. The film has also earned the Golden Goblet Award for Best Feature Film at the 17th Shanghai International Film Festival in June, 2014, in addition to Best Actress and Best Director awards.
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CANCELLED: 2011 Cairo International Film Festival
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Unrest in Egypt earlier this year.[/caption]The Ministry of Culture has announced that it will cancel the Cairo International Film Festival this year due to upcoming elections, Gulf News reported.
“The Ministry of Culture has decided to cancel the festival this year, which was due in late November, because of the current preparations for the parliamentary and presidential elections as well as due to the economic situation.”
Emad Abu Ghazi, the Minister of Culture, denied that instability in Egypt was behind the decision, “The decision has nothing to do with the current security scene in Egypt.”
Egyptians will elect a new parliament this September and a new president two months later, the first elections since long-standing President Hosni Mubarak was ousted last February.