Home There..Cinema Here
Spring Grant 2013 - Production Stage
Nidal Al Dibs / Feature Documentary / Egypt, Qatar, Syria / 2014 / 70 min / Original Language: Arabic / Interests: Documentary, Social Issues, Politics, Youth
Synopsis
An abandoned movie theatre. Sound and image buried in dust. A waft of light spills over broken seats in front of a disintegrated screen, as though waiting for the film to begin. Hidden on their armrests are the engraved initials of a first love. Once-colourful curtains drift in the empty space, torn and dirty. Cracked walls. Broken lights. A quarter of a century ago, the Wahbi Cinema in Cairo was closed down. The nearby falafel shops closed; so did the ice cream and candy kiosks. All that remains near the abandoned hall is one stubborn café. The revolutionary youths of Tahrir Square broke through the steel door of the cinema to sweep away the dust of the old days, hoping to restore a space of freedom and creativity. Will they succeed?
Credits
- Director
- Nidal Al Dibs
- Screenwriter
- Nidal Al Dibs
- Producer
- Mostafa Youssef
About the Director
Nidal Al Dibs was born in Syria in 1960. An architect and director, he graduated from the Moscow VGIK Film Institute in 1995. Many of his films have received international acclaim, including the short ‘Ya Leil Ya Ein’ (1999), which was selected for the Official Competition at Clermont-Ferrand; ‘Under the Ceiling’ (2005), which screened at the Montreal World Film Festival, and won the Jury Prize at Salla Film Festival as well as the Best Actress prize at the Wahran Film Festival; and ‘Black Stone’ (2006), a documentary film that received a special mention at the Ismailia Film Festival. His latest film, ‘Taming’ (2010), had its premiere at the Abu Dhabi Film Festival.
Awards and Festival History
Awards
Won Best Film at Ismaileya Documentary Co-Production Platform 2014 (Egypt)
Contacts
-
Main Contact
Mostafa Youssef
- Company:
- Seen Films
- Phone:
- +20 227 510 415
- Email:
- mostafa@seenfilms.com