DUBAI: The ninth edition of the El Gouna Film Festival opened on Thursday in Egypt’s Red Sea resort town, with Egyptian actress Mona Zaki receiving the festival’s Creative Achievement Award during the opening ceremony.
Running until Oct. 23 under the theme “Cinema for Humanity: Archiving Narratives,” the festival is screening 77 films across narrative, documentary and short film competitions, alongside special presentations and out-of-competition titles.
Egyptian actress Yasmina El-Abd hosted the ceremony at the Festival Plaza, which combined recorded and live segments on cinema’s role in preserving stories and collective memory.
Egyptian director Mohamed Shaker Khodeir, who directed Zaki in the 2023 Ramadan series “Under Custody,” presented the award. Zaki became emotional as she spoke about the fear that had followed her throughout her career and urged younger performers not to let it hold them back.
“Don’t let fear control you. Fear restrains and limits you,” she said.
She thanked the directors, writers and crew members who had supported her over the years. A voice message from her eldest daughter, Lilly, played as she collected the honor.
The ceremony also paid tribute to veteran Egyptian lighting technician Hassan El-Sayed for his four-decade career, with Egyptian cinematographer and actor Sameh Selim presenting the award. El-Sayed’s credits include “The Thief of Happiness,” “In Search of Sayyid Marzouk” and “Paradise of the Devils.”
Egyptian musician Mohamed Nawara led a live performance of Egyptian and international compositions. Egyptian American soprano Sherine Ahmed closed the evening with a surprise rendition of the Egyptian classic “Helwa Ya Balady,” singing in Arabic for the first time.
French director Marc Fitoussi’s “All About Corrine,” starring French actresses Isabelle Huppert and Sandrine Kiberlain, was selected as the opening film, with its official screening set for Friday.
This year’s lineup includes 10 Arab films, the highest number in the festival’s history, and is the first under artistic director Andrew Mohsen, who succeeded Egyptian filmmaker Marianne Khoury.
The Window on Palestine program returned for a fourth consecutive year, while the festival’s industry arm, CineGouna, launched CineGouna Series, a development program and market for Arabic-language television projects.
Masterclasses with Zaki, Egyptian filmmaker Yousry Nasrallah and British executive producer Angus Finney are scheduled during the festival.