Latest news with #MoradMostafa
Broadcast Pro
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Broadcast Pro
Egyptian film ‘Aisha Can't Fly Away' wins FIPRESCI Award at Golden Apricot
The film centres around Aisha, a 26-year-old Somali caregiver living in a Cairo neighbourhood populated by African migrants. Egyptian film Aisha Can't Fly Away, by Morad Mostafa, went home with the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) Award at the Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival in Armenia. The festival ran from July 13th to the 20th. The Egyptian film Aisha Can't Fly Away, directed by Morad Mostafa, has claimed the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) Award at the Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival in Armenia, which took place from July 13 to 20. This marks another significant milestone for the film, which has been steadily gaining acclaim on the international festival circuit. The film first made headlines with its world premiere at the 78th Cannes Film Festival and had already made an impression by winning the Final Cut Award and several post-production prizes at the 81st Venice International Film Festival. The film is a multi-national co-production with backing from Egypt, France, Germany, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Sudan. It has attracted major international support, including grants from the Doha Film Institute, Cultural Resource Fund, El Gouna Film Festival, Locarno Academy, Cannes' Cinéfondation, La Fabrique des Cinémas du Monde and Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole. Aisha Can't Fly Away has already made waves on the festival circuit, taking home top honours at the Red Sea Lodge and multiple awards at Venice's Final Cut, as well as the Atlas Award at the Marrakech International Film Festival. Returning collaborators from Mostafa's short I Promise You Paradise are central to the project, including cinematographer Mostafa El Kashef (The Village Next to Paradise), production designer Eman Elelaby (Feathers), costume designer Nayera Eldahshoury, sound engineer Mostafa Shaban and editor Mohamed Mamdouh. The ensemble cast is led by Buliana Simon as Aisha, with Egyptian rapper Ziad Zaza making his feature film debut, alongside Emad Ghoniem and Mamdouh Saleh. The production is spearheaded by Sawsan Youssef (Bonanza Films), alongside an international team including Tunisia's Dora Bouchoucha and Lina Shaban (Nomadis Images), Amjad Abu Alala, Faisal Baltayour (Cinewaves), Ahmed Amer (A.A. Films), May Odeh and Zorana Musikic (Mayana Films), Laura Nikolov (Co-Origins), Sherif Fathy (Shift Studios) and Alaa Karkouti and Maher Diab of MAD Solutions — whose subsidiary MAD World is handling global sales. Born in Cairo in 1988, Morad Mostafa brings over a decade of industry experience as an assistant director.
See - Sada Elbalad
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- See - Sada Elbalad
"Aisha Can't Fly Away" Wins FIPRESCI Award at Golden Apricot
Yara Sameh The Egyptian film "Aisha Can't Fly Away", directed by Morad Mostafa, won the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) Award at the Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival in Armenia. The festival ran from July 13th to 20th. Before, "Aisha Can't Fly Away" had a stellar world premiere at the 78th Cannes Film Festival after winning the Final Cut Award, along with a host of other post-production awards, at the 81st Venice International Film Festival. The film has since lit up screens at South Africa's Durban International Film Festival. Aisha is a 26-year-old Sudanese caregiver living in a neighborhood in the heart of Cairo, where she witnesses the tension between her fellow African migrants and other groups. Unwittingly, she becomes involved with an Egyptian gang that blackmails her into stealing her patients' keys so that they can rob them. A co-production between Egypt, France, Germany, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Sudan, the film has garnered significant support, including grants from the Doha Film Institute, Cultural Resource Fund, El Gouna Film Festival, Locarno Academy, Cannes' Cinéfondation and La Fabrique des Cinémas du Monde, and Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole. It also notably swept a top award at Red Sea Lodge, five at Venice's Final Cut, as well as the Atlas Award at Marrakech International Film Festival. The creative team behind "Aisha Can't Fly Away" features several returning faces from Mostafa's "I Promise You Paradise", including cinematographer Mostafa El Kashef, who also worked on last year's Cannes entry "The Village Next to Paradise", which also made its way to Toronto; production designer Eman Elelaby, who earned a FIPRESCI Prize for her work on "Feathers"; costume designer Nayera Eldahshoury; sound engineer Mostafa Shaban; and editor Mohamed Mamdouh. Produced by Sawsan Yusuf's Bonanza Films, the film is co-produced alongside Dora Bouchoucha and Lina Shaban of Tunisia's Nomadis Images, Sherif Fathy of Shift Studios, Ahmed Amer of A. A. Films, Faisal Baltayour from Cinewaves, Alaa Karkouti and Maher Diab of MAD Solutions, the subsidiary of which, MAD World, is handling the film's world sales, May Odeh and Zorana Musikic of Mayana Films, Laura Nikolov of Coorigins, Abellelah Al Ahmary of Arabia Pictures, and associate producer Amjad Abu Alala. "Aisha Can't Fly Away" boasts a stellar cast, with Buliana Simon taking on the lead role of Aisha alongside Egyptian rapper Ziad Zaza — in his first feature-length appearance — Emad Ghoniem, and Mamdouh Saleh. Morad Mostafa is an Egyptian film director born in Cairo in 1988 who has worked as an assistant director in the film industry for over ten years. He is also a graduate of Berlinale Talents, Durban Talents, Locarno Academy, and Cinéfondation Cannes and has been named one of the Arab Stars of Tomorrow by Screen International Magazine in 2023. Last year, he was chosen as one of the top 100 influential cinema personalities in the Middle East in an annual list published by the Arab Cinema Center. Mostafa has also participated in several international jury panels, the most recent of which was at the Cairo International Film Festival. He is most known for writing and directing "Ward's Henna Party", "What We Don't Know About Mariam", "Khadiga", and "I Promise You Paradise", all of which were selected for the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival, the most important short film festival in the world. These films have been screened at over 400 festivals worldwide and have won around 150 local and international awards. His latest short film, "I Promise You Paradise", was selected for the 77th Cannes Film Festival's Critics' Week, where it won the Rail d'Or. 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New Indian Express
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New Indian Express
Cinema Without Borders: Miseries of migration—Aisha Can't Fly Away
Morad Mostafa's debut feature film, Aisha Can't Fly Away, is bound to remind Indian viewers of the Dibakar Banerjee segment, Star, in the 2013 anthology film, Bombay Talkies. The point of commonality is that both these films feature a flightless bird—an emu in Star and an ostrich in Aisha—as a significant presence, more so a symbol of the predicaments and deadlocks in their protagonists' lives. Set in the heart of Cairo, Aisha Can't Fly Away spotlights groups of African migrant workers, specifically a Sudanese caregiver, Aisha (Buliana Simon). It's a detailed, albeit conventional portrayal of immigrant lives in all their dreary, dismal, ugly reality. The stray rays of sunshine are the occasional meetups of the women workers, the joy of their song-and-dance. The Arab language, Egypt-Sudan-Tunisia-Saudi Arabia-Qatar-France-Germany co-production was platformed in the Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes Film Festival 2025. The narrative moves along a predictable path. You can see things coming from afar. There is co-option into the world of crime, drug-peddling and violent battles and shootouts between the migrants and the local gangs on the one hand. On the other hand is the tacit, institutionalised sexual exploitation of the vulnerable women at the hands of their misogynistic employees, one of them being the elderly, wheelchair-bound predatory client of Aisha. An additional layer is that of racial discrimination, with Aisha called a 'filthy black woman' while being questioned about her proximity to a young Egyptian chef. He is a friend and confidant who often whips up a warm, comforting meal for her. Food becomes an act of generosity on his part and a symbol of solidarity between the two. The much-needed cheer in Aisha's drab routine.
Al-Ahram Weekly
28-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Egyptian film Aisha Can't Fly Away to hold its African premiere in Durban Film Fest - Screens - Arts & Culture
The Egyptian film Aisha Can't Fly Away is set to screen at the upcoming Durban International Film Festival in South Africa, taking place from 17 to 27 July 2025. The screening will mark the film's African premiere. Directed by Morad Mostafa, the film had its world premiere in the Un Certain Regard section at the 78th Cannes Film Festival (13–24 May). Aisha Can't Fly Away tells the story of Aisha, a 26-year-old Somali woman living and working in Ain Shams, a working-class neighbourhood in eastern Cairo that has become home to many African refugees in recent years. The film was written by Mostafa, Mohammad Abdulqader, and Sawsan Yusuf and stars Buliana Simona, Emad Ghoneim, Mamdouh Salah, and Egyptian rapper Ziad Zaza. During its production phase, Aisha Can't Fly Away, and another Egyptian film, garnered the majority of prizes awarded by the Venice Film Festival's Final Cut 2024. The jury at Venice's Final Cut described the film as 'a powerful and authentic story filled with the environment's challenges and complexities.' 'Despite being Mostafa's first feature film, it showcased confident direction and a distinct cinematic voice. The film's gritty realism, attention to detail, and impactful storytelling left a strong impression on us,' the jury added. The film also received awards from Titra Film (Paris), Rai Cinema (Italy), the Cinémathèque Afrique of the Institut Français (Paris), and the Festival International du Films de Fribourg (Switzerland). Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
Egypt Today
24-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Egypt Today
Soaring beyond Cannes: Egyptian film AISHA CAN'T FLY AWAY lands in South Africa
Following its historic world premiere at Cannes, Morad Mostafa's Egyptian thriller AISHA CAN'T FLY AWAY is set to hold its African premiere at the 46th Durban International Film Festival, taking place in South Africa from July 17th to the 27th. The first Egyptian film in Cannes' Un Certain Regard in nearly a decade, AISHA CAN'T FLY AWAY received an extended round of rapturous applause and a well-deserved standing ovation at the powerhouse French festival. Aisha is a 26-year-old Sudanese caregiver living in a neighborhood in the heart of Cairo, where she witnesses the tension between her fellow African migrants and other groups. Unwittingly, she becomes involved with an Egyptian gang that blackmails her into stealing her patients' keys so that they can rob them. A co-production between Egypt, France, Germany, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Sudan, the film has garnered significant support, including grants from the Doha Film Institute, Cultural Resource Fund, El Gouna Film Festival, Locarno Academy, Cannes' Cinéfondation and La Fabrique des Cinémas du Monde, and Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole. It also notably swept a top award at Red Sea Lodge, five at Venice's Final Cut, as well as the Atlas Award at Marrakech International Film Festival. The creative team behind AISHA CAN'T FLY AWAY features several returning faces from Mostafa's I PROMISE YOU PARADISE, including cinematographer Mostafa El Kashef, who also worked on last year's Cannes entry THE VILLAGE NEXT TO PARADISE, which also made its way to Toronto; production designer Eman Elelaby, who earned a FIPRESCI Prize for her work on FEATHERS; costume designer Nayera Eldahshoury; sound engineer Mostafa Shaban; and editor Mohamed Mamdouh. Produced by Sawsan Yusuf's Bonanza Films, the film is co-produced alongside Dora Bouchoucha and Lina Shaban of Tunisia's Nomadis Images, Sherif Fathy of Shift Studios, Ahmed Amer of A. A. Films, Faisal Baltayour from Cinewaves, Alaa Karkouti and Maher Diab of MAD Solutions — the subsidiary of which, MAD World, is handling the film's world sales— May Odeh and Zorana Musikic of Mayana Films, Laura Nikolov of Coorigins, Abellelah Al Ahmary of Arabia Pictures, and associate producer Amjad Abu Alala. AISHA CAN'T FLY AWAY boasts a stellar cast, with Buliana Simon taking on the lead role of Aisha alongside Egyptian rapper Ziad Zaza—in his first feature-length appearance—Emad Ghoniem, and Mamdouh Saleh. Morad Mostafa is an Egyptian film director born in Cairo in 1988 who worked as an assistant director in the film industry for over ten years. He's also a graduate of Berlinale Talents, Durban Talents, Locarno Academy, and Cinéfondation Cannes and has been named one of the Arab Stars of Tomorrow by Screen International Magazine in 2023. Last year, he was chosen as one of the top 100 influential cinema personalities in the Middle East in an annual list published by the Arab Cinema Center. Mostafa has also participated in several international jury panels, the most recent of which was at the Cairo International Film Festival. He is most known for writing and directing WARD'S HENNA PARTY, WHAT WE DON'T KNOW ABOUT MARIAM, KHADIGA, and I PROMISE YOU PARADISE, all of which were selected for the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival — the most important short film festival in the world. These films have been screened at over 400 festivals worldwide and have won around 150 local and international awards. His latest short film, I PROMISE YOU PARADISE, was selected for the 77th Cannes Film Festival's Critics' Week, where it won the Rail d'Or. It also participated in the Locarno International Film Festival and made it to the shortlist of the César Awards. His first feature film, AISHA CAN'T FLY AWAY, won the Final Cut Award at the 81st Venice International Film Festival and will have its world premiere at the 78th Cannes Film Festival's Un Certain Regard.
