The Antichrist short film (photo: film still)
Three films will not be allowed to be screened in the arthouse cinema Zawya’s first Short Film Festival, by order of Egypt's censorship board.
According to Zawya, the three banned films will remain in the festival competition, though audiences will not have a chance to watch them.
The three short films are Prayer Time by Marwan Iman, Tashkeel by Muhammad Mustapha, and The Antichrist by Hady Bassiouny.
Though the reasons for banning the films are not declared, obscene language and religious considerations could be behind the decision, according to commentators.
Prayer Time and The Antichrist both deal with the issue of atheism. The third film, Tashkeel, portrays "Mahragan music" — a kind of folk music.
The four-day festival is due to start today, Thursday, at Cinema Karim, Downtown Cairo. Twenty four Egyptian short films are competing for the festival's three awards: best film, the jury prize, and best director.
The jury of the festival includes director Hala Khalil, Wael Mandour, and Nadin Khan.
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