Musicians, painters, sculptors, filmmakers, actors or just people whose life has been affected by artistic practice are among subjects of numerous films screened within the 41st edition of the Cairo International Film Festival.

Some films are ficional yet reveal the creative world's dynamics while others provide a fascinating insight to the lives of real artists. Some speak about arts in a direct manner, others hint on how artistic practice can be life-changing when woven into our daily lives.

“Film as dream, film as music. No art passes our conscience in the way film does, and goes directly to our feelings, deep down into the dark rooms of our souls," the famed Swidish filmmaker Ingmar Bergman said.

Taking a journey through films is an enriching experience yet when the seventh art becomes a tool for deeper understanding of art forms or their impact on us, the road of the viewer becomes even more fascinating.

Many of the films listed below have their international, world or regional premieres within the 41st edition of the Cairo International Film Festival.

Check our list of films about artists or tackling an artistic practice below as well as the CIFF's full programme here.

The Friendly Man
Brazil
Fiction - 2019 – 85’
International Premiere

A Rock star finds himself implicated in the killing of a police officer hence he seeks to clear his name through a night trip to search for the suspect who is a child. As a result, he clashes with the two powers which are in dispute to control society: the police and social media.

Ambience
Palestine
Fiction, 2019, black & white, 15 min
MENA Premiere


Two young Palestinians living in a camp try to record a music clip for a competition, but they find it difficult because of the loud voices that infiltrate the track.

Yip-Roots
Mexico, Germany
Documentary, 2019, Color, 65 min
World Premiere

In the Maya autonomous region on the border between Mexico and Guatemala, two young girls with indigenous roots try to give their lives a new direction through music.

Amin
Egypt
Fiction, 2019, color, 16 min
World Premiere

The Ministry of Culture announces the discovery of a rare version of an incomplete film by legendry director Shadi Abdel Salam. Amin seeks to obtain the copy before it falls into the hands of a notorious director.

My Dead Father: A comedy
Argentina
Fiction, 2019, color, 16 min
International Premiere

Two years after filming stops, a director tells his actress he will finish the film but he needs to shoot some scenes. The actress whose father died recently finds herself in front of the cameras in a situation she never expected.

Check CIFF's full programme here

Searching For Ghazala
Egypt
Documentary, 2019, color, 20 min
World Premiere

A director is looking for an actor to plays the main character in his feature film. During auditions of a number of African refugees in Egypt, he meets Briku, a Sudanese who dreams of being a professional football player, acting, and immigrating.

Judy
USA
118 min
MENA Premiere

The film follows Judy Garland, child of Wizard of Oz, in her last year, while trying to regain her career. Although her anxiety and refusal to rehearse, she shines again on the theatre stage.

Tell Me When I Die
Brazil
Documentary, 2019, Color, 75 min
MENA Premiere

"I've already lived my death and now all that's left is making a film about it," director Héctor Babenco told Barbara Paz when he realized he had little time left. Paz accepted the challenge of fulfilling her late partner's last wish: to be the main protagonist in a story about his death.

Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtle
Spain, Netherlands, Germany
Animation, Fiction, 2018, Color, 80 min
MENA Premiere

Following the story of Luis Buñuel's making of his second film, with the help of his friend sculptor Ramón Acín, after the controversy surrounding his first feature film “The Golden Age”, which left him without work as producers became reluctant to work with him.

Forman Vs. Forman
Czech Republic
Documentary, 2019, Color and Black&White, 77 min
MENA Premiere

Forman vs. Forman is a journey through the career of the extraordinary director Miloš Forman, who received the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival and two Oscars, through using special archival photos and videos in addition to a number of interviews which he previously gave.

Check CIFF's full programme here

The Passion of Anna Magnani
Italy, France
Documentary, 2019, Color – Black&White, 60 min
MENA Premiere

Going back to the golden age of Italian cinema by diving deep into the life of star and icon Anna Magnani, the film uses archival footage featuring exclusive interviews with fellow stars, excerpts from TV shows and of course her films.

Gasman
Germany
Fiction, 2019, Color, 87 min
World Premiere

Hamburg Theatre actor Bernd is unhappy with himself and his profession. He is to play the gasman in a play about two Nazi officers travelling the country with a mobile gas chamber, but he is sceptical about the play and its director.

Film Farsi
UK
Documentary, 2019, 84 min
MENA Premiere

A journey through the history of Iranian commercial cinema before the Islamic revolution, through using a rich and rare visual archive.

Mozart Recycled
Germany
Documentary, 2019, Color, 75 min
International Premiere

Swiss-born designer Frida, is working on a puppet show made of recycled plastic. The show succeeds in Buenos Aires so the Argentine crew receives an invitation to perform in Switzerland, an incident which will change their lives.

To Live To Sing
China, France
Fiction, 2019, Color, 100 min
MENA Premiere

Zhao Li, manager of the Jinli Sichuan Opera Group, receives a decree that her theatre, which means everything to her and the troupe, will be demolished. Li engages in a struggle with bureaucracy and tries in many ways to stop the demolition.

Check CIFF's full programme here

Fatum
Tunisia
Fiction, 2019, color, 25 min
MENA Premiere

A passionate painter returns home from work where he lives with his wife and child to find a surprise that change the course of his life.

Searching For Ghazala
Egypt
Documentary, 2019, color, 20 min
World Premiere

A director is looking for an actor to plays the main character in his feature film. During auditions of a number of African refugees in Egypt, he meets Briku, a Sudanese who dreams of being a professional football player, acting, and immigrating.

Sin
Andrei Konchalovskiy
Russia, Italy
Fiction, 2019, Color, 134 min
MENA Premiere

The film follows one of the most critical stages in the life of the great artist Michelangelo when two powerful forces struggle to gain his loyalty. He becomes the victim of this conflict.

Dolce Fine Giornata
Poland
Fiction, 2019, Color, 96 min
MENA Premiere

The film follows a famous Italian poet whose family life begins to crumble after delivering a speech that did not satisfy society.

The Pencil
Russia
Fiction, 2019, Color, 93 min
International Premiere

Antonina is painter from St. Petersburg who is forced to move to a northern province to be close to her husband, a political prisoner. There, she works there as an art teacher and tries to get closer to the students but clashes with a student who relies on the reputation of his brother, a gang leader.

Check CIFF's full programme here

Disclaimer: all data including synopses based on CIFF's published material.

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