Egyptian film Waraqet Shagar (A Leaf), directed by Bichara Shoukry, won the Best Art Expression Award for Short Film at the Retro Avant Garde Film Festival (RAGFF), which was held in Venice earlier this month.

A Leaf is produced by the Egyptian Film Centre, headed by Khaled Abdel-Jalil, the minister of culture's advisor for cinema.

The film was screened in the segment of Art/Surrealism films – one of the 10 themed sections of the festival, which include animation, documentary, comedy, horror, sci-fi, and more.

A jury selected winning films from each section, in addition to two grand prize winners for best short film: Diva by Adam Csoka Keller (UK), and for best feature film: Nostalgia for Existing Without Delay by Slawomir Milewski (Poland).

Films from 27 countries were screened at the international festival, with Shoukry’s film being the only entry from Egypt.

This is the first edition of RAGFF, which aims to take place every year in a different city around the world.

One of its upcoming stops for the year 2019 is in Cairo, and is currently open for filmmakers to submit their films for competition.

Taking place at the Cairo Opera House between 15 and 19 February 2019, the festival will screen the selected films and announce the winners, in addition to presenting art installations and music performances.

In the upcoming year RAGFF will also have a New York edition and another one in Venice. 

For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture