The film The Curfew (Hazr Tagawol) by Amir Ramses has been chosen to participate in the international competition of the 42nd Cairo International Film Festival scheduled to take place between 19 and 28 November, the CIFF organisers revealed.

The festival's president’s Mohamed Hefzy revealed on the festival's website that "the audience of CIFF are always interested in any participation of an Egyptian movie in the international competition. It is a challenge that the jury undertakes every year to choose the right Egyptian film that will represent Egyptian cinema internationally and be able to compete amidst with the most important films of the year internationally. This was achieved at the 42nd edition of the world premiere of the feature film ‘The Curfew’."

The director said that “the CIFF is the best start for the film’s journey,” adding that he is very happy to be back with an official participation in Cairo's festival, 15 years after his first feature film ‘End of the World’ was featured during the same event.

Produced by the Red Star Productions, the events of The Curfew take place on 14 August 2013 during the time of the curfew, unveiling the emotions of the film's characters resulting from unusual circumstances as they interact in one location.

In a previous interview with Ahram Online, Ramses explained that “The film has a social, not a political, context."

The teaser for the film was released in mid-April during the general shutdown of cultural activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The general mood we find ourselves in now is similar to the one presented in the film,” according to Ramses.

The Curfew stars Mahmoud El-Leithy, Amina Khalil, Elham Shahin, and Ahmed Magdy.

Apart from The Curfew, the international competition of the 42nd CIFF will also see another film by an Egyptian director, Mayye Zayed, titled Lift Like a Girl, marking the film's premiere in the MENA region.

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