Five Egyptian film productions will compete for the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) Muhr Awards.

The films include Before the Summer Crowds (Abl Zahmet El Saif), The Curve(Al Munataf), Nawara, and We have Never Been Kids (Abadan Lam Nakon Atfalan), which compete in the Muhr feature category, and The Wheel (El Aglaa) in the Muhr short category.

Before the Summer Crowds, directed by renowned Egyptian director Mohamed Khan, and The Curve, directed by Jordanian/Palestinian filmmaker Rifqi Assaf, are both co-produced by Egypt’s Mohamed Hefzy, who was the producer of Microphone, which previously won Best Editor in the feature category at the 6th edition of DIFF.

All films will have their world premieres during the Dubai Festival.

Before the Summer Crowds is a drama and romance set at a resort by the sea. It follows an estranged couple and their neighbour whose holiday plans do not go quite as expected. The film is competing for the Muhr Feature Award, and stars Maged El-Kedwany, Hana Shiha and Ahmed Dawood, who will all be attending the film's premiere in Dubai.

The Curve, which is alsocompeting for the Muhr Feature Award, follows the story of a man, who lives a secluded life, as he embarks on a road trip with three strangers, which changes and challenges his carefully balanced existence.

Another Muhr Feature entry is Nawara. The film is made by Egyptian director Hala Khalil and stars Menna Shalabi, Mahmoud Hemeda and Sherine Reda.The story takes place on the eve of the 2011 uprising, and centres around Nawara, a woman in her twenties whoworks as a housemaid in a big villa at a luxury compound. During the absence of the landlord, she invites her fiance, and together they enjoy a taste of life of the rich and famous.

The fourth film to compete for the Muhr Feature Award is We Have Never Been Kids, a non-fiction movie written and directed by Mahmoud Soliman. The film documents the life of an Egyptian woman dealing with divorce and raising her four children amid continuously shifting circumstances.

The short film competitor The Wheel is written, directed and produced by Menna Ekram. The drama centres around a couple who work in circus and whose boredom is set aside when a show ignites hope and excitement in their lives.

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