Egyptian film The Nile Hilton Incident - also known by the title Cairo Confidential – won the Grand Prix at the 9th Beaune International Thriller Film Festival in France, which opened on 29 March and closed yesterday.

The film is directed by Tarik Saleh, Swedish-born Egyptian writer, artist and filmmaker, and is set in Cairo.

Inspired by the true story of Lebanese Singer Suzanne Tamim’s murder in 2008, the film’s plot centers on a singer murdered in Cairo just weeks before the 2011 revolution.

The Nile Hilton Incident stars Fares Fares, Mari Malek, Yasser Aly Maher, and Tarek Abdalla.

It was co-produced by Denmark, Germany and the Sweden - based production company Atmo, which is co-founded by Saleh.

The film won the Grand Jury Prize in the World Cinema Dramatic section of Sundance in January.

The Beaune Thriller Film Festival focuses on the widely popularized thriller genre, bringing a selection of the best crime fiction films from France and from around the world, while spotlighting rising talents and honouring more experienced filmmakers.

Saleh is the first Arab winner of the Thriller Festival’s Grand Prix since the festival’s inauguration in 2009.

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