Egyptian artist Basim Magdy will be on the jury of the upcoming International Short Film competition that is being held in Berlinale 2021 (Berlin International Film Festival).

The jury for this section includes three artists, Basim Magdy, as well as cinematographer Christine A. Maier from Austria, and actor Sebastian Urzendowsky from Germany.

The jury will decide on the winners of the competition, with the main prize being the Short Film Golden Bear, which will be announced during the industry days on 4 March 2021.

The winner of the Golden Bear for Best Short Film is eligible for a nomination to the Academy Awards’ best international short film the following year. 

Born in 1977 in Assiut, Magdy graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts of Helwan University, Cairo. He lives and works in Basel, Switzerland.

According to Berlinale’s website, “Magdy’s work includes film, photography, painting, works on paper, and installations. Magdy has shown his films at Tate Modern, Locarno Film Festival, New York Film Festival, and IFFR Rotterdam, to name a few. He has had solo and group shows all over the world, and his works are in the collections of the MoMa, Guggenheim, Centre Pompidou, the Sharjah Art Foundation, and Koç Foundation Collection (ARTER), amongst others.”

“He was selected Artist of the Year by Deutsche Bank and won the New:Vision Award of the CPH:DOX, the Curtas Vila do Conde Experimental Film Award, and the Abraaj Art Prize Dubai.”

The 71st edition of the Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) is planned in two stages: the Industry Event, held online between 1-5 March, and film screenings within the Summer Special between 9-20 June. 

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