Mohamed Hefzy (Photo: courtesy of MAD Solutions)
This is the third time that Hefzy catches Variety's attention. In 2016, he was chosen by Variety for the top spot on the list of Ten Names You Need to Know in the Arab Film Industry. In 2021, his name appeared in as the only Egyptian media personality listed in the Variety's index of 2020, which described him as a "consistently bold leader."
This is not the first time for Hefzy to score an important recognition. Screen International named him as the only Arab among 30 future leaders in film production in 2013.
This year, Variety notes that "Hefzy stepped down as president of the Cairo International Film Festival in March after four years as its president, during which time he expanded the event’s international profile, establishing better relationships with sales agents and distributors and creating a new section for industry pros. But that didn’t mean the industry veteran was idle."
Variety points to two major films productions through Hefzy's Film Clinic prodco: Hajjan by Abu Bakr Shawky, a follow-up on his 2018’s road-trip film Yomeddine, and Voy Voy Voy starring Egyptian stars Mohamed Farrag and Nelly Karim.
His prior films have been featured widely in major film festivals, including Cannes, Venice, Berlin, Sundance, and Toronto, and have won more than 80 international awards.
In 2016, one of his productions, Clash, was chosen as the opening film of the Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes Film Festival.
Hefzy is also known as the producer behind the Netflix series Paranormal and the Arabic adaptation of American series Suites.
Hefzy has served as a jury member at the Abu Dhabi International Film Festival in 2011, as well as several other local and Arab festivals. Last November, he served as both, a jury member at the 50th International Emmy Awards and jury president of the 15th Asia Pacific Screen Awards.
The founder of Film Clinic, Hefzy is considered one of the leading production companies in Egypt and the Arab world.
He received numerous recognitions, with one of the latest being France's Order of Arts and Letters (Ordre des Arts et des Lettres) that he was awarded with in 2021.
Aside from his work as a writer and producer, Hefzy is a film activist who offers workshops and training programs conducted in cooperation with international organisations and institutes.
According to Variety’s website, "the Variety500 reflects the accomplishments of its members over the previous 12 months. They were selected by the Variety editorial board, which conducted extensive research for its selections. Because Variety500 is an annual list, recent career performance is more heavily weighted than previous work."
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