The IIFFDS is the oldest active and specialized film festival in Egypt, the Middle East, and Africa. Its 25th edition will kick off on 28 February and continue until 5 March in Ismailia.
The exhibition will present photographs taken by Mohamed Bakr, who followed the director throughout the many years of his cinematic practice. It will be also complemented with photos from the sets and films directed by the filmmaker.
Mohamed Bakr had spent more than six decades in the career of photography, capturing the processes of filmmaking at the sets and thus creating an important archive of the cinematic practice in the country.
Among his known works are black and white photographs, capturing many stars behind the scenes and/or during their work in front of the camera.
His portfolio also includes a large selection of photographs documenting the making of films based on Naguib Mahfouz's novels. They include "Mahfouz's Cairo," directed by Hassan Imam, among other films.
Besides the public figures from the field of culture, Bakr also photographed known personalities from sports, politics, and society at large.
Born in Alexandria in 1930, Abdel-Salam started his life as an assistant to the artistic engineer Ramses Wasef in 1957. He later became assistant director of several foreign films, such as the Polish film "The Pharaoh" by Cavalero Fitch, "Wa Islamah" by Andrew Marton, and "Cleopatra" by Joseph Mankovic.
As a director, he made several other highly regarded films, which include "El-Falah El-Faseeh" (The Eloquent Peasant); "Giyoush El-Shams" (Armies of the Sun); "Korsi Tutankhamen El-Zahabi" (The Golden Chair of Tutankhamen); and "Ramses the Second."
He received several prestigious film awards, including the George Sadol Award (1970), the Carthage Film Festival Award (1972), and Egypt’s State Encouragement Award (1985).
Abdel-Salam passed away on 8 October 1986.
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