On 8 March at Zawya Cinema in Downtown Cairo, the Between Women Filmmakers Caravan (BWFC) will celebrate International Women’s Day with Portraits from the Heart, a screening programme showcasing ten short films.
These films are part of the third and fourth batches (2022 and 2023) of the Creative Documentary Workshop, organised by the BWFC since 2019.
This screening marks the first in a series of upcoming events that will feature BWFC films — some produced within the caravan’s workshops, others selected from global female filmmakers’ work. The programme was previously screened in February at the same venue.
The event is particularly significant, as it represents the first physical screening organised by the BWFC since 2018. That year marked the discontinuation of the Cairo International Women’s Film Festival, which the caravan had organised for several years. The BWFC then shifted its focus to filmmaking training and virtual screenings. Most of the films in the Portraits from the Heart programme had their premieres at film festivals and have won awards.
The ten films being showcased include The Mother and the Bear (2024) by Yasmina El Kamaly, I Found My Love in Massara (2023) by Stephanie Amin, The Try (2022) by Manar Imam, I Am Afraid You Will Forget Me (2022) by Omnia Swedan, 1200 Steps (2023) by Nairy AbdElShafy, 32 Abo El-Mahasein El-Shazly (2022) by May Ziady, I’ll Wait for You by the Sea (2023) by Rasia Yusuf, The Last Cowboy (2023) by Basma Sheren, My Grandmother’s Secret (2023) by Nourhan Abdelsalam, and As I Open My Eyes (2023) by Ghazzal Abdullah.
In The Mother and the Bear, Egyptian filmmaker Yasmina El Kamaly explores her family’s matrilineal history, focusing on her complex relationship with her mother and grandmother through journals, home videos, and letters. In I Found My Love in Massara, Stephanie Amin returns to Cairo after years abroad, reflecting on the remnants of Cinema Massara and the themes of family, immigration, and youthful hope.
In The Try, Manar Imam focuses on an event from ten years ago that continues to haunt her, exploring the guilt and memory surrounding a woman whose life was deeply impacted by Manar’s testimony. I Am Afraid You Will Forget Me follows aspiring filmmaker Omnia Swedan as she confronts her fears of loss, revisiting memories of her late grandmother through a mix of recollections and music.
1200 Steps traces the director’s emotional connection to her neighbourhood in Alexandria, intertwining family narratives with personal memories. In 32 Abo El-Mahasein El-Shazly, a woman reflects on the loss of family members to Covid-19 and the painful process of leaving her grandparents’ house.
In I’ll Wait for You by the Sea, Rasia writes a letter to her half-sister, sharing cherished memories and glimpses of her life in Cairo. The Last Cowboy follows filmmaker Basma Sheren as she seeks answers about her love life and unearths hidden truths about her relationship with her father.
In My Grandmother’s Secret, Nourhan Abdelsalam uncovers a family crime from her grandmother’s childhood and embarks on a journey to understand its impact. Finally, in As I Open My Eyes, the filmmaker searches for remnants of a changing Cairo, reflecting on the fleeting connection between memory and place.
Amal Ramsis, filmmaker and founder-director of the Between Women Filmmakers Caravan, reflects on the significance of returning to the screen. She explains that since the Cairo International Women’s Film Festival ended in 2018, due to various factors, including changes in laws and censorship, the caravan spent two years without organising screenings. During this period, the focus shifted to training and nurturing a new generation of female filmmakers, encouraging them to create work that addresses important social issues. This phase also coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, which provided an opportunity to reconnect with audiences in new ways. According to Ramsis, the online screenings allowed the caravan to reach a wider audience within Egypt, across the Arab world, and even internationally. She points out that these virtual screenings proved valuable as they allowed for online discussions connecting people from different countries, creating a space for engagement and sharing.
However, Ramsis emphasises that, while the digital world offers many opportunities, it cannot replace the experience of watching films in a cinema. She stresses the importance of face-to-face screenings where the audience can experience and discuss films. “Films are made for cinemas, not computer screens,” she says, underscoring the unique experience a cinema provides.
With the return to screenings in a physical space, Ramsis explains that it was important to reconnect with the Cairo audience. After years of virtual engagement, there is a strong desire to bring people back into theatres, where they can share experiences and discuss the challenges of cinema in Egypt. While virtual screenings will continue, Ramsis believes the collective viewing experience remains irreplaceable, especially as the virtual world influences many aspects of daily life.
Ramsis also addresses the ongoing discussion about the shift in audience preferences towards virtual screenings. She argues that the idea that cinema screenings in theatres are declining in favour of virtual screenings is misguided. “We shouldn’t view it that way,” she explains. While virtual screenings have expanded access, bringing in viewers not accustomed to attending the cinema or only familiar with commercial films, the audience that enjoys watching films in theatres remains strong. “Their numbers haven’t decreased in favour of virtual screenings,” Ramsis notes. Cinema-goers continue to value the unique experience that a theatre provides — not just the quality of the projection and sound but also the space it creates for connection with other viewers and with cinema itself.
While virtual platforms have proved useful for reaching a broader audience, Ramsis stresses the importance of encouraging younger generations to develop the habit of attending movie theatres. “That’s why we felt it was important for the Between Women Filmmakers Caravan to return to the cinema screen,” she adds.
For years, the Between Women Filmmakers Caravan has been organising a variety of training workshops with a special focus on women. One of the most significant of these is the Creative Documentary Workshop, which began in 2019 and continued in 2020, 2022 and 2023, producing up to ten short films per batch.
The fifth round of this workshop launched in February. Another key initiative is the Rough Cut workshop, an annual event offering technical consultations for films in post-production, which also includes a financial prize for one of the film projects. Additionally, the caravan offers a long documentary film development workshop, which ran in two rounds, in 2021 and 2024, designed to help support long documentary films in their development and prepare them for production. The Film Consultancy Programme, launched in 2024, provides technical consultations for film projects at various stages, from development to post-production. This is the only programme by BWFC open to both male and female filmmakers.
Ramsis takes great pride in the success of the caravan, particularly its focus on filmmaking training. She believes that what sets the caravan apart is its commitment to helping emerging talents who truly need support. “We don’t provide large financial support — quite the opposite,” she explains.
“Most of the caravan’s support comes from the expertise of mentors and trainers from Egypt, the Arab world, and beyond.” She also highlights the collaborative nature of the workshops, where participants work together to help each other achieve their goals. This collaborative approach continues even after the end of the workshop. Graduates of the caravan’s workshops form a network, supporting one another and their projects long after the end of the programme.
Ramsis notes that the caravan’s support network is vital because it ensures that no one is left behind. “Our ambition goes beyond having the caravan logo on films or appearing at red carpet events,” she says. Yet the films produced in the caravan’s workshops regularly find their way to festivals in Egypt, the Arab world, and beyond.
She also stresses the importance of the range of training and support opportunities within the BWFC, all of which are designed on the basis of the filmmakers’ specific needs. She points to the Film Consultancy Programme as a recent example of the caravan’s adaptability. “We knew that many film projects were stuck in drawers, not due to a lack of financial support, but because filmmakers needed help to move their projects forward with technical consultations,” she says. The programme, which offers tailored support to filmmakers, has quickly gained popularity. Ramsis notes that the caravan receives up to 200 applications per round, even though it can only offer support to three projects.
The consultancy programme is open to male filmmakers as well, though it remains focused on providing opportunities for women’s voices in film. Ramsis explains that many male filmmakers working on films about women’s issues may not have the necessary sensitivity or understanding to address gender and social issues properly. As a result, the caravan extends its consultancy programme to male filmmakers, as it believes this aligns with its mission of broadening the discussion of women’s issues and their representation in film.
Ramsis says the Between Women Filmmakers Caravan plays a crucial role in providing a platform for female filmmakers to express their perspectives freely. “We support their defence of their perspective on the world,” she says. The caravan’s mission is not just about screening films; it’s about nurturing a new generation of filmmakers who can think independently in terms of both content and expression.
Ramsis insists that cinema in Egypt will not progress without this generation. “Unfortunately, specialised training programmes are either non-existent or unaffordable,” she says. “That’s why we felt compelled to create and support these initiatives for free.” She proudly points out that, since 2019, the caravan has seen the emergence of seven or eight new directors each year. While the caravan’s resources are limited, it is clearly achieving real change.
Ramsis also discussed the success of the Rough Cut workshop, which has become an important platform for female filmmakers in the Arab world. “The financial support is limited, but the real value of the workshop lies in expanding the networks of its participants,” she explains. Many filmmakers working on their first films struggle to gain recognition, but the Rough Cut workshop offers them the chance to connect with mentors and professionals from different countries, expanding their networks and introducing their projects to a wider audience.
“Our dream is to support more Arab projects than the six we can accept each year,” she adds. “We hope the workshop will grow, and that we can continue supporting selected projects for a longer period.”
Despite the caravan’s limited resources, Ramsis explains that it focuses on what is truly important: supporting filmmakers in need. “Our priorities don’t include lavish parties or expensive hotels,” she says. “All our resources go towards supporting filmmakers, and we rely heavily on volunteer work. Many filmmakers who have gone through our workshops offer their time and expertise to help others.”
Ramsis is proud that many graduates of the Creative Documentary Workshop have become an active part of the caravan’s work. This wasn’t planned, but it’s a result of the collaborative and non-competitive nature of the workshop. “We never expected graduates would want to continue working together and become an essential part of the caravan,” she says. “But that’s exactly what has happened, and it brings fresh energy to the caravan’s work.”
Ramsis also reflects on the difficulties of supporting documentary filmmaking in the Arab world, noting that the lack of local support in many countries is a major issue. “The support for films is extremely weak, except in a few countries like Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco,” she says. “In most other Arab countries, filmmakers rely on pan-Arab funds, which leads to fierce competition for limited resources.”
Ramsis emphasises that initiatives like the Between Women Filmmakers Caravan, Cimatheque in Egypt, and Aflamuna in Lebanon are crucial because they allow filmmakers to express their voices freely, without censorship or external interference. Such projects provide real support to filmmakers who are trying to convey their unique perspectives without the constraints imposed by funding bodies.
Looking to 2025, she spoke of new initiatives, such as the launch of the Educational Caravan. This programme aims to bring films to young audiences, particularly in schools, universities and educational centres. By introducing young people to different films and perspectives, the caravan hopes to spark important conversations. Ramsis is also excited about the upcoming Creative Documentary Workshop in Lebanon, which will extend the caravan’s reach beyond Egypt.
Ramsis’ work with the caravan and its growing community of filmmakers has been a source of personal growth and hope. “I’ve met amazing women whose presence has given me hope,” she declares. “There is something strong happening here, even though the environment stifles most initiatives.” Through the caravan’s work, Ramsis has found a new sense of purpose, and her own filmmaking has been influenced by the new connections she’s made. “I no longer feel like I’m making films alone,” she says. “The caravan has opened my eyes to so many beautiful things.”
Ramsis is currently working on two film projects: a documentary in production and a narrative film in development. However, it is the growing community of the Between Women Filmmakers Caravan, not only in Egypt but across the Arab world and beyond, that fills her with pride.
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