Cairo Film Festival Spotlights Community: ‘We Want People to Feel This Festival Belongs to Them’
The 46th Cairo Intl. Film Festival returns to the Cairo Opera House Nov. 12-21, blending global prestige with the pulse of a city that lives and breathes cinema.
For artistic director Mohamed Tarek, the guiding principle behind CIFF is simple: care. “Curate comes from ‘to care,’” he says. “That’s what we try to do: to care for the films, for the audiences, and for the city itself.”
That spirit informs decisions large and small. Screenings are scheduled to allow room for Q&As and chance encounters rather than packed timetables. Ticket prices remain well below commercial rates, the cinephile badges foster a sense of community, and outreach programs bring students and young filmgoers from Alexandria, Upper Egypt, and the Nile Delta, expanding the festival’s reach well beyond the capital.
“For us, the audience isn’t an afterthought,” Tarek notes. “We think about how people experience the festival, from the rhythm of their day to the conversations between screenings. The buzz from the crowd is the real measure of success.”
Working alongside veteran actor and festival president Hussein Fahmi, Tarek helps shape an event that is both accessible and ambitious. Fahmi calls Cairo Film Festival “a cornerstone of Egypt’s artistic memory, a celebration of our cinematic identity that continues to evolve with each generation.”
Founded in 1976, Cairo Film Festival remains the Arab world’s oldest FIAPF-accredited “Category A” festival, a distinction it shares with Cannes, Venice and Berlin, but its focus is resolutely contemporary. This year’s edition emphasizes connection: between Cairo and the region, between established filmmakers and new voices, and between cinema and the audiences who sustain it.
“We’re not here to be gatekeepers,” Tarek stresses. “We’re here to be enablers, to give filmmakers across the region a platform.”
That philosophy extends to programming strategy. This year’s lineup spans world and regional premieres, 22 restored Egyptian classics, and international standouts, with short films, for the first time, taking over the Opera House’s Grand Theatre, a gesture toward younger creators and growing audience demand.
At the center of Cairo Film Festival’s professional ecosystem is the Cairo Film Connection, now recognized as one of the Middle East and North Africa region’s most vital pitching platforms. Held as part of the Cairo Industry Days, it links filmmakers from Egypt, Africa and the Arab world with international producers, funders and festival programmers.
The Cairo Film Market, relaunched in 2024, also grows this year, with 26 exhibitors and multiple new partnerships. The festival also expands its industry arm through a new partnership with the Co-Production Salon, the UAE-based networking hub that brings together more than 200 producers, investors, and content executives from across MENA.
On screen, the 2025 program highlights the vibrancy and range of regional cinema. Tarek points to some standouts in the program like official competition selection “One More Show,” (Mai Saad and Ahmed Al Danaf, Egypt, Palestine), a documentary capturing resilience amid devastation as it follows a Gaza circus troupe performing for children against the backdrop of war. Tarek says other local projects like Horizons of Arab Cinema competitor “Complaint No. 713317” (Yasser Shafiey, Egypt), which heads to Rotterdam after a Cairo premiere, show a shift in the reach of homegrown talent. “This used to be the other way around,” Tarek says with a smile. “Now, festivals take films from us.”
The festival’s final screening underscores that spirit. “The Voice of Hind Rajab,” winner of the Silver Lion in Venice, will close Cairo Film Festival before opening Doha, completing a circuit of regional solidarity that Tarek and his team hope to strengthen. “Creating ties is harder than creating competition,” he adds. “But ties last longer, and they give more back to the region.”
Alongside discovery, Cairo Film Festival remains attentive to legacy. This year’s tributes to Egyptian cinema veterans include actor Khaled El Nabawy, filmmaker Mohamed Abdelaziz and cinematographer Mahmoud Abdelsamie. Other honorees, who will also headline masterclasses throughout the festival, include Palestinian actress Hiam Abbas and Hungarian director Ildikó Enyedi. Veteran Turkish director Nuri Bilde Ceylan heads the international competition jury.
For all its international scope, Cairo Film Festival remains inseparable from Cairo’s urban rhythm. Screenings spill beyond the Opera House into suburban cinemas on both sides of the Nile. The American University in Cairo opens its downtown premises to host events, while student collaborations with design and architecture departments help shape festival spaces. Every year, Tarek says, demand outpaces capacity. “It’s a good problem to have,” Tarek admits. “This is a festival people care about.”
That care defines Cairo Film Festival’s identity as much as its programming. From outreach to industry partnerships, the emphasis is on participation, not exclusivity. “We want people to feel this festival belongs to them.”
For artistic director Mohamed Tarek, the guiding principle behind CIFF is simple: care. “Curate comes from ‘to care,’” he says. “That’s what we try to do: to care for the films, for the audiences, and for the city itself.”
That spirit informs decisions large and small. Screenings are scheduled to allow room for Q&As and chance encounters rather than packed timetables. Ticket prices remain well below commercial rates, the cinephile badges foster a sense of community, and outreach programs bring students and young filmgoers from Alexandria, Upper Egypt, and the Nile Delta, expanding the festival’s reach well beyond the capital.
“For us, the audience isn’t an afterthought,” Tarek notes. “We think about how people experience the festival, from the rhythm of their day to the conversations between screenings. The buzz from the crowd is the real measure of success.”
Working alongside veteran actor and festival president Hussein Fahmi, Tarek helps shape an event that is both accessible and ambitious. Fahmi calls Cairo Film Festival “a cornerstone of Egypt’s artistic memory, a celebration of our cinematic identity that continues to evolve with each generation.”
Founded in 1976, Cairo Film Festival remains the Arab world’s oldest FIAPF-accredited “Category A” festival, a distinction it shares with Cannes, Venice and Berlin, but its focus is resolutely contemporary. This year’s edition emphasizes connection: between Cairo and the region, between established filmmakers and new voices, and between cinema and the audiences who sustain it.
“We’re not here to be gatekeepers,” Tarek stresses. “We’re here to be enablers, to give filmmakers across the region a platform.”
That philosophy extends to programming strategy. This year’s lineup spans world and regional premieres, 22 restored Egyptian classics, and international standouts, with short films, for the first time, taking over the Opera House’s Grand Theatre, a gesture toward younger creators and growing audience demand.
At the center of Cairo Film Festival’s professional ecosystem is the Cairo Film Connection, now recognized as one of the Middle East and North Africa region’s most vital pitching platforms. Held as part of the Cairo Industry Days, it links filmmakers from Egypt, Africa and the Arab world with international producers, funders and festival programmers.
The Cairo Film Market, relaunched in 2024, also grows this year, with 26 exhibitors and multiple new partnerships. The festival also expands its industry arm through a new partnership with the Co-Production Salon, the UAE-based networking hub that brings together more than 200 producers, investors, and content executives from across MENA.
On screen, the 2025 program highlights the vibrancy and range of regional cinema. Tarek points to some standouts in the program like official competition selection “One More Show,” (Mai Saad and Ahmed Al Danaf, Egypt, Palestine), a documentary capturing resilience amid devastation as it follows a Gaza circus troupe performing for children against the backdrop of war. Tarek says other local projects like Horizons of Arab Cinema competitor “Complaint No. 713317” (Yasser Shafiey, Egypt), which heads to Rotterdam after a Cairo premiere, show a shift in the reach of homegrown talent. “This used to be the other way around,” Tarek says with a smile. “Now, festivals take films from us.”
The festival’s final screening underscores that spirit. “The Voice of Hind Rajab,” winner of the Silver Lion in Venice, will close Cairo Film Festival before opening Doha, completing a circuit of regional solidarity that Tarek and his team hope to strengthen. “Creating ties is harder than creating competition,” he adds. “But ties last longer, and they give more back to the region.”
Alongside discovery, Cairo Film Festival remains attentive to legacy. This year’s tributes to Egyptian cinema veterans include actor Khaled El Nabawy, filmmaker Mohamed Abdelaziz and cinematographer Mahmoud Abdelsamie. Other honorees, who will also headline masterclasses throughout the festival, include Palestinian actress Hiam Abbas and Hungarian director Ildikó Enyedi. Veteran Turkish director Nuri Bilde Ceylan heads the international competition jury.
For all its international scope, Cairo Film Festival remains inseparable from Cairo’s urban rhythm. Screenings spill beyond the Opera House into suburban cinemas on both sides of the Nile. The American University in Cairo opens its downtown premises to host events, while student collaborations with design and architecture departments help shape festival spaces. Every year, Tarek says, demand outpaces capacity. “It’s a good problem to have,” Tarek admits. “This is a festival people care about.”
That care defines Cairo Film Festival’s identity as much as its programming. From outreach to industry partnerships, the emphasis is on participation, not exclusivity. “We want people to feel this festival belongs to them.”