A Double Screening for Karim Hanafy's The Gate of Departure in Egypt and Sudan

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A Double Screening for Karim Hanafy's The Gate of Departure in Egypt and Sudan


Karim Hanafy's The Gate of Departure will take part at the 3rd Sudan Independent Film Festival (SIFF) (21-27 January) in Sudan, before it returns to Cairo for a screening on February 6th at Creativity Center within the activities of the 42nd Egyptian Film Association Festival (30 January - 6 February).

The Gate of Departure synopsis: "You, who have always been here, you will be everywhere."
A prophecy that has always haunted a son growing to manhood in his mother's desolated home. The son is unable to begin his journey beyond the boundaries of these walls repressed by feelings of guilt towards his mother, who chooses to imprison herself for the rest of her life, guarding her only son as she helplessly witnesses her beauty slipping away day by day. The sorrowful mother refuses to let go of the gift that life has granted her. Only a whirlwind of painful dreams that pave the way for her son's departure teaches her to accept her eternal solitude, thus opening the door for him to begin his long journey to himself.

Written and directed by Karim Hanafy, The Gate of Departure stars Salwa Khattab, Ahmed Magdy, Amaal Abdel Hady and Shams Labib. The film is produced by Khaial Art Production with support from Egypt's Ministry of Culture. With MAD Solutions on board as the film's distributor in the Arab world through its distribution arm MAD Distribution, the company has released the film in Egyptian cinemas across Cairo.

The Gate of Departure had its US premiere through the Arab Film Festival in SanFrancisco, one of the biggest and longest-standing annual independent film events screening modern contemporary films from and about the Arab world.

The film has won widespread critical and audience acclaim last year at Cairo International Film Festival where it landed as the only Egyptian official selection and won the Silver Pyramid Award for Best Artistic Contribution.

The Gate of Departure screening times at the 3rd Sudan Independent Film Festival (SIFF)
(GMT +3)
Sunday January 24th - Oumdurman Cultural Center Hall 2 at 07:30 pm

The Gate of Departure screening times at the 42nd Egyptian Film Association Festival
Saturday February 6th - Creativity Center