MAD Solutions Boasts Eight Films at the Arab Film Festival Zurich

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Kiss Me Not| The Journey| A Day for Women| Mustafa Z| 17| The Parrot |BONBONÉ| Nocturne in Black

MAD Solutions Boasts Eight Films at the Arab Film Festival Zurich


MAD Solutions will screen seven films from its list of clientele at the fourth edition of the Arab Film Festival Zurich (15 November - 16 December). The MAD films are Kiss Me Not by Ahmed Amer, The Journey by Mohamed Al-Daradji, Mustafa Z by Nidhal Chatta, in addition to the documentary film 17 by Widad Shafakoj, and short films BONBONÉ by Rakan Mayasi, The Parrot by Darin J. Sallam and Amjad Al-Rasheed and Nocturne in Black by Jimmy Keyrouz. A Day for Women by Kamla Abouzekri that is marketed by MAD Solutions will also be screened.

Established in 2012, the Arab Film Festival Zurich is a non-profit film festival that is organized by the association International Arab Film Festival Zurich (IAFFZ) and the Filmpodium in Zurich. The programme comprises short and feature films, documentaries, animations, and experimental films concerning social, cultural and political topics.

About A Day for Women:

A Day for Women takes place in a shabby neighborhood in Egypt where a youth center decides to allocate one day on the swimming pool for women only. The film follows the consequences of this decision on the social, psychological and emotional life of the women living in that neighborhood.

A Day for Women brings together a cast and crew of outstanding women, as it is produced by Elham Shahin through her company Shahin Film, who also stars in the film, directed by Kamla Abouzekri, written by Hanaa Atiyah, DOP Nancy Abdel Fattah, and Costume Designer Inas Shahin. The film stars Nelly Karim, Nahed El Sebai, Hala Sedqi, Ragaa Hussein, Shaimaa Seif, along with Mahmoud Hemida, Farouk Al Fishawy, Ahmad Al Fishawy, Eyad Nassar and Ahmed Dawood. MAD Solutions handles the film's marketing and promotion in the Arab world.

Sunday, November 18, at 09:00 pm
Friday, November 30, at 03:00 pm
Tuesday, December 4, at 06:15 pm

About The Journey

The film is set in Baghdad in 2006. As Sara stands on the cusp of committing an unthinkable act, an unforeseen and awkward encounter gives her the opportunity to witness the potential consequences of her destructive action. But is this a second chance or an admission of guilt?

Directed by Mohamed Al-Daradji, who co-wrote the film with Isabelle Stead, The Journey stars Zahraa Ghandour and Ameer Jbara. The film is produced by Human Film, Iraqi Independent Film Center (IIFC), in cooperation with Lionceau Films, Iraq Al-Rafidain and Iraqi Media Network. The Journey received grants from the Doha Film Institute, AFAC - The Arab Fund for Arts and Culture, World Cinema Fund (WCF), the Centre National du Cinéma et de l'image Animée (CNC) of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development, Institut Français, Netherlands Film Fund, SANAD Development Fund (Abu Dhabi Film Festival) and Screen Yorkshire. The film is distributed in the Arab world by MAD Solutions.

Saturday, November 17, at 05:00 pm
Sunday, November 25, at 09:00 pm
Wednesday, November 28, at 06:15 pm

About Kiss Me Not:

Kiss Me Not follows a young and ambitious Egyptian director who faces issues while shooting a kissing scene in his new film with the leading actress Fajr who decides to pursue a more religious path.

Kiss Me Not made its world premiere at the 14th Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) within the Arabian Nights programme. The film received a Special Mention at the 1st Jounieh International Film Festival. Kiss Me Not stars Yasmin Raeis, Mohamed Mahran, Salwa Mohamed Ali and Aida Riad with guest stars actress Sawsan Badr, along with late director Mohamed Khan and director Khairy Beshara as themselves. The film is written and directed by Ahmed Amer, produced by Middlewest Films, WIKA for Film Production and Distribution and MAD Solutions, and distributed by MAD Solutions.

Sunday, November 18, at 04:30 pm
Friday, November 23, at 09:00 pm
Saturday, December 1, at 03:00 pm

About 17:

17 follows the Jordanian under-17 women's football team as they prepare for the FIFA U17 Women's World Cup Jordan 2016. Coming from different backgrounds, each of the girls has faced a different set of challenges as a national team player. But now they come together to face their biggest challenge yet. 17 is a social exploration into the lives of young women who are passionate about a sport they have been told was only for men. Will Anoud make it in the final squad? Will Leen be ready to play in this world-class event with so little time to prepare? Will the odds finally start working for the team?

17 is directed by Widad Shafakoj, produced by Muna Fityani and distributed in the Arab world by MAD Solutions. The film screened at many film festivals, including the Carthage Film Festival (JCC) in Tunisia, Arab Film Festival in California, USA.

Friday, November 16, at 06:00 pm
Monday, November 26, at 09:00 pm


About Mustafa Z:

Mustafa Z follows a simple Tunisian man through a series of unexpected events that change the course of his life in 24 hours, just a few hours before the country's first democratic elections.

Most recently, Mustafa Z won the Grand Prize and Best Actor to Abdelmonem Chouayet at the 7th Festival Maghrébin du Film d'Oujda. Directed by Nidhal Chatta, the film stars Abdelmonem Chouayet, Fatma Nasser, Aissa Harrath, Férid Memmich, Narjess Ben Ammar and Sabri Khiari. The film is produced by SOUTH BY SOUTH WEST FILMS and BLACK & LIGHT and distributed by MAD Solutions in the Arab world.

Friday, November 16, at 08:30 pm
Friday, November 23, at 06:15 pm
Sunday, December 2, at 03:00 pm

About BONBONÉ

In less than 16 minutes, a Palestinian inmate serving time in an Israeli jail receives a visit from his wife who devises a bold and crafty operation to fulfill their secret desires.
BONBONÉ landed its world premiere at the 42nd Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), where it competed in its Short Cuts competition.

Written and directed by Rakan Mayasi, BONBONÉ stars Saleh Bakri, Rana Alamuddin, Nadira Omran and Ziad Bakri. The filmis produced by Groundglass235 in co-production with The Postoffice and Mad4Films, in association with db Studios. MAD Solutions is responsible for distributing the film across the Arab world and Salaud Morisset is responsible for its international sales.

Friday, November 16, at 08:30 pm
Friday, November 23, at 06:15 pm
Sunday, December 3, at 03:00 pm


About The Parrot:

The Parrot tells the story of a Mizrahi Jewish family, who emigrate from Morocco, trying to settle into their new life in Haifa, Palestine in 1948. Directed by Darin J. Sallam and Amjad Al-Rasheed, the film stars Hend Sabry, Ashraf Barhoum, Yasmine Ben Amara, Eyad Hourani, Firas Taybeh, Lara Sawalha, and Ahmad Al-Madani, and written by Darin J. Sallam, Amjad Al-Rasheed, and Rifqi Assaf.

The Parrot had its world premiere at the 13th Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) within the Muhr Short competition. The film won the Jury Prize at the Malmo Arab Film Festival in Sweden. It was one of the film projects funded by the German Robert Bosch Stiftung Foundation, which funds the Best German-Arab film projects. The film received the 2015 Film Prize of RBS in the short fiction category.

Saturday, 17 November, at 12:00 pm


About Nocturne in Black:

The film is inspired by an article about a Syrian young man who continues to play his piano under threat of persecution in the midst of his country's civil war and struggles to rebuild his piano after it is destroyed by terrorists.

Nocturne in Black landed its world premiere at the Columbia University Film Festival where it won the Jury Selects. In 2016, the film received a number of awards including; the Gold Medal at the 43rd Student Academy Awards, the Jury Award for Best Narrative Short Film at the Long Beach International Film Festival, the Marion Carter Green Award at the National Board of Review, the Gold Circle Award at the Caucus Foundation Award, the IFP Audience Award at the Independent Film Project, and the Best Director award at the NDU International Film Festival in Lebanon. Most recently, the film won the BIFF Award for Best Short Film at the Boulder International Film Festival, and the Live Action Film Award at the BAFTA Los Angeles Student Film Awards.

Thursday, November 15, at 06:15 pm
Monday, December 3, at 09:00 pm