MAD Solutions Joins Cairo International Film Festival with 7 Films from its Distribution List

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The Tower | The Giraffe | Dreamaway | My Favorite Fabric | 3000 Nights | Coming Forth by Day | Before We Heal

MAD Solutions Joins Cairo International Film Festival with 7 Films from its Distribution List


The Cairo International Film Festival has announced the films that will be taking part in the 40th edition of the festival (20 - 29 November) in a press conference on Monday. The list of films included 7 films from MAD Solutions' distribution list, including 4 features, one documentary, a short film, and an animated feature.

The participating films are: Mats Grorud's animated film The Tower, which will take part in the festival's Official Competition; as well as The Giraffe, the feature directorial debut by director and actor Ahmed Magdy that is landing its world premiere; Dreamaway by Marouan Omara and Johanna Domke; My Favorite Fabric by Gaya Jiji, landing its Arab world premiere after participating in Cannes; in addition to the short film Before We Heal by Nadim Hobeika, which took part in many film festivals.

Aside from the aforementioned movies, Mai Masri's 3000 Nights and Hala Lotfy's Coming Forth by Day will also take part in the Arab Female Directors section, which was set up by the festival's administration to celebrate Arab female figures who have excelled in film directing and were able make great achievements at international film festivals.

About The Tower

An animation feature film directed and written by Mats Grorud, The Tower features the voices of Romina Adl Kasravi, Mohamed Bakri, Najila Said, and Morad Hassan. The film is a French-Swedish-Norwegian coproduction that is distributed in the Arab world by MAD Solutions.

Wardi, an eleven-year-old Palestinian girl, lives with her whole family in the refugee camp where she was born. She learns about her family's history through stories told to her by three earlier generations of refugees. The film took part in the Annecy International Animated Film Festival in France, the Festival du Film Arabe de Fameck in France, Busan International Film Festival and Palestine Cinema Days.

About The Giraffe

Through the streets of the city that are void of all but its ghosts, Ahmed is lost and depleted of faith. Tonight, he must save a girl he doesn't know by getting her enough money to have an abortion. He finds himself involved with an eccentric group of young people lead by an enigmatic girl who is trying to uncover the mystery behind the Giraffe hidden at the zoo.

Written and directed by Ahmed Magdy, The Giraffe stars Amr Hosny, Shaza Moharam, Haydi Koussa, Salma Hassan, Rasha Magdy, Mohammed El Badawy, and Osama Gawish. The film is coproduced by Garage Art Production, Utaco Digital Film, Fig Leaf Studio. It was awarded the AFAC Production Grant and the SANAD Development Grant from the Abu Dhabi Film Festival. The film will be distributed in the Arab world by MAD Solutions.

About Dreamaway

Representing freedom and easy cash, Sharm El Sheikh has long been a dream destination for Egyptian youth. Recently, terror attacks have brought tourism in the resort town to a halt. Dreamaway follows a group of young employees of a luxury hotel compound, where clichés and stereotypes of Western and Oriental cultures clash. This carousel-like experience elevates the youths into a dreamlike state.

Directed by Marouan Omara and Johanna Domke, Dreamaway is produced by Roman Roitman, (Monokel/Germany), Mark Lotfy (Fig Leaf Studio/Egypt) and Arne Birkenstock(Fruitmarket Kultur und Medien/Germany). MAD Solutions is handling the film's distribution through the Arab world.

Dreamaway landed its world premiere at the 53rd edition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in the Czech Republic, in addition to taking part in the BFI London Film Festival, Chicago International Film Festival, and Bergen International Film Festival, Norway.

About My Favorite Fabric

My Favorite Fabric by Gaya Jiji landed its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival (Un Certain Regard Section). The film is produced by Gloria Films Production (Laurent Lavolé) and stars Manal Issa, Ula Tabari, and Souraya Baghdadi. MAD Solutions is handling the film's distribution in the Arab world.

The film follows the 25-year Nahla who finds herself torn between choosing to stay in her country and fight for freedom or accept the offer of an arranged marriage from a Syrian expatriate in the USA. To make things more complicated, a new man comes into her life changing everything!

About Before We Heal

Saleem and Raya meet at Raya's place. Saleem enters the toilet and somehow gets stuck. Between the inside and the outside, trials and disappointments, laughter and hope, memories and screams, are all being shared at the doorstep.

Written and directed by Nadim Hobeika, Before We Heal stars Yumna Marwan, Mohammad Bsat and Elie Njeim. The film's crew includes Cinematographer Céline Layous, Editor Nathalie Rbeiz, and Composer Jean Nassif. The film is distributed in the Arab world by MAD Solutions.

About 3000 Nights

Palestinian-Jordanian film 3000 Nights by director Mai Masri won 23 international awards and was Palestine's official submission to the Golden Globe Awards.

3000 Nights is a co-production between Jordan, Palestine, France, UAE, Qatar and Lebanon. MAD Solutions is in charge of the film's distribution in the Arab world. 3000 Nights tells the story of a young Palestinian school teacher who gives birth to her son in an Israeli prison, where she fights to protect him, survive and maintain hope. The film stars Maisa Abdelhadi, Nadira Omran, Raida Adon, Rakeen Saad, Abeer Haddad, Anahid Fayad, Haifa Al Agha, Khitam Edelbi and Hana Chamoun.

About Coming Forth by Day

Directed and written by Hala Lotfy, Coming Forth by Day tells the story of a poor family living in a shabby neighborhood on the outskirts of Cairo. The pillar of the family, a single 30-year-old woman (Donia Maher), finds it difficult to express her feelings and dreams, while she spends her time only taking care of her wheelchair-bound father (Ahmed Lotfy) and mother (Salma Al-Naggar) who works as a nurse. The film is distributed in the Arab world by MAD Solutions.