The Guest: Aleppo-Istanbul Receives a Special Mention at the Casablanca Arab Film Festival
Going to the Acting Prodigy Rawan Skeif for Her Role in the Film
The Guest: Aleppo-Istanbul Receives a Special Mention at the Casablanca Arab Film Festival
The Guest: Aleppo-Istanbul by Turkish director Andaç Haznederoğlu, and headlined by Jordanian star Saba Mubarak, received a Special Mention to child Rawan Skeif for her role at the 1st edition of the Casablanca Arab Film Festival that closed on Saturday, December 15.
The Guest: Aleppo-Istanbul follows the journey of Lena and Meryem during their escape from the war in Syria. Lena is a ten-year-old girl who has lost her family in the war. She finds herself forced to make her way to Turkey with her baby sister and their neighbor Meryem, along with the other refugees. Lena wants to return home, while Meryem's hope is to reach Europe.
Written and directed by Turkish director Andaç Haznederoğlu, The Guest: Aleppo-Istanbul stars Saba Mubarak and child Rawan Skeif, alongside a number of real Syrian refugees who are acting for the first time. The film is a co-production between the Turkish companies; Andaç Film Productions, Istanbul Digital (ID) and Istanbul Film Production (IFP); and the Jordanian company Pan East Media. The film project received financial support from the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism. MAD Solutions is handling the film's distribution in the Arab world.
Recently, the film was released in Jordanian theaters. The Guest: Aleppo-Istanbul took part in the 8th Malmö Arab Film Festival in Sweden, Arab Film Festival-Amman, Arab Film Festival in Korea and the Manarat Mediterranean Film Festival in Tunisia. The film was also screened at the European Film Market (EFM), held as part of the Berlin International Film Festival, Arab Women Film Festival in Sweden, and LET'S CEE Film Festival in Vienna.
The film won several awards, including the Audience Award at the Antalya Film Festival in Turkey, where it made its world premiere, the Best Feature and Best Actress awards at the Silk Road International Film Festival (SRIFF) in Ireland, and the Best Feature Film and Best Editing awards in the National Feature Films Competition of the International Bosphorus Film Festival.