Souad by Ayten Amin Official Selection at Tribeca Film Festival in New York
Landing Its First World Physical Premiere
Souad by Ayten Amin Official Selection at Tribeca Film Festival in New York
After being selected for the virtual editions of the Cannes Film Festival in 2020 and Berlin International Film Festival in 2021 (Panorama), Souad film by Egyptian director Ayten Amin has been officially selected at the International Tribeca Film Festival in New York (9-20 June). Screening at the International Feature Competition, this marks the film's first premiere to actual audiences.Souad is an Egyptian-Tunisian co-production by Egyptian producer Sameh Awad, in his production debut, in collaboration with Tunisian producer Dora Bouchoucha (Weldi), Egyptian producer/screenwriter Mohamed Hefzy (Clash), and Egyptian film producer Mark Lotfy. Film Clinic Indie Distribution has acquired Souad's distribution rights across the Arab world.
Marking a co-production between Egypt and Tunisia, Souad is co-written by director Ayten Amin and Mahmoud Ezzat in their second collaboration after Villa 69 (2013), which received the Special Jury Award for a Film from the Arab World at the Abu Dhabi Film Festival. Villa 69 was produced by Mohamed Hefzy’s Film Clinic.
The film follows the story of two teenage sisters who live in a Delta city in Egypt. One of them is leading a virtual life, which she keeps as a secret from their conservative family. The film stars a number of acting talents casted from Egypt’s Delta cities, and has been shot in different cities outside of Cairo.
In 2020, the film was an official selection at the Cannes Film Festival, which was held under an unprecedented atmosphere in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The festival's physical edition was canceled in May following the French government's ban on large-scale events to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, the festival grouped the presented titles in one single list of 56 films collectively, without placing them in the usual categories.
The film is an Egyptian-Tunisian co-production including: Egyptian producer Sameh Awaad (Vivid Reels), in his production debut, Tunisian producer Dora Bouchoucha (Weldi) (Nomadis Images), producer/screenwriter Mohamed Hefzy (Clash) (Film Clinic), German producer/director Wim Wenders (Neue Road Movie), and Egyptian producer Mark Lotfy (Dreamaway) (Fig Leaf Studios). The film will be distributed in the Arab world by Film Clinic Indie Distribution (FCID).