release date March 28 2022
Daughters Of Abdul-Rahman Opens Malmö Arab Film Festival in Sweden
Daughters Of Abdul-Rahman opens the 12th edition of the Malmö Arab Film Festival in Sweden, which runs from 4 to 9 May, marking the film's debut screening in Europe following several successful premieres at Arab festivals.
Malmö Arab Film Festival aims to screen films from various Arab nationalities for the various communities in Sweden, a total of 175 films from diverse nationalities. The festival attracts thousands of filmmakers from across the world, including directors, actors, producers, and moviegoers.
Earlier this month, the screening of Daughters Of Abdul-Rahman witnessed a huge turnout at Beirut International Women Film Festival, with the film’s heroine Saba Mubarak, and director Zaid Abu Hamdan in attendance. The film recently won the Audience Award (Youssef Cherif Rizkallah Award) at the 43rd edition of Cairo International Film Festival. Moreover, it landed its premiere in the United States a few days ago at the San Diego Arab Film Festival.
Back in December, the film screened at the the Arab Spectacular section of the 1st edition of Red Sea International Film Festival, receiving wide critical acclaim: “The film is enjoyable and the script is peppered with plenty of laughs and nice set pieces,” Jay Weissberg wrote on The Film Verdict. While film critic Ola El Shafie described the film in ElWatan News saying, “In Arab Cinema, it is rare to find a non-Egyptian film that generates so much laughter.” Furthermore, the CIFF newsletter described the film as, “A Heart-warming ode to sisterhood in all its colorful complexities.”
The film follows the storyline of Zainab who wakes up to a shocking discovery that could defame her in the neighborhood. She quickly calls for her sister’s aid. Yet, fiery Amaal has her own secret struggle and is not having her sister Samah, who is too busy to be there. Meanwhile Khitam tries to focus on her own mission.
Written and directed by Zaid Abu Hamdan, Daughters Of Abdul-Rahman stars Saba Mubarak, Farah Bsaiso, Hanan Al Hilo, Mariam Al Basha, Khalid Al Tarifi, Mohammed Al Jizawi, and Mohamed Bakri. It is produced by Pan East Media (Saba Mubarak & Aya Wuhoush), Lagoonie Film Production, and Arab Media Network. MAD Solutions handles the film’s distribution in the Arab world.
The film received multiple funds, including Doha Film Institute development fund, the Jordan Film Fund of the Royal Film Commission development and production funds, as well as a fund from CineGouna Platform (post production) at El Gouna Film Festival. The film was also selected among the finalist projects at the Tribeca Film Festival - All Access program, and selected for RFC Rawi Screenwriters Lab.
Born and raised in Amman, Jordan, Zaid Abu Hamdan holds an MFA from the New York Film Academy in Hollywood California. Zaid started his career working on international TV shows as an Assistant Director and Producer, including E! Entertainment’s coverage of the Golden Globe and Academy Awards. In addition, Zaid worked as a television reporter for Middle East Broadcast Corporation group (MBC Group) in Hollywood. He also worked on directing reality and scripted shows such as Sesame Street, a competition that shows and mentors the Arab Film Studio program at Image Nation, Abu Dhabi. Since 2009, Zaid has written and directed five award-winning and audience-acclaimed short films, including Bahiya & Mahmoud, which was the official Jordanian submission to the Academy Awards in 2012.
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