Director Sherif El Bendary's film Ali, the Goat and Ibrahimis landing its world premiere at the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF). The film will be contending for the Best Muhr Fiction Feature Award
at the festival that will take place from the 7th to the 14th of December.

DIFF is one of the most important film festivals in the Arab world. In each edition, DIFF showcases over 120 features, shorts films and documentaries from around the world and will include several world premieres. Every year DIFF presents new and exciting cinema from the Arab world and beyond, introducing audiences to fresh, new talent and original and distinctive filmmaking.

Ali, the Goat and Ibrahimfollows a strange love story lived by a young man living in a rough neighborhood. He travels across Egypt on the recommendation of a psychic along with Ibrahim who hears is almost driven mad by the voices he hears in his head. Their journey turns into a voyage of friendship and self-discovery.

Directed by Sherif El Bendary, Ali, the Goat and Ibrahim is written by Ahmed Amer, based on Ibrahim El
Batout's story and is produced by Mohamed Hefzy's Film Clinic, Transit Films of Hossam Elouan
and the French film production company Arizona Productions. To be distributed by MAD Solutions, Ali, the Goat and Ibrahim introduces two acting prodigies; Ali Sobhy (Ein Shams 2009) and Ahmed Magdy (The Gate of Departure 2014), who star along with Salwa Mohamed Aly and Nahed El Sebai.

The film had previously received three awards as part of the Final Cut in Venice Workshop at the 72nd
Venice International Film Festival in 2015, namely; 10,000 Euros worth award presented by the Paris-based CNC foundation to be spent during the post-production phase in France; 10,000 Euros provided by the French Knight works to be spent on the visual and special effects; in addition to 10,000 Euros provided by Titra TVS to be spent on the digital colors correction, DCP bar and providing film subtitles into French or English.

The film has received a post-production fund from SANAD Fund, and the Arab Funds for Arts and Culture (AFAC) grant in 2009, in addition to funding support from Doha Film Institute in 2013, chosen among 211 projects applied for the scholarship, and also gained the support of the Dubai Film Fund and Enjaaz within Dubai International Film Festival.

Egyptian director Sherif El Bendary has graduated from the Egyptian Higher Institute of Cinema (HCI) in 2007 and was appointed as a lecturer in the Film-directing department in 2008. El Bendary made his breakthrough into filmmaking through a number of short films and documentaries including his short film Curfew, a chapter that was part of the collective feature 18 Days, which was an official selection at Cannes Film Festival 2011.

In 2014, El Bendary won The Film Prize of the Robert Bosch Stiftung at Berlin International Film Festival
(Berlinale) to aid his short film Dry, Hot Summers.He directed his first feature film Ali, the Goat and Ibrahim in 2015, which is a joint production between Arab and European countries. Two Rooms and a Living Room is Sherif El Bendary's upcoming project; a short movie based on the story under the same title by the recently deceased great writer Ibrahim Aslan.