Massive Turnout for Daughters Of Abdul-Rahman at Beirut International Women Film Festival

release date March 15 2022

In the presence of the film’s star Saba Mubarak and director Zaid Abu Hamdan, the screening of Daughters Of Abdul-Rahman, held on Wednesday, at Beirut International Women Film Festival witnessed a massive turnout. The film recently won the Audience Award (Youssef Cherif Rizkallah Award) at the last edition of Cairo International 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 script is peppered with plenty of laughs and nice set pieces” Jay Weissberg wrote on The Film Verdict, “It is rare in Arab Cinema to find all these laughs come from an audience of a non-Egyptian film in theaters.”, Ola El Shafie via ElWatan News, “Heart-warming ode to sisterhood in all its colorful complexities” CIFF Newsletter.

Years after escaping a dictated life, four estranged and offbeat sisters are forced to come together to find their suddenly-missing father. In their secret searching journey, secrets are revealed and more.

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.

Previously, 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.