Egyptian director Ayten Amin's new feature Souad has been announced an official selection at the Cannes Film Festival in 2020, which will be held under an unprecedented atmosphere in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Festival’s Artistic Director Thierry Fremaux, Souad officially revealed the collective list of the lineup of the 73rd Cannes Film Festival that included a total of 56 films. While 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, without placing them in the usual categories.

Souad is a co-production between Egyptian producer Sameh Awaad, marking his production debut, Tunisian producer Dora Bouchoucha (Weldi), producer and screenwriter Mohamed Hefzy (Clash), and Egyptian producer Mark Lotfy (Dreamaway). The film will be distributed in the Arab world by Film Clinic Indie Distribution (FCID). The film 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.