release date October 22 2024
THE SUN SETS ON BEIRUT, THE LAST WINTER win accolades at Middle East Now Film Festival
Daniela Stephan’s THE SUN SETS ON BEIRUT and Haidar Al-Shitaa Daoud’s THE LAST WINTER each received a well-deserved award at the 15th Middle East Now Film Festival in Italy, with the former winning an honorable mention and the latter the festival’s coveted Best Short Film Award.
THE SUN SETS ON BEIRUT follows Mounia, played by Marilyne Naaman, searching for her lost cat amongst the ruins left in the wake of the 2020 Beirut port explosion. Joined by her best friend Ghady, who is more interested in flirting with a British journalist, they navigate the remnants of their city on a quest to recover what’s been lost.
The film world premiered at the InterFilm Berlin Short Film Festival and opened for the 2022 Tripoli Film Festival. It has already screened at over a dozen prestigious film festivals, winning four awards, including Best Student Film at the Olhares do Mediterraneo International Women's Film Festival, Grand Prize and Jury Special Mention at Les Nuits Mediterraneennes du Court Métrage, and the Audience Vote Award at the Beirut International Women's Film Festival.
Meanwhile, THE LAST WINTER takes viewers on a personal journey that intertwines the director's own story with the larger narrative of Saudi Arabia's cultural metamorphosis and the nascent cinema industry. The film captures the essence of being far from home while nurturing the dream to contribute to one's cultural heritage, exploring the bond between artists and their roots within the emerging cinematic landscape of Saudi Arabia.
This captivating documentary, set against the serene backdrop of a Swedish winter, offers a lighthearted yet earnest critique of the artistic struggle and the broader challenges encountered within the film industry.
The film screened at the Saudi Film Festival's National Competition and the Bahrain Film Festival's Documentary Competition in 2022.
MAD Distributions handles regional distribution for both films, while MAD World handles sales worldwide.
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