Shnit has arrived in Cairo and bathes the city in its characteristic pink light. The OPENING event of the festival is hosted by the Embassy of Switzerland and is taking place at their Office for International Cooperation (OIC) in Garden City. This venue is perfect for the occasion not only because of the symbolism, but also, because the OIC has probably the only garden left in Garden City. The audience will therefore enjoy the Shnit OPENING open air. The Shnit team in Bern handpicked a fine selection of the newest Swiss short films for Cairo.

Earlier in the evening at the very same venue, there will be a screening of the film block LITTLE & SHORT, an opportunity to introduce our youngest audience to our favorite medium - the short film. The movies are without dialogue, so that each and every one of the young crowd can follow the stories. The film block is for kids aged 5 and older. Kids are allowed to bring their parents.

The Cairo opening of the Shnit Short Film Festival this year will single out a number of remarkable film events and activities for filmmakers and film lovers in addition to Shnit's international short film programme. On Sunday, October 11th, the festival will conclude with an impressive Arab short film programme, including a workshop on writing short films and two panel discussions on film stories.

Hosted this year by the Greek Campus (AUC's Downtown campus), a workshop on writing short films will be moderated by Ayman El Ameer and will take place from 3:00 PM to 05:00 PM. On 06:00 pm, a panel discussion will be held on the topic. "Stories Happening on the Internet", at 07:00 PM a panel discussion will take place under the title "Stories Meet ads-Ads Meet Stories".

Details have previously been revealed on the screenings programme for the Shnit (8-11 October) with Shnit OPEN which comprises the world's best 60 short films of the last year in all genres, fiction, documentary, animation and beyond. On the other hand four film blocks put together for all kinds of special interests and moods: FEEL GOOD Shnit which finds balance in the perfect blend of love, life and lust, with an added pinch of spice, and space for comedic moments of surprise. BAD LUCK includes humorous and gleefully dark films in honour of the 13th Shnit edition.

Shnit DOCUMENTS tells the stories of socially explosive, far-reaching true-life experiences. Shnit ANIMATES allows us the entrance to a fabulous world that we thought could only exist in our imagination. The film block SWISS MADE is filled with the newest shorts from Switzerland.

In addition, two film blocks are presented by the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) and MAD Solutions; FATTA that includes short films from the Arab World reflecting its various moods and conflicting ideals. From the narrative to the documentary to the experimental, the Arab flavored programme offers a comprehensive look at the state of young Arab filmmakers today such as; Naji Abu Nowar, Nayla Al Khaja, Naji Ismail, Bassem Chekhes and Omar El Zohairy. BIG NAMES | Small Films is a film block of shorts that will proof that successful actors don't shy away from the short stories.

ONCE UPON A TIME is a film block curated by SEMAT that shows three films of filmmakers that started off their career with a short film produced by this very same independent production company.

In its fourth round in Egypt, this year the festival is spreading in Cairo and the short films will be screened at the Greek Campus (AUC's Downtown campus), Goethe Institute, Cinema Radio and Rawabet in Downtown, the Cooperation Office of the Swiss Embassy in Garden City and the Netherlands-Flemish Institute in Zamalek. Additionally, these venues will host a number of panel discussions and events for film enthusiasts.

Head of the brand new team for the Shnit festival in Cairo is the director and producer Wael Omar, while MAD Solutions will run the promotional work.

Not only the festival, but also its prizes have a growing reputation: The short films are competing for the five Flaming Faun awards, of which each one includes a grant of 20'000 USD. The 13th edition of the festival screens its films simultaneously in several cities around the globe in a worldwide celebration of short films: Hong Kong in China, Bangkok in Thailand, Bern in Switzerland, Buenos Aires in Argentina, Cape Town in South Africa, Moscow in Russia, and San Joséin Costa Rica.