Khaled Muhammad Samy Abol Naga, credited as Khaled Abol Naga and by the mononym Kal Naga, is an Egyptian actor, director and producer. He is recognized primarily for his work in Egypt and the Middle East, but has increasingly ventured into American and British film and television roles. He started acting and directing plays and musicals in Egypt while studying theatre at The American University in Cairo. Beginning his professional acting career in 2000, Naga starred in several movies through the next decade with roles encompassing several genres, from musicals None but that! (2007), action Agamista (2007), Eyes Of A Thief (2014), thrillers Kashf Hesab (2007), art-house Heliopolis (2009), Villa 69 (2013), Decor (2014), and slapstick comedy Habibi Naêman (2008). Additionally, he has participated in several European film festivals, where he received a range of awards as an actor and producer. Since 2016, he has acted in several English-speaking roles, such as Tyrant on FX, History Channel's Vikings, and the BBC's TV mini series The Last Post, and announced to appear in the upcoming Netflix Show Messiah 2019. In a film festival in 2016 that celebrated Arab film submissions to the Oscars, he was noted as being the most submitted actor in Arabic films submissions to the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. He is often tagged in western media as "Egypt's Brad Pitt", and he has also been described as "the next Omar Sharif" especially after his American debut movie Civic Duty in 2007. Chosen as a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF in 2007, Naga played a pivotal role in child rights awareness, as well as the very first HIV awareness campaigns in Egypt and the Arab world, and participated in several international causes, including advocating for democracy in his home country Egypt. He is one of the most recognizable celebrity faces of the 2011 Egyptian Revolution, taking part in mass demonstrations in Cairo that led to the removal of President Mubarak. He faced defamation campaigns against him by the state-owned media during the Mubarak era before the January 25th, 2011 revolution in Egypt, and several times again from the 2013 "coup d'etat" General Sisi government in Egypt in retaliation for his Advocacy about the deterioration of Human Rights situation in Egypt in the wake of the return to brutal repressive military dictatorship in Egypt.
The cinema of Egypt refers to the flourishing film industry based in Cairo. Since 1976, the capital has held the annual Cairo International Film Festival, which has been accredited by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations. There is also another festival held in Alexandria. Of the more than 4,000 short and feature-length films made in MENA region since 1908, more than three-quarters were Egyptian films. Egyptian films are typically spoken in the Arabic language, especially the Egyptian Arabic dialect.
Massar Egbari is an Egyptian Rock band that was officially launched in 2005 from Alexandria, Egypt. The band consists of 4 musicians: Ayman Massoud (Keyboards), Hany El Dakkak, Ahmed Hafez, and Tamer Attallah (Drums). Mahmoud Siam (Guitars) joined the band in 2008. It presents a kind of alternative Egyptian music, mixing rock, jazz and blues with Oriental music. "Massar Egbari" means "Compulsory Detour", a name intended to reflect how society forces people to think and live their lives in a certain way. The band pokes fun at typical social norms and trends. The band mainly concentrates on presenting music and songs talking about social problems. Love is not their main concern although it represents a part of their songs.
Ahmad Abdalla El Sayed Abdelkader is an Egyptian film director, editor and screenwriter.
Khaled El Hagar is an Egyptian film director.
The 33rd annual Cairo International Film Festival was held from November 10 to November 20, 2009. Indian director Adoor Gopalakrishnan was the President of the Jury.
Yosra El Lozy, is an Egyptian actress. She has received many awards from regional and international film festivals. She has won various awards for her acting in Qobolat Masrouqa (2008), Bel-Alwan el-Tabe'eya (2009), Heliopolis (2010) and Microphone (2011). She has also provided voice dubbing in Arabic for several films and television series.
Microphone is a 2010 Egyptian independent film by Ahmad Abdalla about the underground art scene of the city of Alexandria, Egypt. The film received Best Arabic-language film Award from Cairo International Film Festival and Tanit d'Or from Journées cinématographiques de Carthage. In addition to Best Editing Award from Dubai International Film Festival in 2010.
The Traveller is an Egyptian film directed by Ahmed Maher. The story takes place in the course of three days of the life of Hassan, the octogenarian protagonist, played by Khaled El Nabawy as the young Hassan and Omar Sharif as the older Hassan. The three days of Hassan's life represents key events in modern Egyptian history: the first is the Nakba in 1948, the second is the 6 October War in 1973, and the third is 9/11 in 2001.
18 Days is an Egyptian anthology film focusing on the 18 days of the 2011 Egyptian revolution. It premiered at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival.
Empire M is a 1972 Egyptian drama film directed by Hussein Kamal. The film was entered into the 8th Moscow International Film Festival in 1973. It was also selected as the Egyptian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 46th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.
Christine Solomon is an Egyptian-born Canadian stage, film and television actress. She won Best Actress of Empowerment Award at The Madbakh Awards in Toronto for her unique role in Heliopolis. Solomon was honored for her role as the first representation of a Gothic woman in Egyptian film.
Tamer El Said is an Egyptian filmmaker. He wrote, produced and directed numerous films including Take Me (2004), an award winning documentary about five friends who unwittingly became political prisoners in Morocco, and the short film On a Monday (2005) on an old married couple who rediscover their relationship. His first fiction feature In the Last Days of the City was shot in Cairo, Berlin, Baghdad and Beirut and premiered in 2016 at the Berlin International Film Festival. He is co-founder of several independent initiatives in Cairo, including Cimatheque Alternative Film Centre, Mosireen, and Zero Production.
Amr Salama is an Egyptian film director, blogger, screenwriter, and author. Born in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, he would later move with his family back to Egypt. He began his directing career primarily with short movies and commercials, after which he shifted to full-length movies.
Rags and Tatters, is a 2013 Egyptian drama film written and directed by Ahmad Abdalla. It was screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. The film was also selected in London Film Festival and Abu Dhabi Film Festival in the official competition. In November 2013, the film won the Grand Prix at the Montpellier Film Festival.
Villa 69 is a 2013 Egyptian film drama by director Ayten Amin, starring Khaled Abol Naga, Lebleba, and Arwa Gouda. The film stars Naga as a terminally ill architect who, while living happily in solitude, is forced to alter the way he lives when his sister and grandson move in with him. The film was directed by Amin and distributed by Al Massa Art Production. The film was shot in multiple locations in Egypt including Manial and Cairo.
The Idol is a 2015 Palestinian drama film directed by Hany Abu-Assad. It was shown in the Special Presentations section of the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival. It was selected as the Palestinian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards but it was not nominated.
Nour Zaki is an Egyptian film director. A winner at the Women's Voices Now film festival, Zaki's works have been acclaimed for celebrating Arab heritage and putting a spotlight on the events and the aftermath of the 2011 Egyptian uprising.
Night/Ext is a 2018 Egyptian drama film directed by Ahmad Abdalla. It was screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival. Sherif Desoky won the award for Best Actor at the 40th Cairo International Film Festival for his role in the film.
Manta Ray is a 2018 drama film written and directed by Phuttiphong Aroonpheng. It is Aroonpheng's first feature film, following his graduation from Digital Film Academy. The film had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on 7 September 2018 and received the award for the best movie in Orizzonti/ Horizon Prize selection. Aroonpheng also received the Silver Pyramid at the 40th Cairo International Film Festival. The film stars Aphisit Hama, Wanlop Rungkamjad and Rasmee Wayrana in lead roles. The film focuses on the political theme of Rohingyas in a poetic way. French composers Christine Ott and Mathieu Gabry, working as a duet under the name Snowdrops, created an original score for the movie and had been part in the sound design. Thai cutting-room ace Lee Chatametikool was also involved in the project.
