A Different Direction

Marawan Hamed opens up on his latest movie and a 16-year-long career.

A film’s fame and success are usually attributed to its stars, but Marwan Hamed, a creative director with a unique style, is one of the very few who captured the heart of their admirers, so they wait eagerly for his next film. To his audience, he is the real star of the movie.

Hamed is an Egyptian filmmaker and director who was born in 1977 in Cairo. He graduated from the High Institute of Cinema in 1999, then started his 16-year career with the short movie Lili (2001), based on a short story by the veteran writer Youssef Idris.

In 2006, Hamed directed his first feature film Omaret Yacoubian (The Yacoubian Building) which brings together giantslike Adel Imam, Nour El Sherif, Yousra, Khaled El Sawy and Essad Younis.

The Yacoubian Building garnered several awards from important international film festivals. Following his first success, he directed Ibrahim Labyad (2009), starring action hero Ahmed El Sakka, El Feel El Azraa (The Blue Elephant) in 2014, starring the heartthrob Egyptian star Karim Abdel Aziz, and finally El Asleyeen (The Natives) with Menna Shalaby and El-Sawy, released over El Fitr.

Hamed speaks to Egypt Today about his career, films and extraordinary cinematic vision.

You were still a young director when you took on Omaret Yacoubian. How did you manage such a big cast of veteran superstars?

Everyone was aware this was my first experience, so they helped me. I will never forget the great support I received from the mega star Adel Emam; his was the first scene to shoot. Also the late, renowned star Nour El Sherif, the heartthrob star Yousra and the lovely star Essaad Younis all supported me to succeed.

El Asleyeen is your second film with scriptwriter Ahmed Mourad after El Feel El Azraa, how are the two experiences different?

El Asleyeen employs one cinematic style and El Feel El Azraa employs another; both experiences with Mourad are different in all aspects.

How does El Asleyeen stand out from your previous films?

El Asleyeen’s narrative was executed with a great deal of stenography, and the cadence is new and variant. Each one of my films has its own spirit, topic, mood and belongs to a different cinematic style. My principle is not to repeat myself. This distinguishes the path I have chosen since I started my career as a director, which is to present sundry experiences, and put myself in my spectators’ shoes. Every director has two options after finishing a successful movie: to repeat himself by making the same type of film to guarantee success or to [take a chance] and direct a completely different kind of film.

Authentic cinema productions are based on being bold and adventurous. It is very important to develop myself because the new generations of spectators, particularly those under 20, are evolving so fast. Therefore, I must always be a pioneer and present attractive movies to this category.

How did you cast for El Asleyeen? Did you make decisions about choosing a certain actor for a particular role at the first read of the script?

Usually, I put more than one suggested name for each role. I ask for the producer’s and the scriptwriter’s opinion. However, the one actor I saw suitable for a particular role and insisted on was Mohamed Mamdouh.

Whose performance exceeded your expectations in El Asleyeen?

I enjoyed a lot working with everyone. This is my third cooperation with Khaled El Sawy after Omaret Yacoubian and El Feel El Azraa, and we maintain good rapport. This is my first time, however, to work with Maged El Kedwany; he possesses such depth of character, which enriches his performance with a humanitarian touch, and is reflected significantly in the role he plays. Kinda Alloush is definitely a bold actress to accept such a different role. Frankly speaking, when I offered her the role, I expected her to refuse, but her enthusiastic acceptance astonished me.

Alloush is a very smart actress and brilliantly reads and understands her character. Menna Shalaby plays the significant, leading female role of Soraya Galal, who has to be someone who possesses highly feminine features, on top of being a woman who seeks knowledge. She was so creative, especially that her role was an extremely a difficult one. Her two lecture scenes were so tiring. Shalaby is a brilliant actress who tends always to play different roles with adroitness.

How would you assess the audience’s reaction to El Asleyeen movie?

It was very satisfying to find diverse reactions to the movie and witness the controversy it created. It worries me when a movie generates no discussions or debates. When we decided to make El Asleyeen, we knew it would create a lot of arguments. I noticed also that both proponents and opponents talked about the movie in detail; in general, I see this as a positive sign. I read a lot of what critics had to say; some were very objective and accurate. In the end, everyone has the right to express their opinion, and all opinions should be respected. El Asleyeen stirred up controversy, which means it is a strong movie and that is all I care about.

Who is your target audience?
Cinema spectators mainly belong to the youth segment. We are currently witnessing a tussle between television, the Internet and Netflix audience on one hand, and the cinema audience on the other. Watching a movie at the cinema means they have to exert more effort to go out, pay for a ticket, and consume petrol as well as pay for the parking and popcorn. Going to the cinema is much more costly than watching television at home. Youth are active enough and go to the cinema as an outing; they are the majority now.

How much time do you spend preparing for each movie?

Each of the four movies took two years of preparation. Even Lili, which was supposed to be my graduation project, took two years. It may seem too long, yet it could take even more time to prepare for a movie elsewhere in the world.

Nobody knows the secret success formula to determine which film will thrive. For example, The Mummy for Tom Cruise was recently released, and it did not succeed despite all the expectations that it would. When I presented Omaret Yacoubian, Ibrahim Al Abyad and El El Feel El Azraa I did not know if they would succeed or not because there was nothing out there like them.

Many critics opposed directing Omaret Yacoubian since adapting a movie based on a novel was not popular at that time. Others strongly opposed introducing a veteran comedian like Adel Emam in a non-comedy role; they believed the audience would not accept it. In addition, the film tackled a lot of taboos, especially in the Middle East, like pederasty. Despite all of these concerns, it was screened and was a booming success. Nobody can predict in advance whether a film will succeed or not.

Which is more difficult for you as a director: directing a film adaptation or dealing with a movie script?

Not all texts can be transformed from a 500-page novel to a 100-page script.

Are film adaptations negatively affected by the fact that the audience already knows the storyline? Do they lose the element of surprise?

On the contrary, I view it as a peculiarity. For instance, almost all the movies directed by Anthony Minghella, director of The English Patient and Cold Mountain, were based on novels. I see that the audience’s prior knowledge of the plot and their admiration guarantees a minimum level of success to the movie; all we have to do is choose a popular novel and provide good cinematography and production.

Which of your movies do you enjoy watching the most?

It is difficult for me to watch a movie directly after its production, because with every scene I feel I could have created something better. But after some of time, the movie becomes a memory and I can watch it. In general, I enjoy to watching some of the scenes in Ibrahim Labyad.

Some believe that your works are few considering that you have been in the industry for 16 years, what do you think of this?

Quantity is not important, quality comes first. Your movie is your history, it will be watched by today’s audience and the generations to come. I bear this fact in my mind all the time; hence, I am so picky. High quality movies live forever and could be even watched later from a different angle. For example, Ibrahim Labyad was highly criticized; when it was first released, it was described as a bloody movie, because it contained plenty of violent scenes. Although the film mirrored reality, people at that time denied this hard truth and refused to accept it. However, people now started to view the film from a different perspective and began to like it, especially the new generations.