Arab cinema center to announce winners for Arab Critics’ Awards at CIFF

The Arab Cinema Center (ACC) and the European Film Promotion (EFP) announced the final list of nominations for the Arab Critics’ Awards for European Films.

This came after the jurors evaluated 24 nominated European films using ACC’s digital partner, Festival Scope.

The list includes 4 films, which received the highest number of votes, and the winning film will be announced during an award ceremony that will take place at the 43rd edition of Cairo International Film Festival.

The Final List of the European Film Nominations (in alphabetical order)

107 Mothers | Director: Peter Kerekes| Slovak Republic | Best Screenplay at Orizzonti competition of the Venice International Film Festival, and shall screen at Cairo International Film Festival

I’m Your Man |Director:  Maria Schrader | Germany | Silver Bear for Best Acting at Berlin International Film Festival            ​

Lamb| Director: Valdimar Jóhannsson| Iceland | Un Certain Regard - Prize of Originality at Cannes Film Festival

The Most beautiful Boy in the World | Director: Kristina Lindström and Kristian Petri | Sweden | Sundance Film Festival & Cairo International Film Festival

“We are now in the semi-final stage of the Arab Critics’ Awards for European Films, in which several quality films are competing, the thing that left us, the critics, in total confusion. Despite the coronavirus pandemic, this year features some prolific films, as if they want to bring us back to our normal life through assuring that the cinema will remain and continue.” Ola Al-Sheikh, film critic and manager of The Arab Critics’ Awards for European Films, commented.

This award is a spin-off of the ACC's renowned Critics' Awards, which aim to increase cinema variety in the region and to pique distributors' and industry participants' interest in exceptional European films. Additionally, this project intends to shine light on the illustrious cinema reviewers from a variety of Arab countries and their critical role in broadening viewpoints and bridging cultures. This year’s jury of the Arab Critics’ Awards for European Films brings together 71 film critics from 15 Arab nations.

About European Film Promotion (EFP):

European Film Promotion (EFP) is an international network of film promotion institutes from 37 countries from throughout Europe, each representing their national films and talent abroad. Under the EFP flag, these organizations come together to promote the diversity and spirit of European cinema and talent at key film festivals and markets, in particular outside of Europe. EFP is financially supported by the Creative Europe – MEDIA Programme of the European Union and by its member organizations.

The Hamburg-based office is backed by the German Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, the Film Fund Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein and the Ministry of Culture of the City of Hamburg.

About Arab Cinema Center (ACC):

Organized by MAD Solutions in 2015, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) is a nonprofit organization registered in Amsterdam. The ACC is an international promotional platform for Arab cinema as it provides the filmmaking industry with a professional window to connect with their counterparts from all over the world through a number of events that it organizes. The ACC also provides networking opportunities with representatives of companies and institutions specialized in co-production and international distribution, among others. The ACC's activities vary between film markets, stands, and pavilions, networking sessions and one-on-one meetings bringing together Arab and foreign filmmakers, welcome parties, as well as meetings with international organizations and festivals, and the issuance of the Arab Cinema Magazine to be distributed at the leading international film festivals and markets.

Furthermore, newsletter subscription is now available on the ACC's website, allowing users to obtain digital copies of the Arab Cinema Magazine, as well as news on the ACC's activities, notifications of application dates for grants, festivals and offers from educational and training institutions, updates on Arab films participating at festivals, exclusive news on the Arab Cinema LAB, and highlights from the ACC's partners and their future projects.

About Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF):

The Cairo International Film Festival is one of the oldest and most celebrated festivals in the Arab world and Africa. It is the only festival in the Arab and African region to be accorded category “A” status by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations in Paris (FIAPF).