Sheikh Jackson to be screened in the 61st London Film Festival

CAIRO - 1 September 2017: The Egyptian movie Sheikh Jackson will be screened in the 61st London Film Festival, which will kick off from October 4 to October 15. The London Film Festival is affiliated to the British Film Institution.

The Toronto International Film Festival, which will kick off on September 7, previously announced that Sheikh Jackson will participate in the official selection. The movie will be globally premiered in the “Special Presentation” category. Additionally, it will be featured in the closing ceremony.
Sheikh Jackson will also be the opening movie for El Gouna Film Festival in its first edition. The film festival will take place from 22-29 September.

El Gouna Festival director Entshal Al Tamimmy said about the movie, “we are proud that this special movie will be introduced in the opening ceremony because it will attract many movie producers, not only Arabs, but also foreigners who are interested in these kinds of movies.”
The movie’s director, Amr Salama, said, “the story of the movie is personal and deep, as I am narrating a very private story.”
Sheikh Jackson is a controversial movie starring Ahmed al-Fishawy, and it goes back to the day popstar Michael Jackson died. The story of Sheikh Jackson revolves around a student who loves Michael Jackson's songs and imitates him in almost everything. This student has a strong relationship with a Salafist, which reflects the contradictions in his life. The student decides to then go on an inner Sufi quest and look for answers to his existential questions.

The movie’s poster, revealed by the production company, shows the protagonist, played by al-Fishawy, dressed as a Salafist sheikh and posed in a Jackson dance move, wearing Jackson’s signature hat.

The moive also features Majid Al-Kadwani, Dorra, Ahmed Malik, Amina Khalil and Hazem Sharif. The movie was produced by Hisham Abdel-Khaliq and Mohamed Hafezy and is written and directed by Amr Salama.