Alexandria Film Festival’s 33rd edition inaugurates Saturday

CAIRO – 8 October 2017: The anticipated 33rd Alexandria Film Festival has been inaugurated at Bibliotheca Alexandria on Saturday entitled, “Cinema and Illegal Immigration,” featuring an array of films from different angles.

This edition is carrying the name of the renowned Egyptian actor Hussein Fahmy who has long contributed to Egyptian cinema and has been honored in the opening ceremony.

In his opening speech at the inauguration ceremony, President of the Festival Al-Amir Abaza has declared that the next edition will carry the name of the late actor Mahmoud Abdel Aziz who was also referred to as "The Magician."

“The festival’s goal is to boost Alexandria with more culture and arts,” Abaza added in his speech.

Minister of Culture Helmy al-Namnam has spoken to Egypt Today saying, “I fully support the Alexandria Festival and the film industry in Egypt. The continuity of these types of festivals is a priority for the Ministry of Culture.”

The festival this year will include many seminars regarding illegal immigration, the 75th memorial of Al-Alamin Battle, and the copyright problems in the modern world.

The activities of the festival will continue until Thursday, October 12; where about 70 films will screen within these four days.

In a long standing tradition, the festival honored many actors in the cinematic field including Safeya al-Emary, film director Khaled Youssef, the renowned photography manager Essam Farid, critic Nemat-Allah Hussein, Tunisian director Farid Boghadir, Palestinian directors Anne Marie Gasser and Michel Khalifa, and the Spanish director Oscar Biar.

A dancing troupe has carried out a performance at the end of the ceremony. Titled “Alexandria and its Stars,” the show presented Alexandria’s cinematic history and the main movies filmed in Alexandria.


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