AAM to honor Marwan Hamed, Waheed Hamed

CAIRO – 18 August 2018: America Abroad Media (AAM) will honor writer and producer Wahid Hamed and director Marwan Hamed, celebrating their respectable careers.

AAM will honor Wahid Hamed and his son, Marwan Hamed, at its sixth Annual Awards Dinner on Nov. 7 in Washington, D.C. This annual Media Award recognizes individuals whose work demonstrates a strong commitment to purpose driven content, and who appreciate the unique power of media as a catalyst in informing, inspiring and positively impacting society.

“AAM is proud to honor the Hameds and shed light on their important careers at our Awards Dinner in Washington this fall,” said Dr. Aaron Lobel, founder and president of AAM.

AAM believes that the collective works of both Wahid and Marwan Hamed has succeeded in providing American audiences with a glimpse into the history of the Egyptian entertainment industry, act as a catalyst for social dialogue, hold powerful resonance throughout the Arab world, and lift taboos and bring forth positive change.

“The spirit of the Hameds’ work strongly complements AAM's mission, which is to empower and support local voices that convey universal values through creative content and media programming,” Lobel added.

Wahid Hamed is considered one of Egypt’s most renowned writers with a career that spans four decades. He was born on July 1, 1944, in Sharqia governorate. Hamed received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology in the late 1960s, before embarking on a career in screenwriting.

His first strong and successful work was "Ahlam al-Fata al-Taer" (Dreams of the Flying Boy) released in 1978. This famous television series was the start of his longtime cooperation with the legendary Egyptian actor Adel Emam. Since then, both Hamed and Emam began an artistic partnership that produced many iconic, unforgettable films.


Among their most famous movies together is "Al-Erhab wel Kabab" (Terrorism and Kebab) in 1992, which is a black comedy discussing government corruption and the sufferings of the middle class in Egypt.

The duo also worked together on, "Al-Ghoul" (The Ogre) in 1983, and “Toyour al-Zalam” (The Birds of Darkness) in 1995, which tackled political corruption in Egypt and the appearance of the Muslim Brotherhood at the time.

Their most known collaboration took place in the famous controversial movie "Omaret Yacoubian" (The Yacoubian Building) in 2006, which was the first long feature movie for Hamed's son, Marwan Hamed, as a director.

Hamed also wrote the controversial movie "Al-Baree’" (The Innocent) in 1997; a movie that conveyed a controversial political message which made Hamed face a long censorship battle. "Al-Baree’" was screened 19 years post its production and only after the ending was changed.

In 2002, Hamed wrote the political comedy movie "Ma’ali al-Wazeer" (The Minister) again tackling government corruption.

Hamed received numerous awards from many film festivals. He was awarded for his movies "Al-Le’eb Ma’al Kobar" (Playing with Big People) in 1991, "Ehky ya Scheherazade" (Tell the Story, Scheherazade) in 2009, and "Ot W Far" (Cat and Mouse) in 2015.

His last television series "Al-Gama’a" (The Brotherhood) in 2010, and "Return of Al-Gama’a" in 2017, tackled the history and impact of the Muslim Brotherhood, since its emergence, on Egypt.

Hamed also established a production company titled Wahid Hamed Film Productions, to produce his and others’ works. He has worked alongside many veteran Egyptian directors in over 40 films and numerous TV series including Yousry Nasrallah, Atef al-Tayeb and Sherif Arafa, among others.

Marwan 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 brought together giants such as 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 Al-Abyad” (2009), starring action hero Ahmed el-Sakka, “El Feel El Azraa” (The Blue Elephant) in 2014, starring heartthrob Egyptian star Karim Abdel Aziz, and finally “El Asleyeen” (The Originals) with Menna Shalaby and El-Sawy, released over Eid El-Fitr.

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 won many awards such as Best Director Award from Fantasporto Film Festival in Portugal on his movie “El Asleen” (The Originals) in February 2018.