'The role of art and cinema in shaping societies' session kicked off

CAIRO - 5 November 2018: A session titled,”The role of art and cinema in shaping societies” has taken off on the third day of the second edition of the World Youth Forum.

The second edition of the conference, which holds the theme “peace and development”, has more than 5,000 delegates and participants from many nationalities and backgrounds. The closing will take place on November 6, 2018.

One of the speakers who was a Libyan lady named arwa sent a message to youth participating in the forum. “ Whether you are Muslim, Christian or Jewish, you should learn to accept others with their difference” Arwa said.

One of the speakers said that her main point of strength is her ability to learn from the creative things that other has.

The Famed Egyptian producer and head of Cairo International Film Festival Mohamed Hefzy said that art should not be directed, the most distinguished thing in art is the freedom of expression. “ Filmmakers should be keen to present what they want not what the audience want” Hefzy added.


It is worth mentioning that President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi inaugurated World Youth Forum’s theatre on Nov. 2 to serve as an art platform for youth around the world.

The WYF’s theatre was tailor made to be an innovative arena where young people show their talents, thoughts and cultures through this unique experience that will be presented for the first time at the World Youth Forum 2018.

The theatre's performances will extend over three days, reflecting a message of understanding and peace among the forum’s participants, and emphasizing the integration of civilizations through singing, music and acting.

It was announced that 122,000 youth aged from 18 to 40 registered online to participate in the forum, 13,000 of which registered to participate as speakers. Also, 5,000 artists registered to participate in the forum's theatre.

The forum also decided to host 5,000 youth from 145 countries to participate in this year's forum, compared to 3,000 participants last year.

The WYF in its second annual version will tackle two main axes: peace and development.

The first axis will discuss reconstructing post-conflict countries and societies, the role of world leaders in achieving peace, the duty of the international community to provide humanitarian assistance, counter-terrorism issues, and Euro-Mediterranean Partnership.

The theme of the development will include topics related to energy and water security, empowerment of people with disabilities, the role of voluntary work in building societies, the agenda of 2063 African Sustainable Development, digital citizenship, the role of art and cinema in shaping communities, ways to build future leaders, and the means of shrinking the gender gap in the work force.