Instituto Cervantes in Cairo hosts seminar on women’s Cinema & its role in societal change

CAIRO – 10 January 2020: A symposium was held at the Instituto Cervantes in Cairo on the importance of cinema and its role in changing society, boosting the role of women and empowering them.

The symposium was held on the evening of January 9 after the screening of the film "High Revolutionaries" (2017 production) by Mexican director and screenwriter Sergio Sanchez.

Spanish actress Carla Nieto, who participated in the El-Gouna Film Festival, participated in this symposium. This is in addition to the participation of Nabila Hassan, professor at the Academy of Arts in Alexandria.

The symposium was moderated by the Cultural Counselor at the Embassy of Spain in Cairo.

During the seminar, Nabila Hassan emphasized that cinema represents a mirror of what is happening in society, but despite that, women have not been able to talk about their situation through cinema in recent years.

Hassan believes that "changing a woman's status begins with the woman herself through understanding her true role and that her life is not limited only to being the mother who sacrifices for the sake of family members and plays all roles and provides excessive comfort for everyone to the extent that a whole generation has been characterized by selfishness as a result."

On her part, actress Carla Nieto said, "I grew up watching Disney movies where the woman is the victim that waits for the knight to save her, but we do not need someone to save us. We can save ourselves, and the cinematic and television works must reflect this."

Regarding women's cinema needs at the present time, Nieto highlighted that women's roles in cinema must reflect their true spirit without being limited to being the beautiful or attractive woman or the weak personality, noting that society has implanted a stereotype in women that we must be aware of and correct.

As for Hassan, she believes that Egyptian cinema needs support in the production sector, which mainly seeks to present commercial cinematic works.

It is noteworthy that the symposium and the screening of the film were organized by the Instituto Cervantes in Cairo in cooperation with the embassies of Spain and Mexico in Egypt.

It is the first cultural activity to be held at the headquarters of the Instituto Cervantes in Cairo since the strict measures that were applied last March due to the coronavirus.

The show was attended by a limited number of people, taking into account safety measures and social distancing.