A young Egyptian filmmaker gives a personal account of his experience at an international film festival
CAIRO, November 2005: For a young filmmaker, getting the opportunity to showcase your work at an international film festival is big. I had recently obtained my One-Year Directing Diploma from the New York Film Academy, where I wrote, directed and edited a 12-minute short film – my thesis project – entitled “Alla Fein (Where To). Upon completing the film, I began submitting it to various local and international film festivals. I personally couldn’t believe my eyes, a couple of months later, as I read the acceptance letter from the Slamdance Film Festival over and over again. I had to call someone to share the good news; except it was about four o’clock in the morning.
I figured my best option would be my friend Adam Mourad in Montreal – a film buff, and very talented screenwriter (his contribution to the script in its early stages was massive). He would definitely still be up. He picked up, and I told him that my film had been selected out of over 3,000 entries to show at Slamdance in January, and told him to book a ticket to Utah as soon as possible. His reaction was louder than mine, “Mabrouk! Of course I’ll come along with you.
The Slamdance Film Festival, held annually in Park City, Utah, has grown significantly in importance over the years. Though relatively young, it has quickly become a worthy rival to the more established Sundance Film Festival, perhaps one of the most important independent film festivals in the world.
I knew the next couple of months would prove to be a challenge. With my limited knowledge of marketing and public relations, I began to put together a promotional strategy. In early January 2006, I set out to Park City, Utah, armed with business cards, flyers, posters, press kits, DVDs and my trusty Film Festival Survival Guide. Over there, I met up with Adam and a couple of other friends from New York.
PARK CITY, January 2006: Park City is a small town with a lot of charm, mainly known for its great skiing – cold though, very, very cold. We arrive at the Slamdance headquarters to pick up our festival passes and start plastering the place with posters and flyers. There are a bunch of others doing the same.
My film was scheduled for three screenings, along with Q&A sessions, which I had been dreading since the beginning of the trip. Come Sunday, January 22, the day of the first screening (and also the very first time I show my film to a completely unbiased, foreign audience). As a line of people began to form outside the theater, I went in to do a technical check-up with the projectionist. Three other short film directors, who were also showing their films along with mine, were in the room as well. The doors opened and a horde of people began to rush in for the good seats in the front. The lights dimmed, the people went silent . sheer panic now.
The three opening films were great (although I should mention that, due to my mental state at that point, it took a second viewing for me to really appreciate them). My film was playing last.
My film starts to play. It looks significantly different on a big screen than it looked on the small computer monitor while I was editing it. The audience members begin to bob their heads left and right to read the subtitles. They are quiet and seem to be following the story, which is a good sign. I begin to re-edit the film in my head after noticing little details that I would have liked to change (apparently, only the director really notices these things). The credits start to roll and then applause. I’m getting a little light-headed. The lights go back up and Paul, the moderator of the Q & A session, introduces me. I pull Adam up with me, and we make our way to the stage. Paul congratulates me. He has tears in his eyes. I’m completely overwhelmed. Despite struggling to put together a coherent response to the first question, the rest of the session goes by smoothly. And with that off my shoulders, I could then really begin to enjoy the rest of the festival.
I must say, it certainly exceeded all my expectations of what a film festival is like: all kinds of quality films, constructive feedback from receptive audiences, insane parties and an unbelievably helpful staff, doing justice to their motto “by filmmakers, for filmmakers. But what really made it for me was the sense of kinship developed between most of the filmmakers. Slamdance was an incredible experience that genuinely inspired me a great deal.
Since Slamdance, “Alla Fein has shown in several big international and local film festivals, including the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR), Arizona International Film Festival, Alwan Film Festival (New York), Maryland Film Festival, El Sakia Short Film Festival (Special Jury Recognition), the Egyptian National Film Festival and the Arab Film Festival Rotterdam. “Alla Fein will continue its festival run at the Durban International Film Festival in June 2006.
Karim Fanous graduated from the American University in Cairo in 2002 with a degree in Economics. Following a brief internship at Youssef Shaheen’s production company, director Marianne Khoury recruited him. Fanous also worked as an Assistant Director to Mostafa El Hasnaoui. He made his debut as a director with the short film “Alla Fein, which tells the story of two Egyptian men who have immigrated to the U.S. Aly, the cab driver who moved 15 years ago, has a constant lingering dream of returning home. The second is Husayn, a younger man who has just landed in New York to pursue the American dream.
