The Cairo International Film Festival has announced that it will organize six specialized cinema lectures, known as Masterclasses, as part of its 47th edition, which will take place from November 11 to 20, 2026. The festival will also pay tribute to Antoine Zind, a renowned figure in film distribution. The lectures will feature a selection of prominent creators and specialists in Egyptian, Arab, and international cinema, who will share their experiences and discuss their creative visions and working methods.
The Masterclasses will cover a range of topics, including the relationship between creativity and building production institutions, cinema as a sensory and spiritual experience, and the interaction between reality and imagination in building the cinematic world. The lectures will also explore issues of identity, migration, and communication between cultures, as well as the art of sound design and its role in shaping the dramatic and cinematic experience.
The first lecture will be given by Egyptian screenwriter and producer Madhat Al-Adel, who will share his experience of over three decades in writing and producing films that have reached millions of viewers in Egypt and the Arab world. Al-Adel's lecture will focus on building a professional and productive career in the film industry, and the decisions that are made behind the camera.
The second lecture will be given by French-Spanish director Oliver Lacheye, who will discuss his unique cinematic approach, which emphasizes the role of nature, sound, and silence in creating immersive experiences. Lacheye's lecture will explore his use of landscapes, silence, light, and movement to create a meditative and transformative cinematic experience.
The third lecture will be given by Italian director Matteo Garrone, who will discuss his cinematic experience, which combines social realism with imagination. Garrone's lecture will explore his approach to filmmaking, which involves transforming social realities into stories with symbolic, surreal, or mythological dimensions.
The fourth lecture will be given by Antoine Zind, a pioneer in film distribution, who will share his experience of over six decades in the film industry. Zind's lecture will focus on his role in shaping the film distribution market in Egypt and the Arab world, and his relationships with major film production and distribution companies.
The fifth lecture will be given by Mauritanian-French director and producer Abdou Cissé, also known as Abdel Rahman Sissako, who will discuss his cinematic language and human approach to filmmaking. Sissako's lecture will explore his experience of working between Africa and Europe, and his use of storytelling to address issues of identity, migration, and cultural communication.
Key points
- The Cairo International Film Festival will host six specialized cinema lectures as part of its 47th edition.
- The festival will pay tribute to Antoine Zind, a pioneer in film distribution.
- The lectures will cover a range of topics, including creativity, production institutions, and sound design.
