25/11/2024 - Lee Kang Sheng and Maxim Stoyanov shared the Best Actor Award, while Yara de Novaes was named Best Actress

Postmarks producer Denis Kovalevsky (front, left) receives the Silver Pyramid from festival president Hussein Fahmy

The 45th Cairo International Film Festival came to a close with a dazzling ceremony in the Cairo Opera House on the evening of 22 November, attended by an array of celebrated stars, filmmakers and industry professionals.

The international jury, led by Bosnian filmmaker Danis Tanović, recognised The New Year That Never Came [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Bogdan Mureşanu
film profile] by Romanian director Bogdan Mureșanu as the winner of the Golden Pyramid Award for Best Film, for being “masterfully written with multiple stories feeding into only one possible breaking point, while giving the actors an incredible playground to show off their immense talent”.

The Silver Pyramid Award for Best Director was handed to the Russian film Postmarks by Natalia Nazarova, “for creating a world in which the mundane becomes extraordinary”. The film also received the Best Actor Award thanks to Maxim Stoyanov’s performance. He shared the prize with Lee Kang Sheng from the US production Blue Sun Palace, while a Special Mention for Acting wet to Alina Khojevanova. Yara de Novaes scooped Best Actress for her performance in Malu.

The Bronze Pyramid for Best First or Second Feature went to Pedro Freire’s Brazilian effort Malu, “for enchanting, surprising and moving the audience with a deeply personal and resonant character study, elevated by a poetic and rigorous cinematic language”. Meanwhile, the Naguib Mahfouz Award for Best Screenplay was given to Alessandro Cassigoli and Casey Kauffman for the Italian feature Vittoria [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Alessandro Cassigoli and Ca…
film profile].

In the Horizons of Arab Cinema Competition, Carol Mansour and Mona Khalidi's A State of Passion, a co-production between Palestine, Jordan and Lebanon, received the Saad Eldin Wahba Award for Best Arab Film, endowed with $10,000, while Noha Adel took home the Salah Abu Seif Award for Best Director for Spring Came on Laughing, backed with $7,000. The Youssef Sherif Rezkallah Award for Best Screenwriter ($6,000) went to Louay Khraish and Faissal Sam Shaib for the Lebanese title Arzé, directed by Mira Shaib. Mohamed Khoi and Diamond Bou Aboud were awarded Best Actor and Best Actress ($2,000 each) for the Moroccan production The Blue Lake and Arzé, respectively, while Rehab Anan received a Special Mention for her role in Spring Came on Laughing.

The International Critics’ Week Competition highlighted the coming-of-age French drama Wild Diamond [+see also:
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interview: Agathe Riedinger
film profile] by Agathe Riedinger, honouring it with the Shady Abdel Salam Award for Best Film. The Special Jury Prize went to the Argentinian flick Simon of the Mountain by Federico Luis, while the Egyptian documentary chronicle Abo Zaabal 89 [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Bassam Mortada picked up a Special Mention. The latter also earned the Best Documentary Award in the Documentary Competition, while A State of Passion was given the Jury’s Special Prize.

More awards were presented by FIPRESCI and NETPAC, as well as within the Short, African and Palestinian Film Competitions.

Here is a full list of the award winners:

International Competition

Golden Pyramid Award for Best Film
The New Year That Never Came [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Bogdan Mureşanu
film profile] – Bogdan Mureșanu (Romania/Serbia)

Silver Pyramid - Special Jury Award for Best Director
Postmarks – Natalia Nazarova (Russia)

Bronze Pyramid Award for Best First or Second Feature
Malu – Pedro Freire (Brazil)

Naguib Mahfouz Award for Best Screenplay
Alessandro Cassigoli, Casey Kauffman – Vittoria [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Alessandro Cassigoli and Ca…
film profile] (Italy)

Best Actor Award (ex aequo)
Lee Kang Sheng – Blue Sun Palace (USA)
Maxim Stoyanov – Postmarks

Best Actress Award
Yara de Novaes – Malu
Special Mention for Best Actress
Alina Khojevanova – Postmarks

Henry Barakat Award for Best Artistic Contribution (ex aequo)
Necmi Sancak – Ayse (Turkey)
Noha Adel – Spring Came on Laughing (Egypt)

FIPRESCI Prize
Spring Came on Laughing – Noha Adel

The Horizons of Arab Cinema Competition

Saad Eldin Wahba Award for Best Arab Film
A State of Passion – Carol Mansour, Muna Khalidi (Palestine/Jordan/Lebanon/UK/Kuwait)

Salah Abu Seif Award for Best Director
Spring Came on Laughing – Noha Adel

Youssef Sherif Rezkallah Award for Best Screenwriter
Arzé – Louay Khraish, Faissal Sam Shaib (Lebanon/Egypt/Saudi Arabia)

Best Actor Award
Mohamed Khouyi – The Blue Lake (Morocco)

Best Actress Award
Diamand Bou Abboud – Arzé
Special Mention
Rehab Anan – Spring Came on Laughing

International Critics’ Week Competition

Shadi Abdel Salam Award for Best Film
Wild Diamond [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Agathe Riedinger
film profile] – Agathe Riedinger (France)

Fathy Farag Award - Special Jury Award
Simon of the Mountain – Federico Luis (Argentina)
Special Mention
Abo Zaabal 89 [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] – Bassam Mortada (Egypt/Germany)

Documentary Competition

Best Feature Documentary Award
Abo Zaabal 89 – Bassam Mortada

Jury’s Special Prize
A State of Passion – Carol Mansour, Muna Khalidi

International Short Film Competition

Youssef Chahine Award for Best Short Film
David – Kai Xue, Hong Jiexi (China)

Special Jury Award
The Last Dismissal – Jowaher Alamri (Saudi Arabia/Egypt)
Special Mention
The Mother and the Bear – Yasmina El Kamaly (Egypt)

African Film Competition

Best African Feature Award
Dahomey [+see also:
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trailer
film profile] – Mati Diop (France/Senegal/Benin)

Special Jury Prize
Abo Zaabal 89 – Bassam Mortada

Palestinian Film Competition

Broadcasting & Television Union of Organisations of Islamic Cooperation Awards

First Prize
Square Kilometer Dreams – Qassam Sbeih (Palestine)

Second Prize
A State of Passion – Carol Mansour, Muna Khalidi

Third Prize
Passing Dreams [+see also:
trailer
interview: Rashid Masharawi
film profile] – Rashid Masharawi (Palestine/Sweden/Saudi Arabia/France)

Special Mentions
Dr Ghassan Abu Sitta, Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza, featuring as himself in A State of Passion
Palestinian director Rashid Masharawi
The Deer's Tooth – Saif Hammash (Palestine)

Misr International Films – Youssef Chahine Award
Soft Skin – Khamis Masharawi
No Signal – Muhammad Al Sharif
A School Day – Ahmed Al Danaf

NETPAC Award for Best Asian Film
Brief History of a Family [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] – Lin Jianjie (China/France/Denmark/Qatar)