We are proud to announce that Khairy Beshara and Marwan Hamed will be heading juries at the 3rd edition of El Gouna Film Festival (GFF). As we all know, El Gouna Film Festival represents a point in time in which passionate filmmakers, and viewers, gather together to appreciate a wide variety of films from numerous cultures. The goal is to connect filmmakers with their international equals in the spirit of exchanging cultures and comparing ideas. The 3rd edition of GFF will take place from the 19th to the 27th of September, 2019 in El Gouna.

As executed in the past two years, the festival brought together the most talented film critics and experts to select the winners of its competition. So, who are these individuals that will be dictating the winning films?

Starting with Beshara who has been fascinated with cinema from an early age, proving his success from 1974 to 1986, where he made over a dozen documentaries and short films on a variety of topics. However, it is not really the number of his films that distinguishes him from other filmmakers, it is the standard as well. Beshara was named the president of the jury of the Feature Narrative Competition. He’s unique in his way of making films that go from social drama all the way to soul seeking, representing the Egyptian unclear sense of identity. He has received several awards, both nationally and internationally. In truth, what truly makes him special is his authentic nature, not only with his students but also within the film industry. Such qualities work well with the GFF that is all about criticism that is based on quality, standard, and legitimacy, and accordingly should be critiqued by someone who appreciates these qualities.

Different but equal in talent, the prominent filmmaker, Marwan Hamed, was selected to head the Short Film Competition jury. Hamed’s debut feature film, Yacoubian building, was released in 2006, which at the time, was considered the largest budget in the history of Egyptian cinema. His films won various international awards and screened on various TV channels. Yet again, Hamed’s awards are not what make him special. It is his bravery in experimenting and trying new works, as well as his willingness to step outside his comfort zone, trying out different tools, feelings, and genres. With that and films like The Blue Elephant and El Asleyeen up his sleeve, he’s uniquely placed apart from other directors. Like Beshara, he does not carry a stereotypical role in the film industry.

Both masterminds will carry important and critical roles in the film festival as they do not follow the same atypical traits of many directors or filmmakers. With Hamed’s wide creativity and willingness to extend his horizons, he is flexible to new ideas that will be presented to him. He will be able to accept new concepts to fairly assess the quality of the films. Beshara, at the same time, will adopt his honest nature to genuinely rate the films in the way they deserve.

After all, GFF is a place of new discoveries, development of knowledge, and acceptance of diverse ideas. With the help of exceptional stars like Beshara and Hamed, that we are able to trust in the process, we’ll all stand proud as Egypt shows its capacity and amaze the world with its ability to produce remarkable work