Aswan sees leap in visits by media delegations in 2017, 2018

CAIRO – 20 October 2018: More than 60 foreign media delegations have visited Egypt’s southern city of Aswan during throughout the two past years to document its historic civilization and breathtaking beauty running of the Nile bank.

Ahmed Ali Ebeid, the head of the Press Center for Foreign Correspondents in Aswan, said that the years 2017 and 2018 have witnessed an “unprecedented leap” compared to the past eight years regarding the presence of foreign journalists in the city, coming from different media institutions in U.S., UK, France, Switzerland, Russia, Italy and others.


Foreign media delegations visiting archaeological sites in Aswan - Egypt Today


Foreign media delegations visiting archaeological sites in Aswan - Egypt Today

Media delegations that arrived in Egypt over the past period have featured their visits in documentary films, TV series, soap operas and movies, shedding the light on Pharaonic and Egyptian ancient civilizations that are found in different Egyptian cities.

Ebeif said that a UK delegation came to Egypt during the last period, and highlighted the work of the Spanish mission that discovered the cancer-infected mummy, and its transfer to Aswan Hospital for medical examination.

Ahmed Abdel Mohsen, an Egyptian-Swiss lecturer who works at a Cinema Institute in Zurich said that Egypt’s Aswan has recently started to attract back a number of world film directors after a long reluctance in making documentary films on Egypt.

Ridley Scott has chosen Aswan, Abu Simbel and Kom Ombo cities as locations for some scenes of his Exodus: Gods and Kings movie, Abdel Mohsen added.


Foreign media delegations visiting archaeological sites in Aswan - Egypt Today

Some directors choose to shoot their documentary films in locations with archaeological scenes, like the Director Pascal Hoffmann who did a film on the cities that inspired the works of Sculptor Not Vital, including Aswan.

French Director Olivier Lommeter visited Egypt recently to film the second part of his documentary film on temples that were saved from drowning in Aswan during the construction of the High Dam from 1960 to 1970.


Foreign media delegations visiting archaeological sites in Aswan - Egypt Today

Speaking to Egypt Today, Lommeter said “I love Egypt very much, and my admiration increases to the charming sites in the city of Aswan. We love your country, and I am still hoping I can reach certain concerned bodies in Egypt with whom I can cooperate in producing my future films about the country.”

For his part, Ebeid argued that the fees set for filming the archaeological sites is very high, after the last official raise by the Ministry of Antiquities from L.E. 1,600 to L.E. 5,000, “which is unaffordable to some delegations.”

Ebied called for some facilitation that will benefit the publicity of these sites in Egypt, given the costs that the foreign delegations bear like: travel, flights, accommodation and filming location.