Cairo Film Connection Concludes Its 11th Edition with 37 Awards Celebrating Arab Filmmakers

The Cairo Film Connection (CFC), the co-production platform of the Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF), concluded its 11th edition tonight at the Sofitel Downtown Nile with an award ceremony honoring the outstanding projects presented this year. The evening was hosted by Rodrigo Brum, Director of the Cairo Film Connection, who led the ceremony celebrating “the collective energy that makes this platform possible.” 

This year’s edition gathered 16 film projects in development and post-production from across the Arab world — Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq, Palestine, Tunisia, Jordan, Yemen, Algeria, and Sudan — reaffirming the CFC’s role as a major platform for emerging voices and daring cinematic visions from the region. 

The Cairo Film Connection jury for 2025 consisted of Ayten Amin (filmmaker, Souad), Hany Abu-Assad (Oscar-nominated filmmaker, Paradise Now, Omar), and Susana Santos Rodrigues (Co-Director of the IndieLisboa International Film Festival and Programming Advisor for the International Film Festival Rotterdam). Together, they deliberated over a remarkable lineup of projects that reflect the diversity and urgency of contemporary Arab cinema. 

In-Kind Awards 

The ceremony began with a series of in-kind prizes from local, regional, and international partners: 

• Durban Film Mart – Goodbye Party (Tunisia) 

• Medimed – I Have Other Friends (Egypt) 

• Malmö Arab Film Festival – Al Madeenah 2008 (Yemen) 

• Amman International Film Festival – Where Do I Belong (Sudan) 

• Rough Cut Lab Africa (RCLA) – Asphalt (Jordan) and a special mentorship award for Revolutionaries Never Die (Palestine) 

• Together Media – I Have Other Friends (Egypt) 

• AA Films – Al Madeenah 2008 (Yemen) 

• CULT – The Colour of Our Time (Iraq) 

• UNFPA – All That The Wind Can Carry (Egypt) 

• Nu’Ta – Asphalt (Jordan) 

• I Sound – Ping-Pong (Palestine) 

• Cinetech – Ping-Pong (Palestine), Rainbows Don’t Last Long (Egypt), and The Colour of Our Time (Iraq) 

• Ambient Light – Rainbows Don’t Last Long (Egypt) and Asphalt (Jordan) 

• DTS – The Day of Wrath (Lebanon) and The Colour of Our Time (Iraq) 

• Shift Studios – The Colour of Our Time (Iraq), All That The Wind Can Carry (Egypt), and The Side Effects of Trusting Life (Lebanon) 

• MAD Solutions – Al Madeenah 2008 (Yemen) 

Cash Awards 

CFC also announced several cash prizes offered by key partners: 

• Special Touch – Ping-Pong (Palestine) — 1,500 USD 

• AH Media – Rock Paper Sea (Egypt) — 5,000 USD 

• Pathé Touch – (Special Mention) – Alicante (Algeria) – 2,500 USD 

• Pathé Touch - The Day of Wrath (Lebanon) - 5,000 USD 

• Rise Studios – The Side Effects of Trusting Life (Lebanon) — 5,000 USD 

• Lagoonie Film Production – All That The Wind Can Carry (Egypt) — 5,000 USD 

• Iraqi Cinema – Goodbye Party (Tunisia) and The Colour of Our Time (Iraq) — shared 5,000 USD prize 

• Red Sea International Film Festival – Where Do I Belong (Sudan) and Al Madeenah 2008 (Yemen) — each 5,000 USD 

• ART – Rainbows Don’t Last Long (Egypt) — 5,000 USD, and The Side Effects of Trusting Life (Lebanon) — 10,000 USD 

Main Cairo Film Connection Awards 

Finally, the jury granted the platform’s two main awards: 

• Best Project in Development: The Side Effects of Trusting Life (Lebanon) 

• Best Project in Post-Production: Revolutionaries Never Die (Palestine) 

Closing Remarks 

In his closing words, Rodrigo Brum thanked the filmmakers, producers, juries, and partners who made the 11th edition possible, emphasizing that the Cairo Film Connection continues to “create more space for projects emerging outside major production hubs and for voices that refuse easy narratives of the Arab world.” 

About the Cairo Film Connection 

Founded in 2012, the Cairo Film Connection is the industry platform of the Cairo International Film Festival, dedicated to supporting film projects from the Arab world in development and post-production. Over the years, it has become a key meeting point for regional and international professionals, fostering co-production, creative exchange, and professional growth across the region’s film industry. Over its 11 editions, the Cairo Film Connection has supported acclaimed projects such as Four Daughters (2023) by Kaouther Ben Hania, In the Last Days of the City (2016) by Tamer El Said, and Inshallah a Boy (2022) by Amjad Al Rasheed.