Cairo Industry Days Goes Year-Round With Mentorship Push

The Cairo Film Festival's industry arm will run mentorship for Arab filmmakers year-round for the first time, as Cairo Industry Days opens its eighth edition on Nov. 14 during the festival's 47th edition (Nov. 11–20).

At the center of the expansion sits the 12th iteration of Cairo Film Connection, the festival's co-production platform. CFC has selected 17 projects from 12 countries this year and will present 43 individual awards.

"My vision is not to start very big," says Mohamed Sayed Abdel-Rehim, head of Cairo Industry Days. "Every year, we introduce a new program, or maybe a couple of programs, but we start them small in order to make the progress steady."

What does the new mentorship change?

The CFC mentorship program extends the platform's relationship with selected projects beyond the four days of the festival itself.

"We try not to make it only the four days of the Cairo Film Connection during the festival. We try to make it year-long," Sayed Abdel-Rehim explains.

Five international experts will cover development, pitching, budgeting and financing, festival strategy, broadcasting and legal matters. Online sessions have already begun. Mentoring continues during the festival. CID has also partnered with the Sundance Documentary Fund to organize an online session for projects from last year's CFC that are still seeking support.

The goal is a pipeline: filmmakers progress from CID workshops to CFC, then complete films that screen in CIFF's competitions. Directors whose films win Cairo's Golden Pyramid, the festival's top prize, can return as CFC jury members the following year.

"We try to make our filmmakers that were selected in the Cairo Film Connection part of the alumni family," Sayed Abdel-Rehim says.

Which CFC films have traveled?

CFC-supported films reached major international festivals this year:

• Sara Ishaq's "The Station" screened at Cannes Critics' Week.
• Rania Rafei's "The Day of Wrath: Tales from Tripoli" played the Berlinale Forum.
• Mohanad Yaqubi's "Revolutionaries Never Die" won the Special Jury Prize at Locarno.

"This doesn't happen every year," Sayed Abdel-Rehim acknowledges. "But it shows that in recent years, we've been selecting projects with a strong chance of reaching completion and traveling internationally."

CFC initially planned to select around 10 projects. "There were so many strong submissions that it was difficult to narrow them down," Sayed Abdel-Rehim says. He also stresses broadening access. "We always support women filmmakers, and we also try to support countries that don't produce a lot of films," he adds, citing Yemen, Sudan and Libya.

How is CID reaching beyond film?

A new initiative, "From Book to Screen," seeks to reconnect Egypt's film and publishing industries. The program references Egypt's long tradition of literary adaptations, particularly in the 1960s and 1970s, and its subsequent decline. This year it has selected 10 books from 10 Egyptian publishing houses. Authors and publishers receive training before pitching to producers. CID hopes to introduce a formal selection committee next year and open the initiative to writers across the Arab world by 2028.

The Cairo Film Market, launched in 2024 with eight companies, grows to 23 booths this year, alongside delegations from countries across Asia and Africa. CID is expected to sign a cooperation agreement with SICA Abidjan, an audiovisual forum in Côte d'Ivoire, during this edition.

CID is also addressing gaps in professional skills. "The problem is always about financing films, about distributing the films, about marketing the films," Sayed Abdel-Rehim says. "Some independent filmmakers, especially in their first film, don't give a lot of attention to distribution and marketing." New offerings include immersive storytelling, XR programming and workshops on artificial intelligence in pre-production, which Sayed Abdel-Rehim sees as relevant to filmmakers working with limited budgets.

Who is speaking at the festival?

The wider program includes masterclasses with directors Matteo Garrone, Asif Kapadia, Abderrahmane Sissako, Óliver Laxe and Laura Wandel, plus Egyptian screenwriter and producer Medhat El Adl. Moroccan filmmaker Nabil Ayouch, president of CIFF's international competition jury, will lead a masterclass. Egyptian actor Asser Yassin takes part in an In Conversation session. Industry panels will cover financing for Arab films, opportunities for women directors, the challenges facing a new generation of Arab filmmakers and the future of theatrical exhibition.

Taken together, the initiatives reflect Sayed Abdel-Rehim's ambition for CID to function as an institution that gives filmmakers support and connections to build sustainable careers. "The vision of the Cairo film industry is to connect. To connect the North with the South, to connect the East with the West," he concludes.

By Marcus Bennett