Abouzekri began her journey in 1993 as an assistant director for the film ‘131 Hard Labour’ after graduating from the High Cinema Institute.
Egyptian filmmaker Kamla Abouzekri will receive the prestigious Faten Hamama Award for Excellence at this year’s Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF).
The CIFF 44th edition is scheduled to take place from November 13-22, 2022.
Hussein Fahmy, President of CIFF, said that the festival is presenting the Faten Hamama Award for Excellence to Kamla Abouzekri in recognition for her repertoire of iconic work that had an indelible influence on the filmmaking industry throughout her long-standing career.
Amir Ramses, Director of CIFFl, stated that the upcoming edition of the festival will celebrate Abouzekri’s extensive repertoire. He also affirmed that preparations are in progress for the festival’s award hand-out to Abouzekri, which will be revealed during the upcoming weeks.
Abouzekri added that she was thrilled to learn the news of receiving the award carrying the name of the “Lady of the Egyptian and Arab cinema”, Faten Hamama, whose beyond-compare-talent and remarkable work crowned her as an inerasable role model for everyone in the TV, drama and film industries. She also thanked the festival for choosing her among CIFF’s honorees for its upcoming 44th edition, this year.
Abouzekri is an Egyptian film director whose extensive oeuvre encompasses several masterpiece films, including; Sana Oula Nasb her debut film in 2004, and a plethora of films where she contributed as the film director and writer, namely: Malek we Ketaba (2005) and A’n El Eshq Wel Hawa (2006), Wahed Sefr (2009), 18 Days (2011), and Youm Lelsetat (2016).
Earlier in her career, Abouzekri worked as an assistant director with the filmmaker Nader Galal in films, including 131 Ashghal (1993), headlined by Nour El Sherif; Hello America, starring Adel Emam, and Belia wa Demagho el Alia, headlined by Mohamed Heneidy in 2000.
In 2020, Abouzekri collaborated with Nelly Karim, the former recipient of CIFF’s Faten Hamama Award, in the drama titled 100 Wesh, and recently in Betolou’ El Rouh in Ramadan 2022, which highlighted the daily struggles faced by women in the ISIS community.
