The Cairo International Film Festival is stepping into this year with a selection that feels both grounded and daring — a showcase of filmmakers who are bending genres, revisiting histories, and challenging the idea of what Arab and global cinema can be. From haunting shorts to deeply personal features, this lineup has no shortage of stories that stay with you long after the credits roll.
Complaint No. 713317
Directed by: Yasser Shafiey
Competition: Horizons of Arab Cinema
Country: Egypt
When a retired couple’s fridge breaks down, it triggers a months-long confrontation with a maintenance company that could give Kafka a run for his money. Yasser Shafiey’s debut turns a simple domestic mishap into a sharp, darkly comic study of bureaucracy, aging, and the quiet frustrations that shape everyday life.
Once Upon a Time in Gaza
Directed by: Tarzan and Arab Nasser
Competition: International Competition for Feature Films
Countries: France / Palestine / Germany / Portugal / Qatar / Jordan
In Once Upon a Time in Gaza, Yahya, a young student, strikes up an unexpected friendship with Osama — a generous, larger-than-life restaurant owner. What begins as a simple bond turns into a risky side business as the two start slipping drugs into their falafel deliveries. But when a corrupt police officer enters the picture, their small operation unravels fast. Through sharp satire and playful nods to genre cinema, the Nasser brothers examine how friendship, crime, and the weight of political turmoil shape everyday life in Gaza.
The Last Miracle
Directed by: Abdelwahab Shawky
Competition: Short Film Competition
Countries: Egypt / Germany / Sudan
A 40-year-old obituary page editor makes a grave mistake — literally — when he misspells the name of a revered Sufi sheikh. Wracked with guilt, he drowns his sorrow in a bar, only to receive an unexpected phone call from the deceased himself. Based on a story by Naguib Mahfouz, The Last Miracle moves between the spiritual and the absurd, exploring guilt, faith, and redemption in modern Cairo.
Baisanos
Directed by: Francisca and Andrés Khamis
Competition: Short Film Competition
Countries: Chile / Palestine / Spain
Through the chants and colors of Club Deportivo Palestino’s football fans in Santiago, Baisanos bridges continents. The film traces how Chile’s Palestinian community keeps its heritage alive through the game — turning each match into a declaration of identity, belonging, and hope. It’s a documentary that transforms fandom into quiet resistance.
The Bird’s Placebo
Directed by: Rami Jarboui
Competition: Short Film Competition
Countries: Tunisia / Qatar / Germany
After losing both legs while trying to cross the Mediterranean, Yahya, a young Tunisian man, finds himself in an unexpected state of transformation. His encounter with a mysterious bearded man leads to a surreal rebirth — as a bird. The Bird’s Placebo blurs realism and allegory in its meditation on loss, migration, and freedom.
Pasha’s Girls
Directed by: Mohamed Al Adl
Competition: Horizons of Arab Cinema
Country: Egypt
In the aftermath of a terrorist attack, beautician Nadia is found dead, and her colleagues rush to conceal what appears to be a suicide. As they prepare her body and navigate the moral maze that follows, Pasha’s Girls reveals a layered portrait of women caught between societal expectations, self-preservation, and unspoken grief.
Goundafa, The Cursed Song
Directed by: Ali Benjelloun
Competition: Horizons of Arab Cinema
Country: Morocco
Set in a remote village in Morocco’s High Atlas Mountains, Goundafa, The Cursed Song tells of three young men dreaming of musical fame, and the women who keep the land — and its songs — alive. When a conservative imam arrives, the balance shifts, and the clash between faith, freedom, and identity begins. Benjelloun crafts a poignant look at how culture endures even under pressure.
Souraya Mon Amour
Directed by: Nicolas Khoury
Competition: International Competition for Feature Films
Countries: Lebanon / Qatar
Through family archives, old footage, and present-day reflections, Souraya Mon Amour captures the life of artist Souraya Baghdadi and her bond with the late Lebanese filmmaker Maroun Baghdadi. Their partnership — personal, artistic, and deeply emotional — unfolds as a love letter to art, memory, and the endurance of creation after loss.
The Odyssey of Joy
Directed by: Zgjim Terziqi
Competition: International Critics’ Week Competition
Countries: Kosovo / France
Lis, a ten-year-old boy whose father went missing in the Kosovo War, joins a troupe of French clowns visiting post-war Kosovo. What begins as escapism turns into a confrontation with the past he’s been running from. The Odyssey of Joy looks tender and haunting, exploring how laughter can both heal and expose the deepest wounds.
Siblings (La Vita da Grandi)
Directed by: Greta Scarano
Competition: International Critics’ Week Competition
Country: Italy
Irene returns to her hometown to care for her autistic brother, Omar, who dreams of becoming a singer but refuses to live under her roof. To help him grow independent, she devises an “adulting course” that forces both of them to face their limits. Siblings promises emotional honesty and understated warmth — the kind that sneaks up on you.
Closing Thoughts
This year’s CIFF lineup feels like a dialogue between places and generations — stories rooted in identity, resilience, and reinvention. From everyday life in Cairo to the songs of the Atlas Mountains, from Gaza’s ghosts to the football stands of Santiago, each film finds its own rhythm between reality and imagination.
Cinema, as this program reminds us, still has the power to connect worlds — and maybe even create new ones.
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