🎬 Hurghada Festival Revisits Karim Abdel Aziz and Ashraf Fayek’s Beginnings
The Hurghada Youth Cinema Festival, headed by screenwriter Mohamed El-Basousy, celebrated the early directing experiences of actor Karim Abdel Aziz and director Ashraf Fayek by screening their cinematic graduation projects during the fourth edition of the festival.
The screenings were organized in cooperation with the Cinema Institute at the Academy of Arts and were attended by a number of festival stars and guests.
The program is part of a retrospective initiative dedicated to presenting graduation projects by prominent filmmakers and artists, allowing younger generations to discover the early cinematic experiences that preceded their later careers and successes.
⭐ “The High Hole” and “Lahmet Painting”
The festival’s seminar hall hosted the screening of two films directed by Karim Abdel Aziz during his years of study at the Cinema Institute.
The first film was titled “The High Hole”, starring Sayed Abdel Karim and Alaa Khamis, based on a story by Mohamed Abdel Rahman and with a screenplay by Tamer Habib.
The second film, which served as Karim Abdel Aziz’s graduation project, was titled “Lahmet Painting.” It starred Ehab Fahmy, Mirna Walid and Saudi actor Khaled Al Harbi, based on a screenplay by Ali Shawky and directed by Karim Abdel Aziz.
The story of “Lahmet Painting” focuses on young people’s struggles as they face the future and the difficulties they encounter as they enter what the film presents as a “life auction,” filled with challenges and tests.
🎭 Ehab Fahmy: “Lahmet Painting” Was Ahead of Its Time
The seminar was attended by actors Ehab Fahmy and Mirna Walid, who recalled their memories of the film and discussed their experience working with Karim Abdel Aziz during his early directing career.
Ehab Fahmy described “Lahmet Painting” as a film ahead of its time, praising Karim Abdel Aziz’s directing experience and stressing that cinema lost a talented director, while the entertainment industry gained him as a major actor and star.
Fahmy explained that preparations for the film continued for an entire year, while filming itself took only five days.
He also recalled that the final scene required approximately 12 hours of work inside a props warehouse. Karim Abdel Aziz was determined to execute the scene exactly as he had imagined it, and the sequence ended with a tear appearing from one eye before the end credits rolled.
🎥 Omar Abdel Aziz Recalls Karim’s Early Years
Director Omar Abdel Aziz also spoke about the early years of his nephew Karim Abdel Aziz, explaining that Karim always tended to choose a different path from what people expected.
He revealed that Karim traveled to the United States during high school and was academically successful before returning home and telling his family that he wanted to join the Cinema Institute instead of studying medicine or engineering.
These details highlight Karim Abdel Aziz’s early interest in cinema and his desire to pursue a different artistic path while still a student, long before he became one of the most recognizable stars of Egyptian cinema.
🎞️ “Long Live Justice”.. Ashraf Fayek’s Graduation Project
As part of the same retrospective program, the Hurghada Youth Cinema Festival screened “Long Live Justice,” the graduation project of director Ashraf Fayek.
The film follows an elderly man who is involved in a road accident. A young female journalist is the only person who stops to help him, only to later find herself facing a series of problems and accusations after taking him to the hospital.
The film stars Athar El Hakim, Ahmed Bedier, Mohamed Henedi, Mohamed Tawfik, Mofeed Ashour and Ashraf Taleb, bringing audiences back to an early stage in Ashraf Fayek’s artistic career.
🛠️ Ashraf Fayek Restores the Film for the Festival
Ashraf Fayek revealed that he made a special effort to restore “Long Live Justice” so it could be screened again as part of the Hurghada Youth Cinema Festival.
The director expressed his happiness at seeing different generations watching the film nearly 40 years after it was produced.
He considered the film’s return to the screen an opportunity to revive one of his early cinematic experiences and introduce it to a new audience.
🌟 Hurghada Celebrates Cinema’s Memory
The festival’s focus on the graduation projects of Karim Abdel Aziz and Ashraf Fayek highlights the importance of looking back at the beginnings of filmmakers and actors.
Graduation films can often reveal early signs of an artist’s talent, ideas and creative direction before their names become widely known.
Through screenings of “The High Hole,” “Lahmet Painting” and “Long Live Justice,” the Hurghada Youth Cinema Festival presented a glimpse into the cinematic memories associated with projects created during the artists’ student years.
The retrospective also created a connection between different generations of Egyptian cinema by bringing older works back before young audiences and cinema enthusiasts.
Which of these experiences would you most like to watch: Karim Abdel Aziz’s “Lahmet Painting” or Ashraf Fayek’s “Long Live Justice”? Share your opinion in the comments. 👇🎬
