Silence...We're Rolling

This concise masterpiece began as a commission by French TV for the news series Envoyé spécial. By filming Cairo with his unique sense of artistic digression, Chahine transformed this portrait of a city into the self-portrait of a filmmaker.

The story is set in the 12th century in Arab-ruled Spanish province Andalusia, where famed philosopher Averroes is appointed grand judge by the caliph and his liberal court judgements are not liked by everyone. The caliph's political rivals, centered around the leader of a fanatical Islamic sect, force the caliph to send Averroes into exile, but his ideas keep on living thanks to his students.

Set against the panoramic backdrop of war-torn Egypt, director Youssef Chahine tells a highly personal tale of love and determination. Amid the poverty, death and suffering caused by World War II, 18 year-old Yehia, retreats into a private world of fantasy and longing. Obsessed with Hollywood, he dreams of one day studying filmmaking in America, but after falling in love and discovering the lies of European occupation, Yehia profoundly reevaluates his identity and allegiances.

Adapted from Abdel Rahman Al-Sharqawi's well-known novel of the same name, this classic film by Egyptian master Youssef Chahine was eight years in the making. Chronicling a small peasant village's struggles against the careless inroads of the large local landowner, The Land shows why political oppression does not necessarily lead to a sense of solidarity among the disinherited

Egypt, 1947: in the midst of a cholera outbreak. A washerwoman tries to take care of her family, while at the same time resisting the advances of a charming suitor who's half her age.

1950 Cairo, Amin is a simple employee who lives with his family of three, his wife Zahira, son Nabil and daughter Hoda. Amin’s friend Mabrouk convinces Amin to invest his life savings in a project, which he promises, will get him rich. Amin agrees but forgets to take a receipt. Amin suddenly dies and watches on from the after life.

Hemaidah is a Farmer who hates country life. He hates working in fields and taking care of the animals in his farm. Though unsatisfied with her, he marries Zebeidah, a woman in the same village.

Directed by Youssef Chahine.

The story of a 40-year-old married woman who has fallen into idleness and does not know how to approach the revolutionary events in her country. She finds a new meaning in life when she falls in love with an aspiring young student. “I shot FAGR YOM GUEDID in 1964. I count it among my best films and still stand by it completely. It is about the class whose assets were nationalized after the 1952 revolution. I explored the question of whether this class still had a place in Egyptian society.”

(Syed) is a famous writer who climbed the top of the social and political pyramid in search of more. He is married to Sherifa, and is preparing to travel abroad to work for the United Nations, but he reads in a newspaper the news of the killing of his twin (Mahmoud), so he postpones his travel and calls the police to search for the killer of his brother, and it begins. On the search trip, the police officer has doubts about Syed.