Maqamat short film programme, Anna Lindh Foundation

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Maqamat short film programme, Anna Lindh Foundation

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Maqamāt is a monthly short film programme, curated by A Kiss in the Desert. The programme is inspired by the Maqamāt, a concise literary format, with recurring characters adapting different roles, in a manner very much like that of a short film.

The short films curated each month share a theme, and are screened with English/Arabic subtitles; aiming to expand the short films viewership in Egypt. This edition’s theme is “A Film within a Film”. The selected films were screened in multiple international film festivals including Berlinale and Rotterdam.The programme was first screened on June 19th, 2022, at Zawya Arthouse Cinema, Cairo.

Maqamāt screenings in Alexandria were made possible by Christine Soliman, founder of Yalla N3ady Alexandria.

The Programme:

1. Rehearsal, Michael Omonua, Nigeria, 14’
How do you stage a miracle healing? Boundaries dissolve between church and theatre, faith and credibility.

2. Lemongrass Girl, Pom Bunsermvicha, Thailand, 18’
According to Thai superstition, a virgin can ward off rain by planting lemongrass upside-down underneath an open sky. As clouds begin to gather, a young production manager on a film set is tasked to carry out this tradition. As her fellow female co-workers shy away, she is left with no choice but to take on the burden of becoming the lemongrass girl.

3. À La Recherche d’Aline, Rokhaya Marieme Balde, Sénégal, 27’
Rokhaya, a young filmmaker returns home to Dakar to make a film about a local historical figure. Along her research, which consists of interviews with local personalities and fictional scenes shot on location, we discover the story of Aline Sitoe Diatta