Learn about the El Gouna Film Festival
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| Hello, and welcome to the Culture Class — Holidays in Egypt Series at ArabicPod101.com. In this series, we’re exploring the traditions behind Egyptian holidays and observances. I’m Michael, and you're listening to Lesson 23, El Gouna Film Festival. In Egyptian Arabic, it’s called [ مهرجان الجونة السينمائي (mahraǧān el-ǧūnah el-sīnemāʾī)]. |
| El Gouna Film Festival is an annual Film Festival established in 2017. It is annually held in September, in El Gouna, which is a resort town on the Red Sea, or [ البحر الأحمر (elbaḥr el-ʾaḥmar)]. The first edition was a huge success and has received an immense amount of media coverage. |
| Now, before we go into more detail, do you know the answer to this question— |
| What is the title of the popular song made to promote the 1st edition of this festival? |
| If you don't already know, you’ll find out a bit later. Keep listening. |
| The mission of El Gouna Film Festival is to bring a diverse selection of films from around the globe to the light, focusing on the MENA region, which is the Middle East and North Africa region. The festival encourages intercultural communication between different cultures and nations through films, or [ الأفلام (elʾaflām)]. Its ultimate goal is the development and growth of cinema and filmmaking in the MENA region through linking filmmakers from the region with international filmmakers in the spirit of cooperation and cultural exchange, or [ التبادل الثقافي (eltabādol el-taqāfī)]. |
| The festival presents some of the newest films from around the world and hosts both famous and emerging filmmakers. The festival gives special attention to films with humanitarian content. In parallel to the screenings, the festival organizes the "CineGouna platform", which is a business hub designed to support talents from the MENA region. This platform hosts meetings between Arab and international directors, or [ مخرجين (moḫreǧīn)], producers, and distributors with the aim of creating opportunities for the Film industry in the MENA region. In addition, the event hosts round-tables, workshops, panels, and masterclasses. |
| One of the things that receive an incredible amount of media attention in the Gouna Film Festival is what the participants, especially the actresses, choose to wear for the festival. During the time of the festival, social media would be flooded with opinions about the designer dresses the actresses wear on each day of the festival. |
| And now I'll give you the answer to the earlier quiz. |
| What is the title of the popular song made to promote the 1st edition of this festival? |
| The song is called [ ثلاث دقات (talāt daʾʾāt)] which literally means "three heart beats." So far, it has almost 400 million views on Youtube. The song was made to promote the festival so it was filmed in El Gouna, capturing the essence of summer time on the beach with its positive vibes and cheerful melody. |
| So listeners, how was this lesson? Is there any film festival in your country? |
| Let us know in the comments and we’ll see you next time! Bye! مع السلامة (maʿ el-salāmah)! |
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