“In This Darkness I See You" wins El Gouna Film Festival Award in the Venice Final Cut 2024

- Ten Awards go to "CineGouna Funding" Alumni

“In This Darkness I See You”, a work-in-progress film project by Lebanese director Nadim Tabet won El Gouna Film Festival Award in the Final Cut program at the 81st Venice International Film Festival, the program dedicated to supporting Arab and African film projects in the post-production stages. 

El Gouna Film Festival Award is worth five thousand US dollars, in addition to an invitation to the film team to participate in the seventh edition of CineGouna Funding platform, which will take place during El Gouna Film Festival from October 24th to November 1st, 2024. 

During Venice Final Cut 2024, three alumni projects from the previous CineGouna Funding editions competed: "Aisha Can’t Fly Away" by Morad Mostafa, "My Father’s Scent" by Mohamed Siam, and "Your Daughter" by Sara Shazli. The three projects started their journeys by participating in CineGouna Funding as projects in development. 

“Aisha Can’t Fly Away" won five awards in Final Cut including the main La Biennale di Venezia award, while “My Father’s Scent" won five other awards, that makes CineGouna Funding alumni winners of 10 out of 17 awards distributed in Final Cut this year.

"In This Darkness I see You" is a Lebanese French Qatari Saudi co-production, directed by Nadim Tabet and produced by Georges Schoucair and Eli Souaiby. In the film, strange and life-threatening events in a construction site create tension between the Syrian workers and the Lebanese villagers.  Tarek, one of the workers, becomes convinced that the site is haunted.

Amr Mansi, Co-founder and Executive Director of El Gouna Film Festival, spoke about the El Gouna Award in Final Cut, “El Gouna Film Festival continues its commitment to supporting talented voices in Arab cinema, and the continuous partnership with the Venice Film Festival, the oldest festival in the world, confirms this commitment.  We are happy to invite In This Darkness I See You team to participate in CineGouna Funding’s first edition under the new name. We are also proud of the program alumni project which keeps proving success around the globe”.

 The seventh edition of CineGouna, El Gouna Film Festival’s platform dedicated to film industry professionals, will take place from October 25th to 31st, 2024. 

About CineGouna Funding 

It is GFF’s program that focuses on supporting and developing film projects and co-productions, with the aim of empowering Arab filmmakers, producers and directors, by providing them with the necessary creative and financial support.  Twenty films projects in development and films in post-production compete for prizes totaling approximately $300,000. The first prize in each category is worth $15,000.  Participating projects also qualify for other prizes presented by the festival’s local and regional partners and sponsors. Over the previous six editions of El Gouna Film Festival, the program has supported 120 films, some of which have won international awards.

About El Gouna Film Festival

One of the leading festivals in the MENA region, GFF aims to showcase a wide variety of films from around the world, with emphasis on Arab cinema, for a passionate and knowledgeable audience, while fostering better communication between cultures through the art of filmmaking. 

The festival’s goal is to connect filmmakers from the region with their international counterparts in the spirit of cooperation and cultural exchange.  Moreover, it aims to promote and support the industry's growth in the region and provide a platform for filmmakers to showcase their work in addition to discovering new voices and talents.