Participants of “The Documentary Film” nomination told about their films

A press conference with the participants of the “Documentary Film” nomination was held in press centre of the film festival. It was attended by directors Radif Kashapov (Russia), Manar El-Zoheri (Egypt), Ulugbek Yuldashev (Uzbekistan), Sofiane Rebba (Islamic Republic of Mauritania), Hamed Alqassabi (Oman) and producer Mohamed Saadoun (Iraq).

The movie “Mon. Don`t explain” became Radif Kashapov's third directorial work.

“There are words that exist only in a certain country or nationality. We have the word 'moң', which means a state of fun and sadness at the same time. We decided to make a film where this important word would be considered not only from the point of view of music, but also literature, history, musicology, dance and so on,” shared R. Kashapov.

The documentary “We Can be lost” tells the story of three ambitious Egyptian women who grew up in the provinces and moved to Cairo. As the director of the movie Manar El-Zoheri noted, social changes in the Egyptian society, which take place after the revolution of 2011, put a big imprint on the heroines.

“The girls face contradictions between what they learned at home in strict families and what they saw in the big city. The film shows their transition phase, how they cope and go for their goals,” the director concluded.

In addition, the film, in her opinion, reveals very important aspects of society that are not made public.

The film “Shukhrat Abbasov. Close-up” directed by Ulugbek Yuldashev is dedicated to the memory of his teacher, film director and People's Artist of the USSR. In his speech, Yuldashev noted that the film contains memories of friends, colleagues and students of Shukhrat Abbasov.

“The film is about the era we have lost. Now I am completing the filming process of the picture “Romeo from Tashkent”, which will be about my favorite Soviet actor Rustam Sagdullayev. I plan to bring this film to your festival next year,” he said.

By the way, Rustam Sagdullayev took part in “Altyn minbar” festival. In 2015, he joined the jury.

Director Sofiane Rebba is working on projects that focus on Islamic heritage, the Sahelian and Saharan culture. His film “Secrets of the Wells” is a work about Sahelian geography, providing insight into the region located between the Atlantic Ocean and the Senegal River.

“Mauritania as a country is very rich in resources and minerals, but today there are quite few investments in it. The idea of the film is to show what a drop of water can do, that a village, a city can come out of water as a basic resource of life,” said Sofiane Rebba about his work.

In his turn, documentary filmmaker Hamed Alqassabi thanked the organizers of “Altyn minbar” festival for the opportunity to visit Tatarstan and its capital. His documentary “Long Distances” tells the story of a shepherdess Suad from the highlands, who becomes the champion of the ultra trail marathon. The film won “The Golden Palm Award” at the Saudi Film Festival.

“It's a real story. We met the heroine of the film by chance. After her story, we decided to tell her story to the world and through this film we were able to show the willpower of a woman. Despite the fact that she was born in a place where women are not allowed to play sports, she was able to achieve and continues to achieve success,” shared Hamed Alqassabi.

The documentary “The Challenge” also focuses on women's rights in Muslim countries. Its producer Mohamed Saadoun told the conference participants about the film's main character - the founder of a women's football team, who faces misunderstanding in society and tells the problems encountered by women.

“Such boldness goes against the Arab mentality and traditions. The film helped the girls from the football team gain fame and understanding. Football became an opportunity for them to travel, explore the world and prove themselves. Many heroines have continued their way in sports,” he stated.

The XX Kazan International Festival “Altyn minbar” takes place from September 6 to 11, 2024. The motto of the festival: “Through the dialog of cultures - to the culture of dialog” calls the whole world in the language of cinema to friendship and cooperation of representatives of all nationalities and religions.