19-25 January
2026
Two sisters grow up in the Nile Delta in Egypt. They have friends, family and school, and lead seemingly respectable lives, as expected from Egyptian girls. But one of them lives a secret life on social media, which will have dramatic consequences for both of them.
Souad's family believes her to be religious and studious – in other words respectable. But she is someone entirely different through her mobile phone. She lies about herself to strangers on the bus, and she has a virtual relationship with the glamorous instagrammer Ahmed. They fight, make up, have phone sex and exchange photos. But when they are to meet in real life for the first time, Souad chickens out. From there on, her life becomes an emotional rollercoaster, and it's left to her 13-year-old sister Rabab to pick up the pieces after a dramatic event.
Director Amin has used mostly non-professional actors in the film, and the script was developed on the basis of extensive conversations with real Egyptian teenagers. The result is a realistic and personal portrait of the double life many Egyptian teenagers have to uphold to live up to the conservative expectations of their parents, in combination with modern life in the age of social media.
Ayten Amin (b. 1978) is an Egyptian filmmaker. She studied cinema at the American University in Cairo, and her breakthrough came with the documentary Tahrir 2011, which she made during the Egyptian revolution in 2011. Her films have been shown at the film festival in Cannes, and she is perceived as one of the great up-and-coming talents in Egypt.
2009 Rabie 89 / Spring 89 (Short)
2011 Tahrir 2011 / Tahrir 2011: The Good, the Bad, and the Politician (Documentary)
2013 Villa 69
2017 Saabe' Gaar (TV)
Kl 12:30
Fokus 2
Kl 09:30
Fokus 2
Kl 16:30
Driv Cinema
Programme: | Horizons |
Director: | Ayten Amin |
Country: | Egypt, Tunisia, Germany |
Year: | 2021 |
Run time: | 1h 36m |
Screenplay: | Ayten Amin, Mahmoud Ezzat |
Photo: | Maged Nader |
Cast: | Bassant Ahmed, Basmala Elghaiesh, Hussein Ghanem, Hagar Mahmoud, Sarah Shedid |
Dialogue: | Arabic |
Producer: | Sameh Awad |