Stepping into Legend: Mona Zaki’s Life-Changing Portrayal of Umm Kulthum
The program of the fourth session of the Bahrain Film Festival has been launched under the slogan “Celebrating the Art of Filmmaking”, which will be held from the third to the seventh of this November. The opening witnessed the presence of a group of the most prominent artists and filmmakers from the Arab world, as this year the festival focuses on empowering women and highlighting their issues.
The film ‘Convoluted’ was shown at the opening ceremony
The opening ceremony included a screening of the Bahraini short film “Convoluted” directed by Mohammad Farid and starring Ibrahim Al-Birawi, which caught the attention of the audience.
“Women in Cinema” session
In a discussion session titled “Women in Cinema”, Egyptian actress Mona Zaki talked for the first time about her role as Umm Kulthum in the film work “Kawkab Al-Sharq” written by Ahmed Murad and directed by Marwan Hamed. Mona mentioned that the character of Umm Kulthum left a deep impression on her and even though the filming ended about 10 days ago, she is yet to come out of it.
Mona Zaki described Umm Kulthum as “a legend by all standards”, explaining how the character influenced her. He considered Umm Kulthum as an artist who achieved unparalleled success. He added that there are certain characters that have a deep impact on the actor and described the experience of embodying the character as “very difficult”.
Criticism is a challenge
During the session, Mona Zaki became emotional while talking about the criticism she faced at some stage, noting its effect on her mental state, as she was forced to stay away from the limelight and stay at home for 5 years. He explains that the support of his colleagues in the artistic community has helped him overcome this difficult phase.
Bahrain Film Festival Award
This year, the festival honored several artists, notably Kuwaiti actor Mohammad Al-Mansour for his pioneering role in Gulf cinema, and Bahraini actresses Maryam Zayman and Fatima Abdul Rahim, praising their contribution to the development and enhancement of Bahraini cinema. The role of women in this field.
Participating films
The fourth session of the Bahrain Film Festival will showcase 89 films in 5 main competitions, including short narrative films, short documentaries, student films, animation films and Bahrain films.
top star
The festival was attended by several prominent stars from various Arab countries, including Bushra, Ashraf Zaki, Rogina, Fatima Al-Safi, Haifa Hussain, Yaqub Al-Farhan, Shazoun Al-Hajri and Mahmoud Bushhari, and added a special touch. Shine on the occasion.