19 min. Arabic.
In and around the historical ruins of Fustat in Old Cairo, tensions simmer between the site’s government-appointed guards and residents of a nearby informal settlement, al-Izba. The guards chase away looters and confiscate their equipment, while locals infuriate them by taking shortcuts through the site, occasionally stopping for a smoke. For the guards it would be easiest to keep the site closed until further notice.
Ahmed Elghoneimy, born in 1986 in Alexandria, Egypt, is a filmmaker and artist currently living between Alexandria and Cairo. His work revolves around interpersonal tensions between the different protagonists presented in his films, such as sons and fathers (Tripoli Tide, 2018), victims and perpetrators (Bahari, 2011), bullies and friends (The Cave, 2013). Alternating between fiction and documentary, his films take no heed of a narrative arc culminating in a dramatic climax, but rather follow associations and use moments of collision as an opportunity to investigate notions like victimhood, power, and masculinity.
