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To celebrate Egypt’s rich cinema heritage AfricAvenir, in partnership with the Egyptian Embassy, the Egyptian Film Centre, AfriCine, and the Goethe-Centre Windhoek, with financial support of Pharaoh’s Lounge Windhoek, will dedicate a full week of screenings to Classic Egyptian films, in Windhoek, Namibia – an event that the organizers hope will eventually become an annual event, focusing on films from the late 1950’s to the early 1970’s, made throughout the continent.
Egypt was the first country in Africa and the Middle East to establish a film-industry. Film screenings took place as early as 1896 when the works by the Lumière Brothers were presented in Alexandria and Cairo. Still under foreign rule, Egypt was the only colony in which the production of news-reels and short-films by the local population was possible. First reports about productions date back to 1909. Within its monthly film series “African Perspectives” AfricAvenir has in the past and will in the future continue to screen high quality Egyptian cinema to the Namibian public. 
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The 1st week of Classic Egyptian Film in Windhoek, Namibia, starts today, August 12th, and runs through August 17, 2013.

The opening night program, tonight, is as follows:
19h15: Guests are seated
19h20: Francois Hartz, Host Institution/Goethe Centre, Master of Ceremonies welcomes guests
19h20: Professional Sascha Olivier-Sampson performs Belly Dance with Music
19h25: Remarks by Hans-Christian Mahnke, Director of AfricAvenir
19h30: Remarks by H.E. Dr. Haxem H. Ramadan, Ambassador of Egypt 
19h35: Dr. Ramadan and Mr. Mahnke cut the cake and officially open the
1st Week of Classic Egyptian Films
19h40: Introducing the FilmTrailer Egyptian Film Week
19h45: Screening of Opening Film “Cairo Station” 

The films in the program include the aforementioned Cairo Station (1958) by Youssef Chahine, nominated for the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, and also A Man in Our House (1961) by Henry Barakat, starring Omar Sharif in one of his first films; The Night of Counting the Years – The Mummy (1969) by Chadi Abdel Salam, which was restored by Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Foundation; Chased by the Dogs (1962) by Kamal El Sheikh a felicitous combination of film noir and social commentary which was selected at the 13th Berlin International Film Festival, and M Empire (1972) by Hussein Kamal, featuring Faten Hamama, Egypt’s iconic actress legend. 

Furthermore the film week will present yet another Youssef Chahine film  the more recent Destiny (1997). The film premiered at the 50th anniversary of the Cannes Film Festival in 1997, where Youssef Chahine received a Lifetime Achievement Award.
For more details, visit www.africavenir.org and or contact 0855630949 and africavenir.whk@googlemail.com. 
Series trailer below:

Blavity EntertainmentScreening SightingShadow and Act