Gabès Film Festival will honour the late iconic Egyptian director Mohamed Khan. The festival, which will take place between 24 and 30 September, is headed by Egypt-based Tunisian actress Hend Sabry. Director Mahmoud El-Jemni, who also heads the festival, announced that it will honour Khan by screening a number of his films, in addition to a lecture centered on him that will be attended by actor Khaled Abo El-Naga, director Ahmed Rashwan and Hend Sabry. A short film directed by Ahmed Rashwan on the life of Khan will be screened, as well as a published book by critics and Khan friends in the cinema field. El-Jemni added that this edition includes two competitions for feature and short films. Dorra Bouchoucha will head an all women's jury for feature films, while Fatma Bin Saidan will head a jury for short films. Born in Cairo in 1942 to an Egyptian mother and a Pakistani father, Khan was educated in Britain before beginning his film career in the Egyptian capital in the 1960s as a scriptwriter to go on to become one of Egypt's most prominent directors. Khan belonged to a generation of neorealist filmmakers that represented a hallmark in Egyptian cinema with his movies tackling social issues that often revolved around female central characters. Among the most acclaimed films of Khan's two dozen motion picture productions are: El-Harreef (The Street Player, 1984), Zawgat Ragol Mohem (The Wife of an Important Man, 1987) and Ahlam Hind wa Camilia (Dreams of Hind and Camilia, 1988) —which were named among the "100 Greatest Arab Films of all time" by the Dubai International Film Festival. His latest (Before the Summer Crowds), premiered in Egypt at the 5th Luxor African Film Festival (LAFF). In December 2015, Khan released a book titled Journey of a Director (Mokhreg Aala Al Tareeq), which comprises a selection of his articles between 1990 and 2014 published in different newspapers such as Al-Hayat, Al-Qabas and Al-Tahrir. Khan acquired Egyptian nationality by a presidential decree in March 2014. For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture
