Egyptian mobile film 'Zay Oud Al Kabrit' (Like a Matchstick) by Sami Iskander has won the Best Script Award at the Mobile Film Festival Africa. The festival unveiled the winners of its 2023 edition at a prize ceremony held on Thursday, June 8 at the Renaissance Cinema in Rabat, Morocco. The event is part of the "Rabat, African Capital of Culture" program celebrations. Guests were able to discover all the films in this year's official selection (54 films from 21 African countries), as well as the prizes awarded by a jury chaired by Gad Elmaleh and including Samia Akarriou, Sofia Alaoui, Françoise Ellong, Rafiki Fariala and Fibby Kioria. For its second pan-African edition, organized in partnership with United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLG Africa) and the Kingdom of Morocco's Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication, the Mobile Film Festival has set up production grants worth a total of $51,000. These grants will enable the winners to make a film with professional resources and support from the Mobile Film Festival. The festival's Grand Prize Africa went to 'I Have a Dream Too' by Sunday Mapya from Tanzania. While the Grand Prize Morocco was secured by 'The Guardian of the Walls' by Morocco's Kamal Lougleb. This prize is accompanied by a 10-day screenwriting training residency at ENS Louis-Lumière in Paris, offered by the Institut Français du Maroc. Moreover, the French Speaking Film Award went to 'The Peninsula Dream' by Nelly Brun Elvire Behanzin from Benin. Kenya's Shandra Daisy Apondi won the ACP – EU Culture Award for her film 'PAASWAAAD' (Password). African Female Director Award was secured by Morocco's Vanessa Pellegrin for her film 'Life in Pink'. While the Best Actress Award went to Kenza Salahddine for her role in Life in Pink. Blindness by South Africa's Bongani Ndaba 'Blindness' won the Documentary Film Award. Meanwhile, the Best Film from the Democratic Republic of the Congo went to Nature's Heroes by Gael Bolila. Best Actor Award went for Senegal's Yakaru Talibé (A Beggar's Dream) by Abdoul. Enthusiasm for this second pan-African edition was evident right from the call for films, with a huge turnout (886 films from 40 African countries received), and continued throughout the online festival phase, with media coverage across the continent and internationally. International visibility will be also ensured throughout 2023, with screenings at film festivals, associations and cultural institutions, as well as the 600 cinema screens in 31 African countries showing films from the official selection. To make them as accessible as possible, the films are offered with subtitles in French, English, Arabic, Portuguese and Spanish. One of the specificities of the Mobile Film Festival is its 100% digital dimension.
