Tunisian President Zein Al Abedin Bin Ali on Friday presented Egyptian director Yousef Shahin with the Tunisian National Medallion for Cultural Work, according to the Tunisian News Agency-Africa.
“Yousef Shahin is praiseworthy for his international artwork, which has enriched the Arabic cinema,” the agency said.
The Tunisian president praised the director for his "important work that bravely tackles many social and humanitarian topics" and lauded the "spirit of independence and freedom" which he said characterized Shahin’s works.
For his part, Shahin said that he was deeply touched by the president’s award, adding that he was "greatly gratified by the president’s recognition of the cinema as a means for alleviating tensions.”
Earlier, the Egyptian director previewed his film Sukout Hansawar (Silence…We Are Rolling) before four Tunisian venues begin screening the film for the public as of next Monday.
Shahin held a press conference at a hotel in the Tunisian capital in presence of the film’s star, the Tunisian singer Latifa.
The film, which hit theaters in Cairo in August, is a comedy musical with political overtones, and depicts communism, Nasserism and the policy of "openness" adopted by the late Egyptian president Anwar Al Sadat. This is in addition to featuring a call for social "modernization" within the framework of a romantic drama.
“I chose this style to get out of the miserable circumstances which the Arab arena is witnessing,” said Shahin.
He added that “contrary to previous occasions, I wanted this time to get out of the state of hardship through a musical comedy, which can convey serious thoughts to people in a quicker manner and restore this quality of production which has become extinct.”
Shahin reiterated that the film, with “its joyful style, tackles our relations as Arabs with globalization and how we understand it, in addition to the anticipated risks of materialistic domination and the regression of human values." - Albawaba.com
