Winter of Discontent screening @ 2013 Alwan Film Festival Thursday May 2, 6:30 PM - Anthology Film Archives

Co-presented by freeDimensional

Ibrahim El-Batout, Egypt, 2012, 94 mins

Set against the momentous backdrop of the mass protests of Cairo’s Tahrir Square that began on January 25, 2011, this film takes us on a compellingly raw and moving journey into the lives of an activist, a journalist, and a state security officer. Winter of Discontent poetically explores the anguish of a victim of state terror in 2009, presaging and intertwining with the pivotal events in 2011 that changed the face of Egypt. As the stories of the characters unfold, we are propelled headlong into the heady, often surreal atmosphere of terror and uncertainty that characterized the last days of Mubarak’s rule.

About the director:

Born in Egypt in 1963, Ibrahim El Batout started his filmmaking career in 1985 as a war cameraman. In 2005, El Batout made his first low budget feature film Ithaki(2005) reflecting on his return to his homeland. His second film Ein Shams (2008) won the Golden Tauro, the top prize at the 54th Taormina Film Festival in 2008. Ibrahim’s third feature film Hawi (2010) won the Best Arab Film Award at the Doha Tribeca Film Festival and premièred internationally at the Rotterdam International Film Festival. (click here to buy tickets now)