Having spent 2014/15 calling out “lights, camera, action,” many ambitious Egyptian filmmakers’ efforts have certainly not gone to waste. The prestigious Cannes Film Festival 2015 is underway and nine Egyptian short films will be featured at the 68th edition of the annual event, now taking place between 13 and 24 May. These Egyptian entries will be screened outside of the actual film competition, and as such won’t be eligible for the Palm d’Or award for shorts. (That competition will screen only the nine films selected as category finalists, including Palestinian ...

Since 2004, May 17 has served as International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia. The Middle East doesn’t have the greatest track record for being LGBT friendly. In fact most of the MENA region overwhelmingly declares same-sex relations as illegal, according to the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA). In 2007 an Iranian was convicted of sodomy, allegedly committed at age 13, and sentenced to death. Groups like Daesh have targeted sexual minorities, publishing videos throwing allegedly gay men off the roofs of buildings. But not all ...

Many in the Middle East have been to a fatta7a, or fortune-teller, at least once in our lives - as an occasional guilty pleasure, for a one-off joke, or because we were unable to escape an odd auntie who claims to have the “touch” and peers into our drained coffee cup after each feast. It’s a standard side-trip for newly-arrived expats, involving an exciting venture into an unknown part of town, usually older, often poorer. The classic fatta7a will speak only Arabic, so decoding her messages largely depends on your ...