30 Nov Two Projects win IEFTA Prize of Mentorship from Development to Release at the El Gouna Film Festival 2024
Director Leila Basma and producer Natália Pavlove were awarded with the IEFTA prize of Mentorship from Development to Release for their project Running with Beasts, along with director Rama Abdi and producer Hazar Yazji for their project, House No. 7. The awards were presented as part of the CineGouna Funding Platform at the El Gouna Film Festival on October 31, 2024.
Project One:
Running with Beasts
Leila Basma
DIRECTOR
Leila Basma is a Lebanese filmmaker and photographer currently based between Beirut and Prague. She holds a BA in Audiovisual Arts from IESAV in Beirut, and an MFA in Film Directing at FAMU. Through her work, she explores the themes of society, youth, womanhood, and identity. Her second-year FAMU short documentary The Adam Basma Project was short-listed for the 48th annual Student Academy Awards (the Student Oscars) after touring various international documentary film festivals. Her film Sea Salt was selected to premiere at the 80th La Biennale Venice International Film Festival in the official Orizzonti Short Film Competition. Leila is currently developing also her feature documentary Dance with me, winner of the Robert Bosch Stiftung development award.
Natália Pavlove
PRODUCER
Natalia Pavlove is a Czech-based producer, holds an MA in Producing from FAMU and MA in International Relations and Management. She gained valuable experience through internships in cities like Paris, Berlin, and Mexico City. She founded her own company, Other Stories, in 2021 after collaborating on various feature films, series, and documentaries with production companies in the Czech Republic. She produced the award-winning short film “Vinland” and the Czech-Lebanese-Qatar coproduction “Sea Salt,” both celebrated at international film festivals such as Venice IFF, Karlovy Vary IFF 2022, and Cairo IFF 2022. Currently, she is collaborating and developing projects with emerging female directors. She is an IDFA Academy and EURODOC alumna and was nominated for the Czech National Film Awards.
Synopsis
In the midst of the ongoing Lebanese economic crisis, a group of five high schoolers meets one last time after their graduation day to finalize their secret plan, which guarantees to afford their approaching dreams. Lana, Mira, Omar, James, and Nader each have to face the sudden pressure of stepping into adulthood in a country dwelling in tragedies. On top of struggling with their personal lives, their sexualities, and their relationships, they are also going through inexplicable changes. Their bodies are transforming, their appetite, their tastes, their cravings. They look with envy at their classmate, Rami, who has everything they wish for. The plan is dangerous and fun, but responsibilities are around the corner. None of them has imagined the consequences of their doing, a big tragedy awaits alongside a big techno party.
Project Two:
House No. 7
Rama Abdi
DIRECTOR
Rama Abdi, born in 1995, is a DOP and an independent director from Damascus Syria, she is a student at the Higher Institute of Cinema in Syria, and a graduate of the Department of Business Administration, she began her filmmaking journey in 2018. her first short documentary, “Fish Dance” was produced in 2022 and premiered at the 7th 7ème Lune Festival in Paris. She is also currently working on her first feature-length documentary, “House Number 7”
Hazar Yazji
PRODUCER
Hazar Yazji, a DOP, and a creative photographer, has worked in creative content development and art management, And currently working on the film “House No. 7” as a producer.
Synopsis
Three young women—Rama, Marah, and Lilian—find refuge and companionship in an old Damascene house owned by Um Mousa in one of Syria's more liberal areas, seeking solace amid the chaos of war. Isolated within the house and the Bab Touma district, they form deep bonds, sharing intimate conversations by candlelight that they dare not voice outside. However, their fragile peace is disrupted by external pressures, the emigration of peers, family demands, and the struggle for basic needs, culminating in devastation from a massive earthquake and bombings. Overwhelmed, Lilian and Marah plan their escape abroad, while Rama remains, uncertain of her path.