WATCH: GEM’s ‘Eternal Sun’ Creative Director Reveals His Process

“Once you decide to look at ancient Egypt away from the mysticism and exoticism, you have to look at the ancient Egyptians themselves. What were they like?”

It is with this question that Creative Director Amr Abdel Nasser approaches the challenge, and urgency, of Eternal Sun, the Grand Egyptian Museum’s landmark immersive experience. Unveiled to mark the first anniversary of the museum’s opening, the 35-minute production traces 5,000 years of history through light projections cast across the museum’s Grand Hall, turning the architecture itself into a canvas for the past.

In this CairoScene exclusive, Abdel Nasser, Head of Temporary Exhibitions at Legacy Hassan Allam, the subsidiary company operating the museum, takes us through the thinking, research and creative process behind bringing the experience to life. He also unpacks how the museum's programming is conceived and orchestrated to remain relevant, layered and engaging to audiences as different as a historian and a football player. The ambition is to keep telling monumental stories from within a monumental space, finding new ways to make the past speak to the present.

Eternal Sun will remain on view for six months, with daily screenings at 7:30 PM and 9 PM, except Wednesdays and Saturdays. Tickets are available through the Grand Egyptian Museum’s official website.