Zawya Cinema Screens Acclaimed Documentary ‘Abu Zaabal 89’
A standout at the Cairo Int’l Film Festival, ‘Abu Zaabal 89’ won three awards and became a rallying point for Egypt’s indie film scene.
Director Bassam Mortada’s documentary ‘Abu Zaabal 89’ is set to screen at Zawya Cinema starting May 7th as part of Cairo Cinema Days, a special program showcasing standout Arab films that have made an impact on the international festival circuit.
The film had its world premiere at the 2024 International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) in the Luminous section, which showcases films that “tell human stories with a strong visual style”.
A standout at the 2024 Cairo International Film Festival, ‘Abu Zaabal 89’ won three awards and quickly became a rallying point for Egypt’s independent film scene. Its four sold-out screenings, two of which were added due to overwhelming demand, sparked a sense of collective pride among local filmmakers.
The film is both an intimate memoir and a historical reckoning. Mortada, the son of Egyptian socialist activist Mahmoud Mortada, revisits the trauma of 1989, when his father was incarcerated during the Steel and Iron Company strike. Bassam, still a teenager at the time, accompanied his mother, Fardous, to visit his father in Abu Zaabal prison; a memory that became etched into their family’s history.
Decades later, ‘Abu Zaabal 89’ reconstructs this moment, not just as a personal reflection but as a wider narrative about resistance, memory, and political legacy. Through candid conversations with his parents and archival footage, Mortada weaves a multilayered story of family, repression, and resilience. The film also highlights the experiences of Bassam’s friends, whose families were similarly impacted by the same case.
