Egyptian Film ‘The Settlements’ to Premiere at Berlinale 2025

Egyptian film ‘The Settlements’, directed by Mohamed Rashad, will have its world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale), which will take place from February 13th to the 25th, 2025.

The film has been selected for the festival’s new competition section, Perspectives. This standalone section aims to showcase films that present unique viewpoints and innovative storytelling techniques or highlight emerging voices in global cinema.

‘The Settlements’ follows two brothers, Hossam and Maro, who face life-changing circumstances after the death of their father in a workplace accident. Set in Alexandria, the story examines their struggles after being offered jobs at the factory as compensation for their loss, prompting them to question whether the accident was intentional.

This work is a joint production between Egypt, France, Germany, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and has received funding from multiple international sources, including the Berlinale World Cinema Fund, Hubert Bals Fund, Doha Film Institute, and Red Sea Development Fund. It marks Mohamed Rashad’s debut narrative feature film following his 2016 documentary ‘Little Eagles’, which won the Best Documentary Award at the Malmö Arab Film Festival.

The movie stars Adham Shoukry, Ziad Islam, Hajar Omar, Mohamed Abdel Hady, and Emad Ghoneim, with cinematography by Mahmoud Lotfi and editing by Heba Othman.