Egypt: Last News

The prestigious Visions du Réel film festival in Nyon, Switzerland wraps up this weekend, after hosting the world premiere of dozens of documentaries.

The controversy over Netflix‘s Queen Cleopatra limited series is getting more dramatic.

Netflix‘s Queen Cleopatra.In the documentary, which is narrated by Jada Pinkett Smith, Cleopatra is portrayed by biracial actress Adele James (Casualty).Her casting has sparked a debate in Egypt, with various figures accusing the docudrama of “blackwashing” the country’s history. One lawyer even filed a lawsuit against Netflix, claiming the project had contradicted and distorted Egyptian history in favour of promoting Afrocentrism.On Thursday (April 27), the antiquities ministry in Egypt weighed in on the debate, saying that Cleopatra had “white skin and Hellenistic characteristics”.“Bas-reliefs and statues of Queen Cleopatra are the best proof,” the ministry’s statement read (via The Independent).Queen Cleopatra, the last ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty, was born in 69 BC and died in 30 BC in Alexandria.

Egypt’s Supreme Council Of Antiquities (SCA) has added its voice to the row over the portrayal of Cleopatra as a Black woman in Netflix’s upcoming docudrama Queen Cleopatra.

Last year, it took 275,000 bright pink roses to adorn the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the Met Gala, the biggest night in fashion and one of the biggest concentrations of star power anywhere.

. In the clip, Scott visits Lidia in the Dominican Republic and they go on their first date, but their language barrier is proving to be a significant challenge.

Addie Morfoot Contributor “Seven Winters in Tehran,” about a 19-year-old Iranian woman sentenced to death for killing the man who tried to rape her, will open the 34th annual Human Rights Watch Film Festival on May 31 in New York City.The festival, co-presented by the Film Society of Lincoln Center and the IFC Center, will feature 10 documentaries about humanitarian challenges around the world. This year’s edition spotlights themes and topics including the Ukraine conflict (“When Spring Came to Bucha”), climate gentrification and justice (“Razing Liberty Square”), women’s rights (“Draw Me Egypt”) transgender rights (“Into My Name”) freedom of the press (“The Etilaat Roz”) and access to health care in the United States (“Pay or Die”).“From the war in Ukraine to women’s rights and bodily autonomy, to environmental gentrification and freedom of the press, these films span some of the most pressing human rights issues of our time,” says John Biaggi, director of the Human Rights Watch Film Festival.

McKinley Franklin editor Frank Agrama, founder and chairman of Harmony Gold, died on Tuesday. He was 93. Agrama’s career as an entertainment pioneer saw him founding several production companies including the Film Association of Rome and then Harmony Gold, which launched television series such as “Shaka Zulu” and “Robotech.” He was born on Jan. 1, 1930, and became a child actor in Egypt with his own TV series. While his father was the Surgeon General of Egypt, Agrama initially followed in his father’s footsteps by acquiring a degree in medicine and surgery from the University of Cairo. By the time he was 23 years old, Agrama was a medical doctor. 

IFC Films on Tuesday announced their promotion of longtime company executive Harris Dew to the role of Senior Vice President and General Manager of IFC Center.

, Nicole finally came to the decision that she no longer wants to live in Egypt after struggling this entire season to adhere to the more conservative culture and she told the news to her husband.Nicole already tried living in Egypt once when she married Mahmoud but left when they decided to separate. They later got back together and this season documents her second time trying to live with him in his home country.

Tina Gharavi is speaking out about portraying Cleopatra as black in the upcoming Netflix mini-series, Queen Cleopatra.

Jade Thirlwall has shared a heartwarming message from her dad about his main concern about her being out in Los Angeles.The former Little Mix star, who recently enjoyed a night out in London, has been spending a lot of time on America's west coast after signing a solo record deal last year. And in a WhatsApp exchange shared by the 30 year old on her Instagram Story on Saturday evening, it was clear that her dad thought she was working too hard and needed to have a break in true British style.

Any parent will know that going away during the school holidays can drastically increase the cost of any holiday.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor The trailer (below) for “Draw for Change!” – which was named best documentary series at Canneseries this week – has debuted. The feature film version of the first of its six episodes, “Behind the Lines,” will world premiere at Visions du Réel Film Festival on April 28. The series, from creators Guillaume Vandenberghe and Vincent Coen, profiles six female cartoonists working in six geographic areas of the world, in six individual films and broadcast episodes. Female directors with close connections to each of the societies represented were chosen to tell the stories. Autlook Film Sales is handling international sales.

Netflix‘s upcoming docudrama Queen Cleopatra has addressed the backlash over casting a Black actress in the lead role.Casualty star Adele James was announced as the lead of the series in April, but criticism soon followed in Egypt, with many accusing the docudrama of “blackwashing” the country’s history. One lawyer even filed lawsuit against Netflix, claiming the series had contradicted and distorted Egyptian history in favour of promoting Afrocentrism.However, in a new piece for Variety, director Tina Gharayi hit back at critics, arguing “it’s more likely that Cleopatra looked like Adele than Elizabeth Taylor,” who famously portrayed the historical figure in 1963’s Cleopatra.“For me, the idea that people had gotten it so incredibly wrong before — historically, from Theda Bara to Monica Bellucci, and recently, with Angelina Jolie and Gal Gadot in the running to play her — meant we had to get it even more right,” wrote Gharayi.“Why shouldn’t Cleopatra be a melanated sister? And why do some people need Cleopatra to be white? Her proximity to whiteness seems to give her value, and for some Egyptians it seems to really matter.”She continued: “After much hang-wringing and countless auditions, we found in Adele James an actor who could convey not only Cleopatra’s beauty but also her strength.

The director of “Queen Cleopatra” is addressing critics.

Tina Gharavi Guest Contributor Last summer, I was living in Venice Beach and had decided, due to a friend’s persistence, to visit a fortune teller. Me, ever the sceptic but game for a laugh, agreed to go along. What the fortune teller said made me roll my eyes: “I am not saying you are Cleopatra but somehow you share her story and are connected.” Less than a month later, I got a call from a production company making Jada Pinkett Smith’s “African Queens” and was subsequently hired to direct four episodes of a drama-documentary on the life of the controversial leader. The joke was on me. I remember as a kid seeing Elizabeth Taylor play Cleopatra. I was captivated, but even then, I felt the image was not right. Was her skin really that white? With this new production, could I find the answers about Cleopatra’s heritage and release her from the stranglehold that Hollywood had placed on her image?

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Netflix’s upcoming docudrama “Queen Cleopatra” in which Britain’s Adele James, who is of mixed heritage, plays the first-century Egyptian ruler as a queen with African roots is sparking an uproar in Egypt. Egyptian academics are claiming that Cleopatra, who was born in the Egyptian city of Alexandria in 69 BC and belonged to a Greek-speaking dynasty, was of European descent and not Black. An Egyptian lawyer has reportedly filed a complaint demanding that legal measures are taken to block Netflix outright in Egypt, to prevent the show from airing. They claim the docudrama, which drops May 10, violates the country’s media laws. Netflix did not immediately comment.

previously explained that she wanted to be involved in the project because she “really wanted to represent Black women.”But Egyptologist Zahi Hawass, who previously served as the nation’s antiquities minister, is not happy with the “completely fake” portrayal of the famous queen, who he claims was wholly Greek — and “not black.” He’s accused Netflix of “trying to provoke confusion by spreading false and deceptive facts that the origin of the Egyptian civilization is black.”“Cleopatra was Greek, meaning that she was light-skinned, not black,” the archaeologist told the Al-Masry al-Youm newspaper, per a BBC report on Wednesday.In addition, lawyer Mahmoud al-Semary filed a complaint Sunday with the country’s public prosecutor to demand that Netflix be blocked in Egypt, claiming they are trying to “promote the Afrocentric thinking … which includes slogans and writings aimed at distorting and erasing the Egyptian identity.”A petition titled “Cancel Netflix’s ‘Queen Cleopatra'” has more than 3,200 signatures on Change.org. Another petition for the cause that allegedly garnered 85,000 signatures was meanwhile removed from Change.org.

Pat Saperstein Deputy Editor One year after Los Angeles’ beloved Landmark closed, the city’s exhibition scene is looking a little brighter – or at least, it will be when a few long-awaited venues open or reopen in 2023, including the Vista, the Egyptian and the new Vidiots outpost at the Eagle Theatre. Between grappling with the stratospherically priced L.A. commercial real estate and persuading adults to return to movie theaters, the local exhibition scene has weathered numerous challenges since COVID forced businesses to shutter operations. “It’s better than last year for sure, because COVID is officially over May 11,” says Sony Pictures Classics co-president Tom Bernard, referencing the end of the federal public health emergency declaration. “So that is a great piece of information for people — they will probably go out more when they feel the official end to the pandemic.”

Netflix for depicting Cleopatra as a Black woman in a new documentary.al-Semary filed a case with the Public Prosecutor to shut down the streaming service in Egypt, following the release of the trailer for Queen Cleopatra – you can watch it below.As reported by Egypt Independent, the lawyer has demanded that serious legal action be taken against those responsible for the making of the documentary.The case claims that the documentary contradicts and distorts Egyptian history in favour of promoting Afrocentrism.al-Semary described the new depiction of the historic figure as a “crime”, and blamed Netflix’s management team for its participation in the project. He also demanded a thorough investigation of the process, as well as an outright shutdown of Netflix in Egypt.The case submitted against Netflix stated: “Most of what Netflix platform displays do not conform to Islamic and societal values and principles, especially Egyptian ones.”It added: “In order to preserve the Egyptian national and cultural identity among Egyptians all over the world there must be pride in the makings of such work.”The complaint has also accused the makers of the documentary and platform management of “forgery”.Former Egyptian Antiquities Minister Zahi Hawass said that documentary was “falsifying facts”, adding that “This is completely fake.