Abdel Sayed told the “Hard Question” program on “Sky News Arabia” that his retirement was a “fait accompli.” Because he has not worked since his last film “Extraordinary Capabilities” in 2014, he expressed his dissatisfaction with the amount of freedom available, saying: “Knowing that all freedom in the world is not enough for creators.”
He attributed what he described as the decline of cinema to the inability of middle-income earners to follow the cinema due to the exaggeration of tickets, so the cinema “is not interested in presenting films that discuss their concerns, but only for entertainment.”
He refused his accusation that he could not keep pace with the new generation, citing that this generation has a lot of follow-up to comment on his work, and he is “the biggest in his admiration of my films.”
In response to a question whether he would accept an offer from platforms such as “Netflix” to direct films, he replied with acceptance, “given the amount of freedom left to the director and author.”
A few days earlier, Abdel Sayed told Sky News Arabia that his retirement “will not affect his appearance at festivals.”
Abdel Sayed had previously justified his retirement by saying, “The situation in cinema and production does not foretell a change, as the audience is now looking for entertainment and not good work.”
Who created the crisis?
The Egyptian director’s statements revived the discussion about who is behind the decline or advancement of cinema, is it the audience or the production companies, and do the likes of Abdel Sayed really no longer have a place in the cinema? This is what artists and critics answer for “Sky News Arabia”.
Critic Tariq El-Shennawy says that “whoever failed Daoud is not the audience, but the bad climate that the state must confront,” stressing that Abdel Sayed is still able to give, despite his age (75 years), because directing requires creative fitness, not physical.
Critic Mahmoud Abdel Shakour agreed with him that Abdel Sayed “is still able to give, and perhaps he wanted his decision to move stagnant water and draw attention to cinema’s problems, and his statements succeeded in opening closed files” and hoped that executive measures would result.
Director of Photography Mohsen Ahmed, who presented with Abdel Sayed the movie “Kit Kat”, believes that production companies bear a responsibility for not using the owners of artistic value.
He asked, “Where are Muhammad Fadel, Jamal Abdel Hamid, Omar Abdel Aziz, Hani Lashin and others?” He considered the lack of use of these “compulsory retirement”, and demanded the state to intervene to protect Egyptian art; Because the decision taken by Abdel Sayed appeals to many, and art “does not involve retirement.”
The audience is not the reason
Critic Mohamed Abdel Rahman refused to accuse the public of having reached a level that does not comprehend good art, saying: “Abdul Sayed is of great value, but the reason for retirement should not be cast on the audience, and the evidence is the remarkable presence of young people during a symposium held by the Cairo Film Festival in its last session on the occasion of the 30th anniversary On showing the movie Kit Kat.
At the same time, they agreed on the importance of state intervention and reputable production companies to support cinema and preserve artists with the value of Abdel Sayed.
Abdel Sayed presented films such as “The Tramp”, “Searching for Sayed Marzouk”, “Kit Kat”, “Land of Fear”, “Citizen, Detective and Thief”, “Messages from the Sea”, and “Extraordinary Powers”.
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