The highly anticipated first-of-its-kind silent drama feature film ABDO AND SANEYA by Omar Bakry, will be holding its world premiere as part of the Arab Spectacular Program of the fourth Red Sea International Film Festival, taking place from December 5th to 14th at the vibrant Al Balad District — a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
ABDO AND SANEYA follows the journey of an Egyptian farming couple navigating life in New York City without any English skills or understanding of American culture. Illiterate, they face overwhelming odds in their quest to find a cure for their infertility. Their naivety makes them prey to the fast-paced, cutthroat environment of the city. Driven by their determination to survive, they pull themselves from a life of abject poverty and homelessness to the hellish kitchens of the restaurant business.
Commenting on his film, director Omar Bakry states, “Current audiences are not subjected enough to silent films and many have never had the experience altogether. I think that audiences can find great joy if exposed to it. It was my deepest wish to create a modern-day story using this traditional art form in the hopes of touching people in a long-forgotten way.”
ABDO AND SANEYA is a one-of-a-kind multicultural silent black and white art house film. A pantomime opera with a fully composed Middle Eastern/Western musical score reflecting some of the brutal realities experienced by a voiceless immigrant minority that forms an invisible layer of American society. It is also a visual poem on an old traditional world slowly giving way to technological advancement and globalization.
Written and directed by Omar Bakry who also stars as Abdo, the film is a joint production between Egypt and the US with Mohamed Hefzy of Film Clinic, Jaselle Martino of Chaconia Pictures, and Inji El Gammal of Timewormz — who also stars as Saneya — handling production.
Alongside Omar Bakry and Inji El Gammal (RAMY),ABDO AND SANEYA features a talented ensemble cast that includes Roger Hendricks Simon (WALL STREET II, LOVE IN KILNERRY) Marlene Villafane (RHAPSODY IN JUSTICE),Ahmed Khaled (WHITE SUGAR),Haythem Noor (LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIM UNIT),Katharine McLeod (LAW AND ORDER),and Guy LeMonnier (GOTHAM, LIONESS).
As for the main crew behind the film, it features DOP Vicente Roxas, composer Alexandre Azaria who is famous for THE TRANSPORTER franchise and LOCKOUT, with both Omar Bakry and Salah Anwar — the latter of whom is well known for his work on the third season of the Emmy-nominated show RAMY — serving as editors.
Joining them as well are art directors Nihal Farouk and Mohamed Mekha as well as Yanlisa Rafferty and Nermine Said as costume designers.
Born in Sweden and raised in Egypt, writer and director Omar Bakry moved to New York in 2007 to study film at the New York Film Academy. He wrote and directed many projects, including AGGRESSION and HIS MAN, through his company Timewormz.
He’s also no stranger to the world of theater, working on BLACK WAS THE DAY KIND WERE THE HEARTBEATS, which was staged at Lincoln Center in 2017, and SUPERMAN AND SERENA, which was selected for the NYC Winterfest and performed for three nights at the Hudson Guild Theater. His play BRB, also, recently won the Urban Stages Acronyms Ten-Minute Play Competition.
Film Clinic has an exceptional track record in both art-house award-winning films and commercial blockbusters, including Omar El Zohairy’s Critics Week grand prize winner FEATHERS, Omar Hilal’s box office hit VOY! VOY! VOY!, Abu Bakr Shawky’s Toronto International Film Festival entry HAJJAN, and most recently, Hani Khalifa’s highest female-led hit in Egyptian box office history, FLIGHT 404, which stars the phenomenal Mona Zaki, who is also taking on the mantle of Um Kulthum in EL SITT, marking her third collaboration with Film Clinic. The company also just added a new milestone to its journey, producing the first Egyptian title to compete at the Venice Film Festival after a 12-year hiatus, Khaled Mansour’s SEEKING HAVEN FOR MR. RAMBO, which world premiered at the Orizzonti Extra Section.
