page_title: Cairo International Film Festival
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Cairo International Film Festival / History
caption_attribution_description: English: CIFF Red Carpet
context_page_description: The Cairo International Film Festival is an annual internationally accredited film festival held in Cairo Opera House. It was established in 1976 and has taken place every year since its inception, except for 2011 and 2013, when it was cancelled due to budget limitations and political instability.
  It is the only international competitive feature film festival recognized by the FIAPF in the Arab world and Africa, as well as the oldest in this category. The 40th edition took place from 20–29 November 2018.
context_section_description: The Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) is one of only 15 Festivals accorded as a category "A" status by the  International Federation of Film Producers Associations FIAPF. It  is the oldest and only internationally accredited cultural feature film festival in the Arab World, Africa and the Middle East.
  CIFF was launched in 1976 by the writer-critic Kamal el-Mallakh to enhance the role of Egypt in the world of filmmaking and cinema and to serve as a bridge between the cultures of the world.
  Egypt has enjoyed a strong cinematic tradition since the art of film making was first developed, in 1896. Egypt is famously called Hollywood of the East among the Arab World for its long reputable filmmaking history of more than 120 years, wide-reach to more than 400 million Arab speakers and inhabitants in the Middle East, and strong influence on all the Arab Nation by its Art production of thousands of Film Pictures, Series, Theatre Plays and Music. 
  It is common and very well known since the rising of filmmaking industry in early 1920s in Egypt that any aspiring Arab artist of any related art field has to fly to Cairo to be able to reach and make it to the whole Arab World.
  Now briefly and in short, the history of CIFF goes back to 1975, after a visit to the Berlin Film Festival the late writer-critic Kamal El Mallakh and a group of like-minded cinema critics wondered why such a world-class festival couldn't take place in Egypt. The country was still riding the crest of Egyptian cinema's golden age and contained a formidable film industry, still the biggest in the Arab world. The Cairo International Film Festival was launched in 1976.
  The 1976 festival featured around 100 films from 33 countries, with 14 films from 14 different countries in competition. In an effort to celebrate the best international cinema, the Cairo International Film Festival has proven its daring and versatility year after year and continues to act as a meeting point not only for filmmakers and critics but also for writers, intellectuals and other artists.
  The Egyptian Association of Film Writers and Critics headed the festival for the first seven years until 1983. In the following year, the Union of Artist's Syndicates supervised the festival, and after that point, several associations mustered their resources to run the festival. The Egyptian Association of Film Writers and Critics joined with the Ministry of Culture and the Union of Artist's Syndicates to form a joint committee in 1985 to improve the quality and financial state of the festival.
caption: CIFF Red Carpet
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