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Egypt's quota for Arab film stars sparks outrage
6 hours ago
CAIRO (AFP) — Egypt's announcement of a cap on non-Egyptian actors has sparked outrage in a country which considers itself the Arab world's Hollywood and where regional hopefuls come to make it big.
The head of the actors' union, Ashraf Zaki, said last week that Arab artists from outside Egypt would only be allowed to take part in one Egyptian production a year, whether it be in film or the hugely popular soap operas.
The union said it would not grant work permits to "many Arabs coming to work in the artistic fields because they take jobs from Egyptian graduates of the higher institute for cinema and theatre," Zaki said.
"Many young women who are introduced to film and television have nothing to do with art," he said.
Young Arab actors rush to Egypt hoping to follow in the footsteps of the giants of the golden era who came from neighbouring countries and rose to be Egypt's screen stars of the 1940s and 50s.
Last year, Syrian Tayem al-Hassan dazzled audiences with his portrayal of a young King Faruq in the popular soap opera of the same name.
Tunisian Hind Sabri, who mastered the Egyptian accent, ended up playing the leading lady in a number of high-budget films including the widely-acclaimed Yacoubian Building.
The decision to block Arab artists is "racist and extremist... it goes against the interest of the Egyptian cinema and television industries," said the secretary general of the Arab producers' union, Ibrahim Abu Zaki.
Tunisian actress Dorra Zarrouk, who moved to Egypt two years ago and has worked with renowned director Youssef Chahine, says she was very surprised by the decision.
"I understand that one would want to organise the industry and protect the rights of Egyptians," she told AFP.
"But this decision is not the solution. If it were to be applied, I don't know what I'd do, I won't stay in Egypt to just work on one film per year," she said. "That would be unfair."
She believes it's up to the director to pick his stars, not the task of a syndicate.
After a furore over his comments, Zaki took a softer stance, telling AFP he would "never oppose artists of the calibre of Tayem al-Hassan... or Hind Sabri taking part in more than one production per year, because these are real artists."
But some have rushed to Zaki's rescue saying he was right to protect young Egyptian stars.
"Zaki's decision is not targeted against Arabs, but it is to protect Egyptian artists from unemployment," wrote Galal al-Sayyed, a columnist with the daily Al-Akhbar, referring to "an invasion" of Arab actors.
Tapping into the country's conservatism, Sayyed deemed it necessary to defend "Egyptian talents who only rely on their art, not on nudity and prostitution."
A meeting organised last Thursday headed by Culture Minister Faruq Hosni failed to resolve the issue after complaints from members of the industry.
The decision taken by the syndicate "is not a political one, because Egypt is the cultural, political, and social capital of the Arab world and we won't accept sacrificing that," Hosni said after the meeting.
Egypt's trade ministry also joined in the debate, saying limiting Arab actors' appearances would have a negative impact on relations with, and more importantly investments from, Arab countries.
"This decision runs counter to the Egyptian policy that aims at attracting Arabs to work and invest in Egypt," said Samiha Fawzi, assistant minister of trade and industry.
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