Mohamed Khan

Mohamed Hamed Hassan Khan (Egyptian Arabic: محمد حامد حسن خان‎‎  pronounced [mæˈħæmmæd ˈħæːmed ˈħæsæn xæːn]; 26 October 1942 – 26 July 2016) was an Egyptian-British film director, screenwriter, and actor. He was a well-known member of the "1980s generation" in Egyptian cinema, along with directors such as Khairy Beshara, Daoud Abdel Sayed, Atef El-Tayeb, and Yousry Nasrallah. His main aesthetic credo, in line with directors from his generation, was a reinvigorated realism seeking direct documentation of everyday life in Cairo, beyond the walls of the studio.^[1]

Biography

Khan was born on 26 October 1942 in Cairo; Egypt. After completing his high school education in Egypt, he went on to study at the London School of Film Technique (now known as The London International Film School) between 1962 and 1963. He directed several 8mm films. In 1963, he returned to Egypt and worked in the script department of the General Egyptian Film Organization. Between 1964 and 1966, he worked as an assistant director in Lebanon. He then moved again in England, where he wrote his book "An Introduction to the Egyptian Cinema", published by Informatics in 1969. He edited another Book entitled “Outline of Czechoslovakian Cinema”, which was also published by Informatics in 1971.

His 1983 film The Street Player was entered into the 13th Moscow International Film Festival.^[2] According to a book issued by the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in December 2007, Khan's Ahlam Hind we Kamilia (1988) is one of the 100 landmarks in the history of the Egyptian cinema.

He has one daughter, Nadine, a film director, and one son, Hassan. He was married to Wessam Soliman, an Egyptian scenarist who wrote three of his movies: Banat Wust el-Balad (Downtown Girls), Fi-Sha'et Masr el-Guedida (In a Heliopolis Apartment), and Fatat el-Masna' (The Factory Girl).

Filmography, screening and prizes

Short Films

• Da'e (1963) (aka Lost)
• Al Haram (1964) (aka The Pyramid)
• Al Battikha (1972) (aka The Watermelon). Screened at Adelaide and Oberhausen film festivals in 1973.
• Leqa' a'ely (1983) (aka A meeting of the Family)
• Al Sebaq Al Tawil (1989) (aka The Long Race)
• Yoam Fi Hayat Ossra Sa'eeda (1990) (aka A Day in the Life of a Happy Family)
• Al Alameyya (Sakhr) (1993)
• Ahlam layssat Mostahila (1995) (aka Feasible Dreams)
• Al Mar'a Al Messreyya (aka The Egyptian Woman)
• Atfal Al Shaware' (aka Street Kids)
• Al Bait Al Kabir (aka The Family House)
• "Maowid ala ashaa" (1981), (aka The Dinner Date)

Feature Films

• Darbet shams (1978) Screened at Montreal Film Festival in 1979. Cidalec Golden Award for first film at the Alexandria Film Festival in 1979. First Film Award at the Egyptian Film Society Festival in 1979. Certificate of Merrit for Direction from the Egyptian Ministry of Culture in 1981.
• El Raghba (1980) (aka Desire)
• Al Tha'r (1980) (aka The Vengeance)
• Ta'er ala el tariq (1981) (aka A Bird on the Road). Screened at Montreal, Sorento, Tashkent, Karlovy Vary Film Festivals in 1981 and 1982. Jury Award at the Egyptian Film Society Festival in 1982.
• Maw'id ala asha' (1982) (aka A Dinner Appointment)
• Nos Arnab (1982) (aka Half a Million)
• El Harrif (1983) (aka The Artful). Screened at the Moscow, Berlin, Valencia Film Festivals in 1983 and 1984. Best Direction at the Egyptian Film Society Festival in 1985.
• Kharaga wa lam ya'ud (1984) (aka Gone and Never Came Back). Silver Award at the Carthage Film Festival in 1984.
• Moshwar Omar (1986) (aka Omar's Journey). Screened at the Strasbourg, Valencia Film Festivals. Screened at the Tashkent, Strasbourg, Paris Arab Film Festivals in 1986 and 1987.
• Youssef and Zeinab (1986) (Egypt/Maldives Co-Production). Screened at the Strasbourg and Moscow Film Festivals in 1986 and 1987.
• Awdat Mowatin (1986) (aka Return of a Citizen). Screened out of Competition at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival.^[3] Screened at the Montreal, Valencia, Bastia, Monpellier and Paris Arab Film Festivals between 1987, 1990 and 1991.
• Zawgat Ragol Mohim (1987) (aka The Wife of an Important Man). Silver Award at the Damascus Film Festival in 1987. Screened In Competition at the 15th Moscow International Film Festival in 1987.^[4] Screened at the Montreal, Valencia, Tetouan, Digne, Istanbul and Nantes Film Festivals in 1987 and 1988.
• Ahlam Hind we Kamilia (1988) (aka Dreams of Hind and Camilia). Bronze Award at the Valencia Film Fest in 1988. Best Direction from Egyptian Film Society Festival in 1989. Best Film from the Catholic Film Centre in Cairo in 1989. Screened at the Tashkent, Carthage, Bahrain, Nantes and Tetouan Film Festivals, between 1989 and 1995.
• Supermarket (1990) Best Direction from the Egyptian Film Society Festival in 1991. Best Film from the Egyptian National Film Festivals in 1991. Screened at the Munich and Montpellier Festivals, in 1991.
• Fares Al Madina (1991) (aka Knight of the City). Screened at the Valencia and Paris Arab Film Festivals in 1992.
• Al Ghar'ana (1992) Screened at the Rotterdam Film Festival in 1993.
• Mr Karate (1993)
• Youm har giddan (1994) (aka A Very Hot Day)
• Ayyam El Sadat (2001) (aka Days of Sadat)
• Klephty (2003)
• Banat west albalad (2005) (aka Downtown Girls)
• Fi shaket Masr El Gedeeda (2007) (aka In the Heliopolis Flat)
• Fataat El Masnaa (2014) (aka Factory Girl)
• Before the Summer Crowds (2016) (قبل زحمة الصيف)

References

External links

• Mohamed Khan at the Internet Movie Database
• An issue of Carnival Arabia dedicated to Mohamed Khan
• The best of Egyptian cinema, the best 15 best Egyptian films of all time
• Biography