Youssef Chahine

Youssef Chahine was a prominent Egyptian filmmaker who was active in the industry from 1950 until his death in 2008. He directed 42 films, 12 of which were listed in the Top 100 Egyptian films list. He was also a winner of the Cannes 50th Anniversary Award for lifetime achievement, and was credited with launching the career of actor Omar Sharif. Chahine was born in Alexandria, Egypt, to a Melkite Greek Catholic family of Lebanese and Greek descent. He studied in a friars’ school and then in Victoria College until the High School Certificate. After one year in the University of Alexandria, he moved to the U.S. and spent two years at the Pasadena Play House, taking courses on film and dramatic arts. After coming back to Egypt, cinematographer Alevise Orfanelli helped him into the film business. His film debut was Baba Amin (1950): one year later, with Son of the Nile (1951) he was first invited to the Cannes Film festival. In 1970, he was awarded a Golden Tanit at the Carthage Festival. With Le moineau (1973), he directed the first Egypt-Algeria co-production. He won a Silver Bear in Berlin for Alexandria… Why? (1979), the first installment in what proved to be an autobiographic trilogy, completed with An Egyptian Story (1982) and Alexandria: Again and Forever (1989). In 1992, Jacques Lassalle proposed him to stage a piece of his choice for Comédie Française: Chahine chose to adapt Albert Camus’ "Caligula," which proved hugely successful. The same year he started writing The Emigrant (1994), a story inspired by the Biblical character of Joseph, son of Jacob. This had long been a dream-project, and he finally got to shoot it in 1994. In 1997, 46 years and 5 invitations later, he was again selected Hors Competition in Cannes with Destiny (1997). Chahine was known for his social and political critique, his humanism, his artistic experimentation, and his support for young talents. He influenced many generations of filmmakers in Egypt and the Arab world. He died in Cairo on 27 July 2008, after suffering a brain hemorrhage. He was 82 years old.