MAD World Boards Sales On Morad Mostafa’s African Migrant Drama ‘Aisha Can’t Fly Away’ – Cannes Market

EXCLUSIVE: Newly launched Dubai-based sales company MAD World has acquired worldwide rights to Egyptian director Morad Mostafa’s Aisha Can’t Fly Away, a tense African migrant drama shooting later this year in Egypt.

The title joins the inaugural slate of MAD World, as the Arab cinema-focused sales arm of MENA distributor and talent agency MAD Solutions gears up for its Cannes Market debut next week.

Aisha Can’t Fly Away revolves around the story of Aisha, a 26-year-old African immigrant caregiver residing in Ain-shams, a Cairo neighborhood with a large African migrant community.

The film explores the intricate dynamics of a world where the authorities’ indifference to the violent tensions between Egyptians and various African nationalities has allowed different gangs to seize control. Aisha’s situation turns sour after one of these gangs offers protection in exchange for a favor. 

Egypt-based South Sudanese model Buliana Simona plays Aisha in a cast also featuring Egyptian rapper Ziad Zaza, Emad Ghoniem and Mamdouh Saleh.

Aisha Can’t Fly Away is Mostafa’s first film after working on several independent films, including as an assistant director on Ayten Amin’s Souad which was feted with a 2020 Cannes pandemic-era label and then made its physical premiere in Tribeca in 2021.

Mostafa is an alumnus of the Berlinale Talents, Cinefondation, Durban Talents and Locarno Academy and has made several short films including I Promise You Paradise which was selected for the 2023 edition of Cannes’ Critics Week and nominated in the French César Awards.

The feature gathers a group of rising production talents including cinematographer Mostafa El Kashef, who also worked on I Promise You Paradise and this year’s Cannes entry The Village Next To Paradise; art director Eman Elelaby, who won a Fipresci Prize for her work on Feathers; costume designer Nayera Eldahshoury; and editor Mohamed Mamdouh.

“When we set out to make this movie, we had one thing we wanted to get across, aside from Aisha’s story: we wanted to show how common the tragedies, misfortune, and cruelties that Aisha endures are,” says Mostafa.

“It’s easy to grow desensitized to the pain of others around the world; it’s easy to swipe away or move on to the next thing. But by putting that pain front and center for the whole world to see, we can remind everyone that these stories must not remain unaddressed, and we can give those living these stories hope that they have not been forgotten.”

The film is lead produced by Sawsan Yusuf’s Bonanza Films, in co-production with Egypt’s Film Clinic (Mohamed Hefzy), Tunisia’s Nomadis Images (Dora Bouchoucha), Saudi Arabia’s Cinewaves (Faisal Baltyuor ), Egypt’s MAD Solutions (Alaa Karkouti and Maher Diab), Egypt’s Lagoonie Film Production ( Shahinaz El Akkad), Egypt’s AAFilms (Ahmed Amer), Sudan’s Station Films (Amjad Abulala), and Dulac Productions (Michel Zana) of France.

The film received funding and support from the Red Sea Lodge, Doha Film Institute, AFAC Film Fund, Cultural Resource (Mawred), Cinéfondation, La Fabrique Cinema of Cannes, Cinemed Montpellier, Locarno Academy, and El Gouna Film Festival.

Yusuf previously produced short films Henet Ward and Khadiga and collaborated with Mostafa on I Promise You Paradise.

“It’s reassuring when someone embraces your work so strongly, especially when you believe that your project can inspire some change in the world,” she said of partnering with MAD Solution and its new sales banner MAD World.

“We’re happy to have MAD on our side, from the moment we told them the story and showed them the work we’ve done so far, they’ve been fully on board and committed to the cause.

MAD World co-presidents Karkouti and Diab said the feature offered them the chance to work with two rising cinema talents:

“Morad is a unique Arab filmmaker who built his own unique cinematic world through his captivating shorts. We are so excited to be working on his first feature along with the talented producer Sawsan Yusuf.”

MAD World’s third co-president Colin Brown added: “Morad Mostafa blends a contemplative style of filmmaking with the excitement of a thriller to reveal the migratory crisis as experienced in Egypt – and provide a unique perspective on painful issues that resonate throughout the world.”