The Egyptian film ‘Safe Exit’, written and directed by Mohamed Hamad, is competing in the Feature Film Competition at the ninth Gouna Film Festival, taking place in Egypt from 15 to 23 October 2026, after screening at the Berlin and Shanghai film festivals.
Andrew Mohsen praises Mohamed Hamad’s return
Andrew Mohsen, the artistic director of the Gouna Film Festival, said the film marks Mohamed Hamad’s anticipated return after an absence of around ten years. He added that the director presents the characters precisely and realistically, while addressing a range of ideas that, in his view, place ‘Safe Exit’ among the most mature Egyptian films he has seen recently.
Mohsen explained that including the film in the competition continues the festival’s support for Egyptian directors presenting distinctive and bold cinematic visions. Hamad said in a festival statement that the film centres on ‘Samaan’, a Coptic young man from a generation whose fathers were killed in bloody acts of violence across the Arab region during the past decade.
He said those events left lasting psychological effects on a generation whose members were children when they occurred and are now in their early twenties. The director added that the film seeks to ask whether it is possible to find a ‘safe exit’ for members of this generation after the experiences they endured and the impact they had on their lives.
Samaan confronts the trauma of his father’s killing
The film is set in Cairo, where ‘Samaan’ works as a young security guard in a building in the city centre while also trying to write his first novel. His life remains shaped by trauma dating back to his childhood, when he witnessed his father being killed by an extremist terrorist group, leaving him with chronic post-traumatic stress disorder.
Samaan’s life takes a different course after he meets a young woman by chance and they form a friendship. The relationship gradually leads him to confront the consequences of the past and the barriers he has built around himself, in a psychological treatment focusing on the effects of violence on memory and daily life. Mohamed Hamad wrote and directed the film, while Kholoud Saad produced it.
The film is a co-production between Egypt, Qatar, Libya, Tunisia and Germany, and stars Marwan Walid and Nora Ahmed. ‘Safe Exit’ previously received critical acclaim after its world premiere in the Panorama programme at the 76th Berlin International Film Festival.
The film later moved to the Shanghai International Film Festival, where its Asian premiere took place in June 2026. It was also nominated for Best Screenplay at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards.
