Ahd Kamel

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Ahd Kamel
Born
Ahd Hassan Kamel

(1980-11-14) November 14, 1980 (age 43)
Alma materParsons School Of Design
Occupation(s)Actress, Filmmaker
Years active2007 - Present

Ahd Hassan Kamel (Arabic: عهد حسن كامل) is an actress and filmmaker from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.[1][2] She is known for her role in the BAFTA-nominated film, Wadjda (2014) and for her role as Fatima in BBC Two's Collateral (2018).[3]

Education and early career[edit]

Kamel grew up in Saudi Arabia and moved to New York City in 1998. She received a BFA in Animation & Communication from Parsons School of Design in 2004 and a Directing degree from the New York Film Academy in 2005.[4] Kamel then went on to study acting under the personal tutelage of William Esper at the William Esper Studio.[5]

Kamel has written, directed and acted in her two award-winning short films, The Shoemaker ‘Al-Gondorji’ (2009) and Sanctity ‘Hurma’ (2012).[6]

The themes of these films explore women issues in Saudi Arabia. As Hurma explores a widowed woman's attempts to save her unborn baby with limited means. The film was a selection of the Berlin International Film Festival.[7]

As of 2022, Kamel will be shooting her feature film ‘My Driver & I’ which is a period film set in the 80s about a Saudi woman's relationship with her Sudanese driver. Kamel mentioned the film is based on her experience of living in Jeddah when women could not drive. The film will feature an Arab cast: Jordanian actress Saba Mubarak, Qusai (musician), Mostafa Shahata, and Baraa Alem (star of Shams Al-Ma'arif (film)). The film is funded by OSN, Red Sea Film Festival Foundation.[8][9]

Filmography[edit]

CINEMA

Year Film Role Notes
2007 Razan[10] Razan
2009 The Shoemaker[11] Nidal Writer/Director
2012 Sanctity[12] Areej Writer/Director
2012 Wadjda Miss Hussa
2014 From A to B Rana
2015 Rattle The Cage Wafa
2018 Being Agent Costa
2022 All the Old Knives Laila Maroof
2023 My Driver and I[13] Writer/Director

TELEVISION

Year Series Role Notes
2018 Collateral Fatima Asif
2019 The Rook Samira
2020 Honour[14] Diana Nammi
2022 Ramy Hanan[15]
2023 Concordia [16] Fatemah[17]

Awards and nominations[edit]

  • NOMINATED – Muhr Arab Award (The Shoemaker), Dubai International Film Festival, 2009[18]
  • WINNER - GOLDEN ALEPH for Best Short (The Shoemaker), Beirut International Film Festival, 2010[19]
  • WINNER – 2nd Prize, (The Shoemaker), Gulf Film Festival, Dubai, 2010[20]
  • WINNER - JURY AWARD (The Shoemaker), Oran Film Festival, Oran, Algeria 2010
  • WINNER - Development Award (Sanctity) Doha Tribeca Film Festival, 2012[21]
  • NOMINATED – Golden Bear for Best Short (Sanctity) Berlinale 2013
  • WINNER – 2nd Prize (Sanctity), Gulf Film Festival, Dubai, 2013[22]

Festival selections[edit]

The Shoemaker

  • 2010 Clermont Ferrand Short Film Festival /France[23]
  • 2010 Brussels Short Film Festival
  • 2010 Women in Film/Canada
  • 2010 Festival Amal/Spain
  • 2010 Abu Dhabi International Film Festival[24]
  • 2010 Arab Film Festival, San Francisco
  • 2010 Women in Film, Seattle
  • 2010 International Film Festival Bratislava/Slovak Republic
  • 2010 Ljubljana International Film Festival
  • 2010 Berlin Interfilm International Short Film Festival
  • 2010 Kettupäivät Short Film Festival, Helsinki
  • 2010 Karama Human Rights Film Festival, Amman

Sanctity

  • 2013 Sarajevo Film Festival Shorts Program
  • 2013 Berlinale Shorts Program[25]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "A different kind of woman: Ahd Kamel". Arab News. June 23, 2013.
  2. ^ Connell, Christopher (20 September 2017). "International actresses find success on U.S. sets | ShareAmerica". ShareAmerica. Retrieved 26 February 2018.
  3. ^ "Meet Ahd Kamel". Vogue Arabia. 27 September 2017. Retrieved 26 February 2018.
  4. ^ Perrone, Jeanne (11 August 2017). "NYFA Filmmaking Alumna Ahd Kamel Stars in Netflix's "Collateral"". New York Film Academy Blog. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  5. ^ "Former Students". The William Esper Studio. 8 April 2014.
  6. ^ "Breaking Through the Lens Unveils Shortlist for Pitching Platform at Cannes". Variety. February 25, 2020.
  7. ^ "Saudi movie 'Hurma' to be screened at Berlinale". Saudigazette. 2013-02-13. Retrieved 2023-02-04.
  8. ^ Goodfellow, Melanie (2022-12-07). "MENA Pay-TV & Streaming Giant OSN Boards Ahd Kamel's 'My Driver And I', Partners With Red Sea Fund, MAD Solutions & Caspian Films". Deadline. Retrieved 2022-12-18.
  9. ^ "Saudi filmmaker Ahd Kamel's feature 'My Driver & I' commissioned as an OSN original". Arab News. 2022-12-07. Retrieved 2022-12-18.
  10. ^ Vivarelli, Nick (4 May 2013). "Ahd: International Star You Should Know". Variety. Retrieved 26 February 2018.
  11. ^ "Meet Ahd Kamel". 27 September 2017.
  12. ^ "Saudi filmmaker Ahd Kamel's 'Sanctity' to be part of Netflix's 'Because She Created' collection". 6 July 2022.
  13. ^ "Saudi filmmaker Ahd Kamel's feature 'My Driver & I' commissioned as an OSN original". 7 December 2022.
  14. ^ "Honour". www.itv.com. ITV. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
  15. ^ "Second Opinion Doctor". IMDb.
  16. ^ "'Games Of Thrones' EP Frank Doelger To Helm Surveillance Thriller Series 'Concordia' For ZDF, MBC, France Télévisions and Hulu Japan". Deadline Hollywood. 2022-10-17. Archived from the original on 2023-07-18.
  17. ^ "Concordia". IMDb.
  18. ^ "Dubai International Film Festival | Films 2009 - Al Qundarji (The Shoemaker)". Dubai International Film Festival. Retrieved 25 February 2018.[permanent dead link]
  19. ^ "2010: 10th Edition Awards | Beirut International Film Festival". Beirut International Film Festival. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  20. ^ "Gulf Film Festival winners given awards". www.khaleejtimes.com. Khaleej Times. April 17, 2010. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  21. ^ "Archive — Doha Tribeca Film Festival | Doha Film Institute". Doha Tribeca Film Festival. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  22. ^ "Dubai International Film Festival | NEWS 2017". Dubai International Film Festival. Retrieved 25 February 2018.[permanent dead link]
  23. ^ "International Short Film Festival - Clermont-Ferrand". my.clermont-filmfest.com. Archived from the original on 8 March 2018. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  24. ^ "The Shoemaker". Abu Dhabi Film Festival. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  25. ^ "SANCTITY". www.berlinale.de. Retrieved 25 February 2018.

External links[edit]