« Friends in Tunisia, I am happy to announce the Arab World Premiere of our film Road To El Kef – Film will be screened under the official selection for Horizon of Tunisian Cinema during the Carthage Film Festival (JCC ) at the Maison de la Culture Ibn Rachiq on Monday, October 31 at 4 PM. Big shout out to the amazing team who made this film available to the audience”, says Film Director Ihsen Kammoun on his social media page.
Film Director Ihsen Kammoun wanted his first destination to be El Kef to shoot some scenes of his new film “The Road to El Kef”, Produced by Eqlae California.
The café of Sidi Makhlouf in El Kef was chosen by Ihsen Kammoun to shoot these scenes.
Speaking to the media, Director Ihsen Kammoun, who is living in the United States of America, said that “he and Writer Charles Hall wanted a film that has direct concerns with people”.
Answering questions from TunisianMonitorOnline:” the JCC being one of the biggest festivals in the world, what does this mean to you?”
Ihsen Kammoun replied:” Having my film at JCC is an awesome honour. The film’s primary audience is the Tunisian audience and I’m excited to present it to them.”
The second question: Do you think the screening of the film at the JCC comes at a time when young Tunisians are fleeing their homeland in one way or another in search of better opportunities? Can the film be a source of inspiration for them?
Director Ihsen Kammoun said: “Yes, the film can be a source of inspiration at the current times. The events of the story take place around 2016 but it’s still relevant in the present time. Themes like family, betrayal, economic challenges and corruption of figures of authority, are felt throughout the film. I hope the bigger picture, which is the importance of family and close relationships, inspires the young Tunisians.”
In an answer to the question, whether he has a message for Tunisian youth, Ihsan Kammoun noted: “my message for Tunisian youth: don’t be afraid to try and fail. You can’t get any step closer to getting your dream come true without doing something about it. And most importantly, cherish your close ones because those are the ones who will make this dream pursuit journey worth it when you arrive at your destination”
Farès Landoulsi starring role in Road to El Kef
Film Director Ihsen Kammoun chose Fares Landoulsi in the Main role saying “I know him since his performance in the Netflix series “Messiah”. We met as he often moves to the USA.
When writing the story I imagined actor Fares Landoulsi to be in the main role of the film in the character of ”Karim” because he is close to his age and his character. The role has lots of making in facial expressions.
In a statement to TunisianMonitorOnline Film star Fares Landoulsi said: “it was a great experience especially the fact of having performed with new technologies such as the camera ARRI ALEXA MINI LF and the Zeiss supreme…”
“It was also wonderful to come back to Tunisia to shoot this new film experience. But what enhanced this experience is the enriching meeting with the talented actor Ahmed Hefiane, who is my father in the film,” he indicated, voicing the pleasure to be “pleasantly surprised to discover the flame that the filmmaking team has which includes young Tunisian brave and talented technicians.”
TunisianMonitorOnline (NejiMed)
