Amr Salama
| Born | Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Egyptian |
| Occupation | Film director, screewriter, blogger, writer |
| Known for | On A Day Like Today (2008), Asmaa (2011), Excuse my French (film) (2014) |
Amr Salama is an Egyptian film director, blogger, screenplayer and writer. Born in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (22 November 1981), he would later move with his family back to Egypt.[1] He began his activity with mainly short movies and commercials, after which he would shift to full length movies. His first feature movie, Zay El Naharda On a Day Like Today (2008) was enthusiastically received among critics, for which Salama was tributed the title of "Best New Director in 2008".[2]
In 2009, Salama submitted the script for a second movie, Excuse my French (film), based, by his own admission, on his experiences at a public middle school in Egypt after his return from Saudi Arabia.[3] Excuse My French tells the story of Hany Abdulla Sousa, a student at a private international school who comes from a Coptic family. After the death of his father the family’s socio-economic status drops and he is forced to go to a public school, where he is routinely confronted with episodes of bullying on the part of his classmates. Rejected by the Censorship Board on the ground that "there is no sectarianism in Egypt",[2] Salama started working on what would become his second creation, AIDS-themed Asmaa, which earned him international attention. Premiered at the Abu Dhabi International Film Festival, the movie was awarded 18 international, Arab and Egyptian awards to which it should be added the award for Best Arab Director in the New Horizons competition.[2]
After the 2011 Revolution, the director renewed his attempt by submitting again the script for Excuse my French, however the script was rejected again. With the appointment of another movie director to the Censorship Board, Ahmed Awad, the movie was finally approved.[3]