The Egyptian committee tasked with selecting films for the Oscars has chosen “The Stories”, directed by Abu Bakr Shawky, to represent Egypt in the competition for Best International Feature Film at the 99th edition of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awards, whose ceremony will be held in March 2027.
Voting results crown “The Stories”
The voting process included 36 Egyptian films produced between September 2025 and September 2026. “Life After Siham” was excluded from the competition because the nationality recorded in its documents conflicted with the Egyptian nomination requirements, despite its participation in a number of international festivals.
The selection of “The Stories” marks the second Egyptian nomination for a film directed by Abu Bakr Shawky, who holds Egyptian and Austrian citizenship, after Egypt selected his film “Yomeddine” to compete in the same category in 2018. The film stars Nelly Karim, Ahmed Kamal, Amir El-Masry, Sabry Fawaz, Amr Abed, Sherif El-Desouky and Ahmed El-Azhar.
Selection committee defends nomination process
The selection sessions were chaired by the head of the Cinema Professions Syndicate, director Moussaad Fouda. Discussions addressed the criteria adopted for the nomination and the extent to which they upheld impartiality and transparency. Fouda said the committee members’ attendance rate reflected their interest in selecting the work that would represent Egypt, stressing that the vote saw no substantive disagreements over the selection process.
During the session, screenwriter Sayed Fouad, president of the Luxor African Film Festival, said the limited number of films submitted and the decline in their standard reflected a crisis facing Egyptian cinema, compared with the situation during the Covid-19 pandemic. Fouad called for greater support for the film industry in the next phase.
The selection session opened with a minute’s silence for artist Ahmed Atef, who had taken part in previous rounds of the nomination process, including the 2025 round, before his death earlier this year. Participants also offered their condolences to committee member and screenwriter Ayman Salama on the death of his wife.
Following the announcement of the result, the director of “Life After Siham” sent a voice message expressing his support for the selection of “The Stories” to represent Egypt, after committee member and director Amir Ramses briefed him on the discussions. He said he intended to make an Egyptian film with entirely Egyptian production in future rounds, in line with the conditions for selecting the Egyptian film for the Oscar race.
Academy rules and Oscar race timetable
The Academy allows each country to submit one film annually to compete in the Best International Feature Film category, which is reserved for films produced outside the United States whose dialogue is predominantly in a language other than English.
The Academy is scheduled to announce the preliminary list of competing films in December, before revealing the shortlist in January 2027. The 99th Oscar ceremony will be held on 14 March 2027 in Los Angeles, California.
