Download E-Magazine

    Director Nada Riyadh discusses the seven years she spent bringing The Brink of Dreams to the big screen

    Mark Lomas

    Her poignant film won the prestigious Cannes L’Oeil d’Or award for best documentary earlier this year

    From a small, wooden stage in rural Egypt to the screens of prestigious film festivals in Cannes and El Gouna, it has been quite a journey for Majda Masoud, Haidi Sameh, and Monika Youssef. The three girls are the protagonists of the award-winning documentary The Brink of Dreams, which chronicles the aspiring entertainers’ creation of an all-female theatre troupe in the remote village of Barsha, Egypt. 

    Their story was brought to life by Egyptian director Nada Riyadh who, over seven years, followed the girls and documented their hopes and dreams, as well as the many challenges they faced as young women growing up in a deeply conservative environment. 

    Riyadh and her film have received immediate critical acclaim, with The Brink of Dreams winning the prestigious Cannes L’Oeil d’Or award for best documentary earlier this year. In October, it received its much-anticipated Egyptian premiere at the El Gouna Film Festival, and was named one of two winners of the Best Arab Documentary prize. 

    “It means a lot,” shares Riyadh. “I think when you work on a project for years, you begin to have doubts and begin to question whether you’re following something meaningful, or whether it is really all in your head. “We spent seven years making the film and the reception we have had has validated our work and kind of put our minds at ease. We weren’t crazy after all,” she adds with a broad smile. “It has also been special to have the heroines with us in the room. For them to see such overwhelming, positive feedback has made the experience a lot more special.” 

    Riyadh first met her central characters during a collaboration with a Cairo-based feminist institute that supports women in the arts. They left an indelible impact on her and her husband and co-director Ayman El Amir, sowing the seeds for The Brink of Dreams, which would become an all-consuming project. 

    “For us, it’s about finding a personal motivation to pursue a story,” explains Riyadh, who leads film-making workshops to empower disadvantaged communities suffering from war and displacement in Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt.

    “I remember when we watched the girls perform, we were just challenged a lot. In some ways, it seemed these young women in a very conservative place were a lot freer than me, who is from the city and supposedly liberated,” says Riyadh. “They felt strong, and powerful, and it made me curious. I instantly fell in love and wanted to tell their story, wanted to see these girls achieve their dreams,” she adds.

    At times, The Brink of Dreams seems to enigmatically blur the line between fact and fiction. Riyadh admits that, sometimes, it was difficult for her to even tell when the girls were performing and when they were being truly themselves. 

    The documentary tackles many difficult issues, and Riyadh recognises that, while it was made primarily with an Egyptian audience in mind, themes around self-discovery and challenging dated perceptions are among those that have inevitably resonated with a global audience. 

    “We are aware that it translates and that this can happen in a village in Italy, or a village in the United States,” the director says. “When films are authentic and they’re human, they travel well – people relate to emotions and humanity. And for me, the film ends with hope, which is a very powerful transformative force. I feel like we often underestimate the collective power of a group of young women. I just want people to feel inspired and feel hopeful that things might change if they get together and challenge the status quo.” 

    Riyadh, who describes herself as a person who “tries to make peace with themselves through making films”, worked with long-time partner El Amir on the documentary. As well as being a precocious creative team, the pair have also been married for 10 years. 

    In 2016, they memorably turned the lens on themselves for a moving debut documentary about their relationship, Happily Ever After. “We tried having date nights without talking about cinema, but it never works,” Riyadh laughs. “We’re both addicts. It’s really a joy to work with him and for us cinema is kind of a way to communicate.” 

    “We get very excited by discussing films and discussing scenes we’re going to work on together. Of course, sometimes it’s quite stressful to disagree when you’re making a work of art and you’re married,” admits Riyadh. “But I think we’ve developed a relationship of trust that elevates our work. Finishing the second film that we are directing together just solidifies the fact that we will work together again.” 

    At the El Gouna Film Festival, Riyadh and El Amir not only premiered The Brink of Dreams together, but were recipients of the MENA Talent of the Year Award. Amid the celebrations of their work, Riyadh was keen to offer words of encouragement to aspiring Arab filmmakers. 

    “I would say, if in doubt, just make your first film. People spend a lot of time wondering if they are going to be good filmmakers or not – but you will never know until you get that first film made. Everyone is different, but for me it is only fun if you are challenging yourself.” 

    You May Also Like