Opening Night Puts Umm Kulthum on Screen and on Stage
The 30th Arab Film Festival opens with El Sett, an Umm Kulthum biopic, then a live Aswat Ensemble tribute.
🎬 Opening Night at the Kabuki
🎭 The Premiere
El Sett brings Umm Kulthum to the screen in Marwan Hamed's 2025 Egyptian production, with Mona Zaki in the title role and English subtitles under Arabic and French dialogue. The Bay Area premiere opens the festival's thirtieth edition, the first of 92 films from 21 countries across ten days. The film traces her from a childhood singing in rural Egypt disguised as a boy to the 1967 concert at the Paris Olympia.
🎻 Live After the Film
Doors open at 5:30, the first AFMI Luminary Award for Cultural Impact is presented at 6, and El Sett starts at 6:30. Then Aswat Ensemble, a multi-ethnic and multi-racial music ensemble and the core program of Zawaya, closes the night at 9:15 with a live tribute to Umm Kulthum's songs. Some scenes in El Sett carry a strobing effect, worth flagging for anyone sensitive to flashing light.
🎟️ Tickets, Address, Dress
The festival invites guests to dress as if for Umm Kulthum's 1967 show at the Paris Olympia, and there will be plenty of opportunities to have your photo taken. Tickets are $45 general admission and $100 for a supporter seat, both covering opening night only; pass holders are recommended to reserve a ticket. The screening is at 1881 Post Street in Japantown, inside the AMC Kabuki 8, with a second showing on Friday, November 13, in San Jose.
