The story of the festival

Initially planned for August, the first edition finally took place in September 2021. It opened with two competitions: an international competition on human values, “القيم الإنسانية”, and a national competition under the banner of “استهلك تونسي”. The call for entries drew around 600 applications from 20 countries, and creators from Tunisia and nine other countries took part.

The jury was chaired by مهذب الرميلي. The closing ceremony was held on 11 September 2021 in the courtyard of the Sousse Archaeological Museum.

The international competition honoured creators from Tunisia, Palestine and Libya, and each first prize carried TND 5,000. The edition was covered by the Tunisian and Algerian press.

The international competition focused on citizenship and sustainable development; the national competition, “استهلك تونسي — تونس في عينيك”, celebrated Tunisian olive oil and tourism. The festival recorded 709 applications from 52 countries and received 302 videos from 46 countries; 80 were selected, 63 for the international competition and 17 for the national one.

In June, workshops in acting, directing and content creation were held in Sousse. On 13 August, a presentation evening in Boujaafar unveiled the selection. The jury, chaired by صلاح الدين مصدق, brought together directors, actors and content creators.

Media from ten countries covered the edition, including the Alhurra channel, which devoted a report to the closing ceremony and the open-air screenings.

The international competition was themed “مواطنة مستدامة لعالم يتنامى”, and the national competition “تونس السياحة بعدسة الإبداع … قاطرة للتنمية”. The festival recorded 579 applications from 60 countries and received 184 videos from 35 countries; 90 were selected, 74 for the international competition and 16 for the national one.

The jury, chaired by صلاح الدين مصدق, included نصر الدين رقم (Tunisia) and يحيى مزاحم (Algeria). A tribute committee, made up of كوثر الباردي and رمضان المزداوي, accompanied the edition.

With “في أحضان الذهب”, شمس الدين بن أحمد won both first prize in the national competition and the award for best direction. Media from seven countries covered the edition.