The Beginning

Salah Abu Seif (صلاح أبو سيف‎; 1915 – 1996) was one of the most famous Egyptian film directors. Many of the 41 films he directed, many of which were based on novels by Naguib Mahfouz, are considered Egyptian classics. Known as the Godfather of Egyptian neorealism, Abu Seif pioneered shooting on location - though he also used sets - in places none of his predecessors had dared to visit, like ghurza (the equivalent of old Chinese opium dens), brothels and impoverished areas whose existence had never been officially acknowledged.