ABOUT THE PROJECT

LOGLINE
An intimate journey into the life of a young gay activist in present-day Egypt.

SYNOPSIS
Since 2013 , at least 250 gay and transgender people in Egypt were convicted of debauchery and other charges. Their sentences have ranged between three months and 12 years in prison. One of the most covered cases was that of a gay couple that filmed their private vows. This beautiful moment was turned into a nightmare. When the video of the two men kissing was put on YouTube, it spread through Egypt on social media. The police got involved, and the men were sentenced to three years in prison for distributing “pornographic material”—their kiss.

Homosexuality is not illegal in Egypt, but it is a social taboo, and human rights activists have said this has been the worst year for LGBTQ rights there in history. Since the Sisi government, there has a been a rising number of brutal arrests of gay men on charges of “immorality.” Over the last year, there has been a wave of raids on private properties, and the police have been accused of using gay dating apps like Grindr to entrap gay men. Most recently, a bath house was raided, and a group of men were publicly shamed on immorality charges. These stories and many more are what has motivated us to make this short film.

HALF A LIFE is a short animated documentary that pairs the intimate narration of a young, Egyptian gay activist with highly stylized animation, bringing the streets of Cairo to life through this firsthand account. He shares with us a traumatizing encounter that prompted him to become a gay-rights activist in the unstable, increasingly dangerous and oppressive current social climate in Egypt.Our team is composed of Oscar-winning filmmakers, talented animators, journalists, and researchers committed to sharing this story. For more information please don’t hesitate to contact us.

PROJECT TYPE Animated Short - Documentary

DIRECTOR Tamara Shogaolu
PRODUCER Ado Ato Pictures

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