This groundbreaking project sponsored by the European Union, recorded the history of a vibrant aspect of Alexandria’s modern cultural heritage, which had yet to be documented. Alex Cinema retraced the birth and development of the Seventh Art in Alexandria, beginning with the inauguration of the Lumière brothers’ cinematograph in 1897 and the work of the earliest Alexandrian cinematographers. The project documented the establishment of a dynamic cinematographic industry, nurtured by the city’s cosmopolitan atmosphere of innovation and entrepreneurship.

Using a wealth of old photographs, film footage and rare documents from a bygone era, Alex Med’s team of scholars and researchers pieced together a unique testimony of Alexandrian cinema right up to more recent times with filmmakers such as Youssef Chahine and until the transfer of the Egyptian cinema industry to Cairo. The project culminated in a catalogue and CD—The Birth of the Seventh Art in Alexandria—in addition to a website, exhibition and gala celebration attended by both celebrities and members of the general public. For more information please visit this link http://www.bibalex.org/alexcinema/