“Love Bites” Premiering at Aceh Film Festival in Asia
○ 03 September 2025
The Asian premiere of the short feature film “Loves Bites”, written and directed by Mahmoud Zein, will be held between (2-6) September, at the Aceh Film Festival in Indonesia. It will take part in the official competition of “Aflamu”; a program dedicated to Eastern or Middle Eastern cinema. This program aims at broadening the horizons of Acehnese audiences with regard to Arab culture diversity, constructive discussions, and inspiring local filmmakers and intellectuals. Each session is followed by a discussion with artistic and cultural experts, in order to enrich the watching experience and provide a deeper context.
The film marks Mahmoud Zein’s first short feature experience, as well as a prominent step in his artistic career. It tells the story of two brothers who suffer from internal conflicts, following the mysterious death of their sister, Hayam. The marks on her body cast doubts on a romantic relationship. The family starts a sharp confrontation between concealment and scandal. Inquiries are raised on mercy, justice and women rights, even after her death.
Basically, the film has triggered controversy before its premiere in the official competition of the Aswan International Women’s Film Festival because of its bold and shocking dramatic treatment of women’s honor in a conservative society. Additionally, it has received multiple awards, including the State Encouragement Award -Feature Film Scenario-, a special mention from the jury of the 6th Casablanca Arab Film Festival in Morocco, the Best Short Film Award at the 25th Rotterdam Arab Film Festival in the Netherlands, and a special mention from the jury of the Aswan International Women’s Film Festival.
Concerning the film’s participation in the Aceh Festival as part of the Aflamu program, Mahmoud Zein stated, “This is the first screening in Indonesia, as well as Asia, within the proceedings of a unique program on Eastern or Middle Eastern cinema. The program focuses on the issues that young filmmakers tackle in their films, highlighting their attempts in presenting community issues. I’m pleased with this participation and excited to receive the feedback. The film will be presented to an audience with the same Islamic background. This will make the film more influential and create a state of identification with events. Through characters and their popular religiosity, I tackled the religion issue or Sharia with regard to women, highlighting the contradictions in society”.
Furthermore, Zein noted that the film reflects the dominance of patriarchy and traditions, when it comes to women’s fate, even after their death. This is reflected in the shocking title; “Love Bites”.
The film is written and directed by Mahmoud Zein, starring Sedky Sakhr, Sohaila El-Anwar, Nadia Hassan, and Mahmoud Yehia. The team also includes: director of photography, Moamen Alam El-Din, editor Mohamed Mamdouh, executive producer Ali Soliman, set designer Mohamed Osama Hassan, sound engineer Ramy Magdy, sound designer and mixing specialist Amr Soliman, and color correction specialist Tarek Abd El-Qader. The film is produced by Mahmoud Zein and Ali Soliman, with the participation of Red Star and the Higher Institute of Cinema, and distributed by MAD Solutions.
