Born in 1974, Namir Abdel Messeeh lived his early childhood in Upper
Egypt. He is currently based in France where he obtained a masters in cinema at the University of Paris VII and studied directing at La Femis. He directed two short fiction films before exploring more personal questions through his short documentary “You, Waguih”.

His latest work “La Vierge, les Coptes et Moi” (The Virgin, the Copts and Me) is a feature documentary inspired by a videotape of the Virgin Mary’s apparition in Egypt. Abdel Messeeh watches the tape with his mother who, like millions of other Copts, sees the Virgin on the screen while he sees nothing. Skeptical about the videotape, Abdel Messeeh travels back to Egypt, to make a film about the bizarre occurrence of these apparitions. The documentary received critical acclaim at the Doha Tribeca Film Festival 2011 and won the Best Arab Documentary Film award.

DFI: Congratulations on your Best Arab Documentary Film award at the Doha Tribeca Film Festival, how does it feel?
Abdel Messeeh: It really felt good. It gave me confidence.

DFI: What triggered you into making this controversial documentary?
Abdel Messeeh: At the beginning, I wanted to know more about the Virgin Mary’s apparitions and discovered the real reason after finishing the film. Maybe I just wanted to go back to my family, which I was so estranged from. And as I didn’t know how to reconnect with them, I felt that making a film would be a good way to start.

DFI: We learn from the documentary that your mother didn’t approve of you filming in Egypt. What was her reaction when she saw the film?
Abdel Messeeh: First she laughed a lot, which is a good sign. But afterwards, she told me that she wanted to see the film again, to make some changes in the edit of the film. So I told her I lost the print.

DFI: How did the audience react to the documentary, knowing that you were questioning religion?
Abdel Messeeh: Positively. Which confirms that there is nothing we cannot talk about. Once we take the risk, everything will be fine.

DFI: Do you feel more French or Egyptian?
Abdel Messeeh: Intellectually French. Emotionally Egyptian.

DFI: What are your main challenges as a filmmaker?
Abdel Messeeh: Getting paid while making movies!

DFI: How will the Arab spring affect documentary making and independent cinema in the region?
Abdel Messeeh: Egypt is a country of social classes where cinema was reserved for the elite. One had to go through cinema school before being able to make a film, and only a very few children of privileged figures made it to that school. The Arab Spring coincided with the era of mobile phones and digital cameras and it became possible for each person to make stories. This can only bring a fresh perspective to cinema.

We’re so involved in the impact of the revolution that it makes it very difficult to sit back and make a story unless one finds a unique angle. We need a few years before we’re able to overview the revolution.

DFI: Do you think documentaries will take the lead?
Abdel Messeeh: I don’t know. It doesn’t really make a difference whether it is a documentary or a fiction, as long as it is a good film.

DFI: Which filmmaker inspired you the most?
Abdel Messeeh: Luis Buñuel inspired me a lot.

DFI: What is your message to young filmmakers from the region?
Abdel Messeeh: Do what you believe in. It doesn’t matter if you fail, as long as you express something that is inside of you.