If you thought 2025 couldn’t get any wilder— think again. It’s just been revealed that Egyptian rapper Ziad Zaza will be strutting down La Croisette at the 78th Cannes Film Festival next month. Mostafa Mourad’s debut feature Aisha Can’t Fly Away has been shortlisted for the Un Certain Regard prize— and yes, the SKHNT singer is part of the cast.
It’s been ten years since Egypt last had a film compete in the Un Certain Regard category — the last being Ali, the Goat and Ibrahim in 2016, meaning Mourad could be the first Egyptian filmmaker to actually clinch the win and secure the €30,000 grant promised to assist the winning title’s distribution in France.
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Co-produced by Egypt, France, Germany, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Sudan, Aisha Can’t Fly Away explores the many existing dynamics within the African migrant society of Cairo, told through the eyes of Aisha, a Somali caregiver navigating the tensions between its different fragmented groups. Marking yet another stint in acting, after 60 Egyptian Pounds (2023) and Prestige (2025), Ziad Zaza continues his foray into the silver screen industry, further establishing himself with a performance we cannot wait to discover after the film premieres in Cannes next month.
The Egyptian-Sudanese co-production previously won the La Biennale di Venezia Prize for a film in post-production, worth €5,000, during the 12th edition of Final Cut in Venice, the industry program supporting films in post-production from Africa and the Arab world.
“Thank you to all the filmmakers. And thank you for the fun I had with you during the filming, through the ups and downs,” the rapper-slash-actor captioned a recent post on Instagram. “You were creative, honored us, and took us to Cannes,” he added.
Founded in 1998, the Un Certain Regard prize was established to champion up-and-coming cinematic talent, offering recognition to bold and innovative films that push the boundaries of traditional filmmaking. Over the last 26 years, the Un Certain Regard prize has recognized directors who have gone on to become prominent figures in the global film industry, including Romanian Cristi Puiu, British-Bosnian Jasmin Dizdar, and Iranian Mohammad Rasoulof.
