2019 Winners & Shortlists

Write a short summary of what happens in the film.

The film starts with Mo Salah walking in an empty, spacious hangar. The camera follows his steps as we start hearing the script. It doesn’t glorify him but questions his status and success, goading him, reminding him he has miles to go. We see him battle shadows and his shoes turn gold, we see him on his knees in a moment of defeat, that he overcomes as he stands tall and becomes a force with spinning balls gravitating towards him like planets towards a sun. The film ends as a statue erects in his image showing him his final destination, a road to glory, as he turns with a satisfied smile as if welcoming his possible future, and enters a sleek black car, symbolizing that Uber is with him all the way

Cultural/Context information for the jury

Salah was over used in most brands’ communications, which made Egyptians feel he was being too commercialized. But Uber decided to use him in a different way that didn’t glorify him or take an emotional approach. Other bands used his family and his hometown, but Uber’s film told him he had done nothing yet and he had miles to go. The script subtly used references of incidents that happened to him like when he was rejected by a very popular team in Egypt, but he kept going and he made it internationally, and when he was literally on his knees in defeat in the game that qualified Egypt to the world cup finals, but stood up and showed the world that he could become one of the greats, getting one of the most memorable scores in Egyptian history that took the country to the world cup.

Tell the jury anything relevant about the direction.

The film used a mixture of camera techniques, CGI and animation to show Mo Salah’s journey in a dynamic and visually entertaining way, new to the Egyptian audience. The film was all done in a hangar for an epic effect that focused only on our star while giving it a cool grungy ambience. The CGI added a heroic almost mythical element that ends with an enormous statue of him akin to the greek gods, showing him what he could become to his country. His opponents are shown in shadow symbolizing that they could be any and all obstacles in his way. The use of animation and CGI gives it a fantastical feeling as if showcasing the workings of a superhero, further enhanced by the use of glitches in transitions between outfits.