Ahmad Al Morsy didn’t want to go down a traditional career path after graduating from high school; he always hoped to find a job where he could make a difference. Fascinated by the world of cinema, he enrolled in film school and his life was turned upside down. Today, he is considered one of the most important directors of photography in the Arab world with more than 50 films and over 2000 commercials under his belt. Throughout his career, he has won 22 national and international awards. Al Morsy also played a huge role in the success of the Pharaohs Golden Parade that accompanied Egypt’s royal mummies from the Cairo Museum to the Egyptian Museum of Civilization. He has earned a reputation for keeping pace with the latest developments in filming techniques and for excelling in experimenting with new tools in filming movies, commercials, and more. eniGma’s Salma Mohamed got the chance to chat with the intriguing Al Morsy about his incredible journey. Here are some excerpts from their conversation.
How did you get into a career in film?
Growing up, I always wanted to do something different; I wanted to do something that was more hands-on. During my senior year of high school, I found out about film school and it seemed like something I could do. When I was exposed to the world of cinema, I was mesmerised by it. I started pushing myself and worked as hard as I could, to learn about this career. I wanted to keep my options open, so I started working while I was still a student. I got the opportunity to work on big movies like Edhak El Soora Tetla’a Helwa (Laugh And The Picture Will Beautiful) as well as Ard El Khoof (Land Of Fear), and from there my career took off.
What made you pick a career as a photography and film director?
The ability to create. I love the idea of someone having a vision, someone coming up with a story from their imagination, and having the capability to turn it into a reality. For people to get to see my visions and interact with them is what makes me most passionate about what I do.
What are the biggest challenges you’ve faced in your career?
Finding a new idea and trying not to repeat my past projects is the biggest challenge. I try my best not to repeat any of my ideas. Always having a new idea is a very difficult thing. When I first get a new project, sometimes I don’t know how to approach it. There’s always a long research process that I have to go through to find a solution and a way not to repeat myself. The bigger the challenge, the bigger the responsibility, and the harder it gets. But that’s how you get the best outcome.
What is your process like before starting a new project?
Whether it is a script or something for an event, I study the brief very well. I then discuss all the aspects of the project with the crew. If I’m the director of photography, I mostly discuss everything with the director, and if I’m the director, I talk to the crew, especially the writers, about all the details that go into making the project. Then I start watching similar things that have been made before, to learn from them, and try not to copy them. I find out all the work that went into making similar projects and what problems they faced and how they solved them. I then create a plan for what I want to do and discuss it with the crew. When we reach a final plan, I start putting out a strategy for executing. It’s a really long process, but I always go through it.
When do you feel satisfied with the project at hand?
I’m never fully satisfied; I never feel like I’m done and ready to release any of my projects. Satisfaction is a very hard goal to reach. I always feel like I need more time; I always feel like I could improve. The thing that actually makes me feel like I’m done is the deadline!
What would you like people to notice most while watching your work?
Actually, I don’t want people to notice anything. I want people to feel. All the hard work and effort I put into my work is to send a message, a feeling, an energy. These are the most important elements people should get out of experiencing my work. I feel most satisfied when that happens. But visually, I don’t feel like there’s anything special or different people should notice. I want the viewer to be amazed by my work. I like it when that happens, but it’s not a priority for me.
What’s the difference between working on movies, commercials, and music videos?
The three are similar in the sense that it’s a way of visual storytelling, but with each one, the stories are told differently. In movies, we have more freedom to tell the story; we have more time and more tools. Typically, people go to a movie theater in a dark room, the music and sound from the movie is loud, the screen is big, and the viewer is completely focused on the movie with no distractions. When it comes to commercials and music videos, we have less time to tell the story. The story we’re telling is usually simple and short, as it’s something people watch coincidentally, so we try our best to have a strong impact.
What was the process for the amazing Pharaohs Golden Parade like?
Honestly, it was a terrifying thing. When I first got the brief for this project, I was in shock. It’s a very big project and a huge responsibility. There was this responsibility of representing the pharaohs civilisation; the greatest civilisation in history. I didn’t know where to start. So, I had a huge brainstorming process that involved long detailed meetings with the crew. We decided to look for similar big events, like Olympic openings and other things that might be similar. There was really nothing like it to refer to, because we hadn’t seen anything like it before. It was definitely the biggest project I’ve ever done. I spent a lot of time looking for things to perfectly describe and portray this important event and tried to look for different ways to make it fascinating. The process leading up to it and the buildup was the hardest and longest part of it all. We went through a lot of trial-and-error moments. When we reached a final decision, we started planning everything out, and the execution was an even bigger deal. It took a lot of time and hard work.
Some of the most known movies you’ve worked on are El Feel El Azra (The Blue Elephant), Torab Almas (Diamond Dust), and Kira & El Gin. What was it like working on such big movies and what was the difference between each one?
All of the movies I work on are big and important to me. That’s how I approach any movie I work on. When I work on a new movie, I use the newest developments I’ve learned. My ambition is to always make something bigger and better than the last, and I try my best not to repeat myself. That was one of the hardest things I had to face while making the second part to El Feel El Azra, because technically both movies have the same idea, same cast, and very similar story lines. But I didn’t want to duplicate the first part. I’m constantly growing and trying to be more innovative. With each movie I try to overcome the things I found most difficult in the past. With movies constantly changing, it’s not an easy thing, but I’m constantly working on myself.
What was it like working with Karim Abdelaziz and Ahmed Ezz on movies and commercials? What was the difference?
I have an old and long relationship with both of them. Karim Abdelaziz was my colleague in film school. He was a year older than me and he graduated with a degree in directing. We have a strong friendship and our friendship grew even more through working together. We started respecting each other more professionally, as each of us saw a new side of the other at work. With Ahmed Ezz, our relationship also started out at a young age. He was one of the stars of the movie Sana Oula Nasb (First Year Of Deception), one of the first movies I worked on. We worked together again on the movie, Al Hafla (The Party), and in between those movies, we worked on a lot of commercials together as well. Then I worked with him on El Aref (The Knower) and then, of course, with Karim in Kira & El Gin. So we’ve been together from the start and we always experienced and supported each other’s growth. Ezz is a very passionate and hardworking person. He constantly works on himself, and is always trying to be better. I love being close to both of them, and I love working with them.
What’s your favourite among your projects ?
Usually, my favourite project is the last thing I’ve made. Right now, the last thing I made is Kira & El Gin. I’m very happy with the release of the movie, and I feel very proud and happy with the progress I’ve made. I feel like it’s a perfect depiction of my progress. I also like some of the Ramadan commercials I’ve made. And, of course, the Pharaohs Golden Parade is one of the things I’m most proud of in my career.
What’s something you still want to make?
I honestly want to always get better. I want my passion to stay alive. I like being confronted with a new project and not knowing what to do with it at first. I want to always have a challenge, to always aim high, and to never lose passion for what I do. One of the things I most want is for an Egyptian movie to go global and be known internationally.
Which of your movies do you think didn’t get the recognition it deserves?
I honestly don’t think that any of my movies did not get the recognition they deserve. I’m thankful enough to say that each movie I worked on got the recognition it deserved and more, especially the recognition for the hard work that went into each of them. I consider whatever criticism we get as constructive criticism and a way to grow and become better at specific things.