Fameck Arab Film Festival

Arab Cinema in the Spotlight in Moselle

Founded in 1990 at the Cité Sociale de Fameck, the Fameck – Val de Fensch Arab Film Festival was born from the desire to discover and promote Arab culture through cinema. The idea came from two young people from the neighborhood who proposed to Mario Giubilei, a worker priest and director of the Cité Sociale, to create a cultural event dedicated to the screening of Arab cinema. With Denis Darroy and René Cahen, he gave birth to what has become over the years the largest Arab cinema festival in France.

A Demanding Film Program

Film Selection

Each edition presents a selection of around forty films – feature films, short films, documentaries, and animated films – offering a comprehensive panorama of contemporary Arab film production. The selected works include previews, exclusives, and award-winning films from international festivals.

A Guest Country

Each year, a country from the Arab world is honored through a dedicated program. In 2025, Lebanon was the guest country with 12 productions on the bill. Palestinian cinema also holds an important place in the festival's program.

Meetings and Debates

The festival is not limited to screenings. It offers a program of meetings with directors, post-screening debates, and thematic round tables. As founder Mario Giubilei expressed: “We don’t screen just to screen, but to debate.” This dialogical dimension is at the heart of the festival's identity.

A Decentralized Festival

The Fameck Arab Film Festival extends its reach beyond the Fensch Valley. For several years, it has been decentralized to other towns in Moselle, notably at the Forum cinemas in Sarreguemines, allowing a wider audience to discover Arab cinema.

Prestigious Patrons

Each year, the festival invites film personalities as patrons or guests of honor. In 2025, Franco-Greek director Costa-Gavras was the patron of the 36th edition, participating in discussions and presenting films. Over the years, the festival has hosted many figures from French and international cinema.

A Cultural and Social Commitment

Organized by the U.A.S.F. Cité Sociale de Fameck and the Ligue de l'enseignement – Fédération des Œuvres Laïques de la Moselle with the help of volunteers, the festival carries a message of intercultural dialogue and living together. It contributes to giving families back their culture and allows young people to rediscover and develop their roots, in line with the vision of its founders.