06-05-2025
'Thank You for Banking With Us' Wins Two Awards at Malmö and Beirut Festivals
'Thank You for Banking With Us' won two awards from Lebanon and Sweden.
It received the Best Feature Film Award, as part of the International Competition of the 8th Beirut International Women Film Festival.
Additionally, it won the Best Script Award for writer and director Laila Abbas at the 15th Malmö Arab Film Festival in Sweden.
Producer Shahinaz Al-Akkad, who co-produced and distributed the film, expressed her gladness for winning two awards from major festivals in Lebanon and Sweden, as well as receiving positive feedback during its latest screenings in multiple countries, such as Egypt, KSA, and the UAE. It has also participated in several festivals across the world.
She added, 'I was glad to take part in this work, for it presents a deeply personal story with a global impact. Basically, it sheds light on the inequality that women face in light of multiple legal systems. It is found all over the world. Indeed, this is the role of cinema; it presents these arguments in a special language to reach the whole world. That's why the film achieved numerous successes in the festivals in which it was screened'.
Recently, the film won multiple awards, including: Best Feature Film in the Ajyal Jury Competition, and Silver Alexander Award from Thessaloniki Film Festival in Greece, as Best Director in 'Meet the Neighbors' Competition. Moreover, it received the Best Arab Feature Film Award, along with "Who Do I Belong To", at El Gouna Film Festival.
"Thank You for Banking With Us" is written and directed by Laila Abbas, starring Yasmine Al-Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El-Basha, Ashraf Barhoum, and Adam Khattar. It tells the story of two sisters whose father passes away leaving a large sum of money. Together, they try to reach a perfect plan to escape with the money before their brother figures it out, as he is legally entitled to receive half of the inheritance.
The film is a co-production between Shahinaz Al-Akkad's Lagoonie Film Productions, Palestine Cinema Days founder and artistic director Hanna Atallah and Ronza Kamel, through August Films, as well as Roshanak Behesht Nedjad's In Good Company Films.
