Egyptian censors demand that 13 scenes be cut from first gay film
Creators of the first film to come out of Egypt which directly tackles gay issues have been told they must delete a large chunk of scenes, despite that the film contains no sexually explicit content.
The censors demaded that thirteen scenes be cut from Family Secrets, the film directed by Hany Fawzy.
The director said deleting such a high volume of scenes would remove vital segments of the plot, and damage it artistically. One of the scenes sees the gay protagonist come out to his sister, and in another he accuses his father of “being responsible for his sexual orientation”.
The film is based on a true story of a young gay man who grows up with a single mother and an elder brother who is subjected to child abuse.
The story goes on to see the gay protagonist go on to see therapists about the fact that he is gay in an attempt to “cure” himself, and after going through the therapy, he finds that he no longer feels himself.
The censorship comes after the head of the censor board Ahmed Awad, told the AFP last month that the film would not be censored just because it addresses homosexuality.
