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Masr Al Youm newspaper

Nationalization of several of Egypt's biggest film studios

The Ministry of Culture has today announced the nationalisation of some of Egypt's biggest film studio's. This move will look familiar to those who lived in Jamal Abdel Nasser's reign, as he famously nationalized the whole of Egypt's film industry.

Commenting on this, the Minister of Culture Abdelaziz Karim said "This was done to allow the young and creative filmmakers in Egypt's film industry to bring forth their vision without having to worry about the need to bring financial success" She continued "After all, the Egyptian box office is filled with movies that have no artistic vision, only made to bring in money. However people remember a different time, where movies were always guaranteed to be of certain quality. That time was when the state was in control of the biggest studios in Egypt, and that is what we are gonna try to replicate"

Critics have argued that this was not the main intention however, pointing out how at the time movies where usually ways to promote the government's propaganda and to censor any criticism against it.