Project Detail

The Idol (Ya Tayr El Tayer)

Synopsis

A young boy in Gaza, Mohammad Assaf, dreams of singing in the Cairo Opera House with his sister and best friend, Nour. One day, Nour collapses and is rushed to the hospital where it is discovered that she needs a kidney transplant. Nour leaves Mohammad with a dying wish that someday, he will sing in Cairo. Escaping from Gaza to Egypt against unbelievable odds, Assaf makes the journey of a lifetime.
Directed by Academy Award® nominee Hany Abu-Assad and based on the incredible true story of Mohammad Assaf, the Gazan wedding singer who became a worldwide sensation after winning 'Arab Idol' in 2013.
Toronto International Film Festival 2015 - World premiere

Details

Year
2015
Type of project
Features
Running time
100 mins
Director
Hany Abu-Assad
Producer
Ali Jaafar, Amira Diab
Co-Producer
Baher Agbariya
Executive Producer
Badr Jafar, Bashar Masri, Harold van Lier
Editor
Eyas Salman
Screenwriter
Hany Abu-Assad, Sameh Zoabi
Director of Photography
Ehab Assal
Production Designer
Nael Kanj
Sound
Supervising Sound Editor: Lee Herrick; Sound Re-recording Mixer: Richard Pryke
Composer
Music Editor: Robin Morrison
Principal cast
Qais Atallah, Hiba Atallah, Ahmad Qassim, Abdelkarim Abu Baraka, Tawfeek Barhom, Saber Shreim, Ahmed Al Rokh, Nadine Labaki

Genre

Categories

Production Status

Production Company

UK, Palestine, Qatar, Netherlands, United Arab Emirates coproduction

Idol Film Production Ltd (UK), 03 FZ LLC (UAE), Cactus World Film (UK)

Sales Company

Seville International

455, St-Antoine West Suite 300
H2Z 1J1 Montreal
Quebec
Canada

Page updates

This page was last updated on 12th May 2025. Please let us know if we need to make any amendments or request edit access by clicking below.

See also

You may also be interested in other relevant projects in the database.

A Night in Porto A Night in Porto

Director: Antonio Sequeira, Anastasiia Vorotniuk

Year: 2026

Two former lovers unexpectedly reunite on a Christmas night in Porto. Their encounter sparks a reflective journey into whether life offers second chances at happiness.

The Angel in the House The Angel in the House

Director: Missy McNaught

Year: 2026

Angela is living a life devoted to everyone but herself. Caught between revolving identities, she has stepped into roles that generations of women before her have occupied. Disconnected from her husband, Malcolm, and struggling to articulate her dissatisfaction, she leaves home the night before her family is set to attend a wedding, and finds herself confronted by the silence that has stretched between them.

A young girl with the lights of an amusement arcade behind her Amusement

Director: Stephanie Zari

Year: 2026

With the clock ticking on her trip to the amusements, a downbeat ten year old girl needs to act quickly to make her funds count and win her dream prize, but she hasn’t contended with the self-appointed king of the amusements and his attempts to thwart her simple plan.