Early this week, Google Doodle celebrated the 85 th anniversary of Egyptian visionary director, screenwriter, décor and costume designer Shadi Abdel Salam, a man whose influence grew beyond the boundaries of Egyptian and Arabic cinema.
Although Abdel Salam directed only one full-length feature movie, "The Mummy (Al-Momiaa)," better known as The Night of the Counting of the Years, which earned him several awards, his contributions to cinema were manyfold.
Abdel Salam first set foot on a film set in 1957 as the assistant director to Salah Abou Seif. They worked for two years on the movie "El-Fetewwa" (The Thug) where his only role was to time the scenes. Afterwards, he assisted both directors Henri Barakat and Helmi Halim, and it was during his work with the latter on the set of "Qesset Hobb" (A Love Story) that he accidentally began working on set design. The coincidence discovery unfolded when the set designer was absent one day, and Abdel Salam was asked to replace him.
Impressed by Abdel Salam’s accuracy and proficiency in decor, many filmmakers started requesting his services to tailor the artwork of both set decor and costumes.
Due to his rich and inclusive knowledge of different time periods, Abdel Salam’s ingeniousness was manifested in his set and costume designs for many Egyptian and foreign historical films. Among the most famous Egyptian film sets he designed are "Wa Islamah!" (Oh Islam!) in 1961 by Andrew Marton; "lmaz we ‘Abdou el Hamoulî" (Almaz and Abdou el Hamoula) in 1962 by Helmy Rafla; "El Nâsir Salah Eddine" (Saladin) in 1963 by Youssef Chahine; "Shafiqah el Qibtiyyah" (Shafika the Copt) in 1963 by Hassan el Emam; "Râb’a el ‘Adawiyyah" (Rabea el Adweya) in 1963 by Niazi Mustafa and "Amîr el daha" (Prince of Cunning) in 1964 by Henri Barakat.
He also worked on foreign sets, most notably in Joseph Mankiezis’ "Cleopatra" in 1964 where he designed the décor, and Roberto Rossellini’s "Mankind’s Fight for Survival" in 1967.
In an interview with Gomhuria Magazine in 1969, Abdel Salam spoke of his passion for cinema saying, “Paper was not enough for me. I wanted my drawings to move and picture can move only in the cinema.”
Abdel Salam remains an icon for many generations to look up to because he fought commercial art with all his might. “Throughout my life, I have protected myself from commercial pollution and enhanced it with reading, research and education,” Abdel Salam said in one interview.
"I think that the people of my country are ignorant of our history and I feel that it is my mission to make them know some of it and let the others go on with the rest. I regard cinema not as a consumerist art, but as a historical document for next generations."