Tarik Saleh and Fares Fares attended the premiere of their film 'Eagles of the Republic,' which opened the Stockholm Film Festival. Saleh expresses nervousness about showing it on home turf, while Fares views it as a worthy conclusion to their Cairo trilogy. The festival this year focuses on nostalgia, featuring 135 films from 50 countries.
Tarik Saleh and Fares Fares were present in Stockholm when their film 'Eagles of the Republic' opened the film festival on November 6, 2025. The movie is the concluding part of Saleh's dark Cairo trilogy, following 'The Nile Hilton Incident' from 2017 and 'Boy from Heaven' from 2022. Fares Fares has played the lead role in all three films.
Saleh describes the feeling ahead of the premiere: 'It feels nervous to show it on home turf, when everyone I know is here.' Fares, however, is not nervous: 'Not at all. It just feels great. This is a worthy conclusion to the trilogy, but it's also just the beginning.' He hints at future collaboration, but they remain secretive about the next project. Saleh explains: 'If we tell what we want to make for a film, it could lead to us not being able to make it later. You don't want to burn the bridge before you've crossed it.'
In a clip, Saleh answers whether he prefers winning an Oscar or På spåret, opting for the latter.
Festival program manager Beatrice Karlsson notes that it has been a good film year, reflected in the program. This year's theme, Spotlight: Be kind rewind, focuses on nostalgia. For instance, the essay film 'Videoheaven' by Alex Ross Perry explores the role of video stores in American film and TV. Benny Safdie's 'The Smashing Machine' is set in the MMA world around the millennium shift.
Karlsson reflects: 'In uncertain times, we seem to want to escape our present, nostalgia becomes a kind of comfort blanket.' Many films pose the question of whether it was better before and which decade one would turn back to. In total, 135 films from 50 countries are shown from November 5 to 16.