The new kid on the block: Bahibb issima and the emergence of the Coptic community in the Egyptian public sphere

The release of the controversial Egyptian film Bahibb issima (I Love Cinema), directed by Usama Fawzi and written by Hani Fawzi (two young and already distinguished Coptic filmmakers), in summer 2004 triggered a heated debate of national proportion. Not only has the film propelled the Egyptian Coptic community into the very heart of the public sphere but it has also confirmed the Coptic community as a new player in the cultural politics in Egypt, a challenging new force for the Egyptian state to contend with in the latter’s balancing act of secularism and religious nationalism.1