Egyptian production designer Mohamed Attia says mummies parade a career highlight

Egyptian architect-turned production designer Mohamed Attia has worked with many of the country’s acclaimed film directors, including the late Mohamed Khan, Yousry Nasrallah, Tarek Alarian and Marwan Hamed.

But he never expected the brief given to him a year and a half ago: design the visual aspects of a parade that will transport 22 royal mummies from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo's Tahrir Square to their new resting place at the National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation.

"I was very happy that the officials trusted me to do such a job. But at the same time, I was so worried about the big responsibility and it was something I've never done before," Attia, 48, tells The National.

It was something I've never done before

The monumental task included transforming army trucks into climate-controlled floats decorated in pharaonic style, recreating ancient Egyptian boats and carriages, lighting the parade route and designing majestic gates.

He need not have worried; the spectacular Pharaohs' Golden Parade that took place on April 3 garnered positive reviews from around the world and instilled nationalistic pride among Egyptians.

Attia is an example of the homegrown talent that was showcased to a global audience on that day, as Egypt highlighted its ancient heritage and signaled to the world that its was open to tourists.

“It was one of the highlights of my career,” he says.

From dentistry to cinema

The journey that led Attia to the mummies parade was a winding one.

As a university student he spent five months studying dentistry at Cairo University before deciding it was not for him.

“It was the dream of my family for me to become a doctor, but I love architecture,” he recalls.

He transferred to the Faculty of Fine Arts in Zamalek and in his first year did an internship on the set of Al Mohager (The Emigrant), a 1994 film directed by Youssef Chahine.

He “started falling in love with cinema” but finished his studies in architecture in 1995 and began work as a draftsman in France.

“I believe that any production designer in the cinema has to have an architectural background through education or experience,” he says.

Still, architecture was not his true calling.

“I suffered working there. It was so depressing for me.”

After over three years of producing drawings, he jumped on the opportunity to return to Cairo to help renovate buildings at the 1930s-era production complex Studio Misr.

It was there that he met production designer and art director Salah Marei, who encouraged him to make a career change and introduced him to film director Khan.

In parallel Attia established his own film production design company called 35 Champollion Studio, named after its address in Downtown Cairo.

“I was so lucky,” he says. “My first chance was with Mohamed Khan, who was one of the biggest names in the 80s and 90s.”

Attia worked on three films with Khan followed by two films with Nasrallah.

More recently, Attia has been the production designer on four films by Palestinian-Egyptian director Tarek Alarian and another four from young director Marwan Hamad.

A new challenge

For Attia, the parade presented a unique challenge: creating an event that is not “kitsch” or “cliché” and reflects the prestige of a royal procession.

“We didn’t have a zero line based on references. The closest thing one could compare it to is the Rio de Janeiro carnival or Venice carnival, but this was more of a celebration of a deep history,” Attia says.

“There is a sense of respect and magnificence, more than a colourful party for the masses.”

He emphasises that the production design was a team effort, including his entire events company Kokoro and 35 people outsourced from elsewhere.

Other challenges included contending with delays caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and operating within a limited budget.

“Army trucks are not the best solution for a designer – they’re bulky. But we didn’t have the budget to buy or rent 22 cars just for the parade,” he says.

Decorated in black and gold, each lorry included the name of the king or queen written in English, Arabic and hieroglyphics. The mummies were protected in nitrogen-sealed capsules.

Decorated in black and gold, each vehicle included the name of a king or queen written in English, Arabic and hieroglyphics. The mummies were protected in nitrogen-sealed capsules. Courtesy Mohamed Attia

The event “renewed the link between contemporary Egyptians and their pharaonic ancestors”, Attia says, and the positive reviews gave Egyptians a “confidence boost”.

“We have this assumption that Egyptians can’t put on a big event like this – that we have to get foreigners from abroad. But I believe there was pride and joy that Egyptians can do this.”

Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Khaled El Anany said there are plans to hold another royal parade later this year to transfer King Tutankhamun to the yet-to-be-opened Grand Egyptian Museum in Giza.

Would Attia take part again if asked?

“Of course,” he says, without missing a beat.

Have you been targeted?

Tuan Phan of SimplyFI.org lists five signs you have been mis-sold to:

1. Your pension fund has been placed inside an offshore insurance wrapper with a hefty upfront commission.

2. The money has been transferred into a structured note. These products have high upfront, recurring commission and should never be in a pension account.

3. You have also been sold investment funds with an upfront initial charge of around 5 per cent. ETFs, for example, have no upfront charges.

4. The adviser charges a 1 per cent charge for managing your assets. They are being paid for doing nothing. They have already claimed massive amounts in hidden upfront commission.

5. Total annual management cost for your pension account is 2 per cent or more, including platform, underlying fund and advice charges.

Defence review at a glance

• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”

• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems

• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.

• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%

• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade

• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026

1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years

If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.

2. E-invoicing in the UAE

Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.

3. More tax audits

Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.

4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime

Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.

5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit

There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.

6. Further transfer pricing enforcement

Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.

7. Limited time periods for audits

Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.

8. Pillar 2 implementation

Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.

9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services

Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.

10. Substance and CbC reporting focus

Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.

Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer

The Way It Was: My Life with Frank Sinatra by Eliot Weisman and Jennifer Valoppi
Hachette Books

Key facilities

Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
Premier League-standard football pitch
400m Olympic running track
NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
600-seat auditorium
Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
Specialist robotics and science laboratories
AR and VR-enabled learning centres
Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills

What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE

Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.

Key changes

Commission caps

For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:

• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).

• On the protection component, there is a cap of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).

• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated.

• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.

• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.

Disclosure

Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.

“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”

Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.

Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.

“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.

Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.

Generation Start-up: Awok company profile

Started: 2013

Founder: Ulugbek Yuldashev

Sector: e-commerce

Size: 600 plus

Stage: still in talks with VCs

Principal Investors: self-financed by founder

On Instagram: @WithHopeUAE

Although social media can be harmful to our mental health, paradoxically, one of the antidotes comes with the many social-media accounts devoted to normalising mental-health struggles. With Hope UAE is one of them.
The group, which has about 3,600 followers, was started three years ago by five Emirati women to address the stigma surrounding the subject. Via Instagram, the group recently began featuring personal accounts by Emiratis. The posts are written under the hashtag #mymindmatters, along with a black-and-white photo of the subject holding the group’s signature red balloon.
“Depression is ugly,” says one of the users, Amani. “It paints everything around me and everything in me.”
Saaed, meanwhile, faces the daunting task of caring for four family members with psychological disorders. “I’ve had no support and no resources here to help me,” he says. “It has been, and still is, a one-man battle against the demons of fractured minds.”
In addition to With Hope UAE’s frank social-media presence, the group holds talks and workshops in Dubai. “Change takes time,” Reem Al Ali, vice chairman and a founding member of With Hope UAE, told The National earlier this year. “It won’t happen overnight, and it will take persistent and passionate people to bring about this change.”