Safaa Fathy


Safaa Fathy is an Egyptian poet, documentary filmmaker, playwright, and essayist. She is best known for her film Derrida's Elsewhere, a documentary which focuses on the life and concepts of controversial philosopher Jacques Derrida.

Early life and career

Fathy was born in Minya, Upper Egypt on July 17, 1958. She studied English literature in Cairo. Fathy participated in the student movement while in Egypt but later left the country and settled in Paris in 1981. In 1987, she was an assistant director at the Deutsches Theater located in East Berlin. Fathy worked with Heiner Muller in 1990. She completed her doctoral thesis at the Sorbonne in 1993; her thesis was on Bertolt Brecht. Before becoming a filmmaker, Fathy worked as a stage director.
Currently she serves as director of programme at the International College of Philosophy in Paris.

Poetry

Collections

Documentary

Ordalie ; Terreur

Books

On philosophy and politics