Three stars of Arab art, Khaled El Sawy, Ahmed Al Jasmi, and Zied Abdoune, took the audience of the Sharjah International Book Fair 2025 on an artistic and cultural journey during a session titled "From Acting to Authorship". They discussed the artist's journey when transitioning from performing in front of the camera to crafting the story itself.
At the start of the session, Egyptian actor Khaled El Sawy shared his perspective on writing as a natural extension of his artistic and human experience, saying: "I have written poetry in both classical and colloquial Arabic, I have written for theater and the novel, and I have composed songs... I am a man of varied experiences, and writing is an extension of myself. It is my primary means of freedom and discovery. I am not content with being just one Khaled; I want to live in multiple characters, to experience different ideas and feelings, and writing gives me this breadth."
El Sawy believes that a true writer is one who writes about themselves with honesty, while keeping the reader present in their mind.
Meanwhile, Emirati artist Ahmed Al Jasmi recounted his long journey in the world of art with a deep awareness that balances acting, writing, and producing. He stated that his shift from actor to writer is not just a change of roles, but a natural extension of an artist's need to fully express their vision, saying: "The writer writes, and the actor tries to interpret the story honestly for the audience. The actor sometimes feels a lack in the characters they portray, and this drives them to compensate for this lack through writing."
Al Jasmi believes that writing is not a substitute for acting, but an internal dialogue between creators within a single artist. From his position as a producer, he shared with the audience his method of balancing his respect for the writer with his desire for the work to remain close to his own artistic vision, saying: "As a producer, I follow every detail with the writer, and I don't agree with every change the writer suggests, but I discuss it; either he convinces me or I convince him."
Tunisian star Zied Abdoune shared chapters from his creative journey between acting, writing, and directing, revealing a personal philosophy that sees a story as more than just a narration of events, but as a means of discovering the self and the other, saying: "I always have a passion for telling a story, for narrating it from my perspective. A story can be told in different ways depending on the teller."
Abdoune affirmed that writing has not only changed his artistic tools but his outlook on life itself, saying: "Writing allowed me to develop myself as a human being; it taught me to be more human... And acting too, it helped me discover myself. Before acting, I was very shy, and perhaps if I hadn't entered this field, I would not have overcome this shyness."
