00:00:05-08 CARD: Katsha Films presents
00:00:10 CARD: CAIRO DRIVE Toroq al Qahira
00:00:19-22 CARD: “Cairo, Egypt” “before the Arab Spring”
00:00-00:01:07 OPENING MONTAGE – TRAFFIC – HANDEL WATER MUSIC
00:01:08 GEORGE AZMY - Arabic
“Our daily life is like nothing else.”
00:01:12 “Wake up late, snooze, clean up, leave the house.”
00:01:17 - “Get in the car…”
00:01:42 GEORGE MOTIONS – FALL ASLEEP
00:01:43- CAIRO MONTAGE
00:01:58- CARD: “Cairo is an essay in entropy, a measure of disorder or randomness.
“But order is nevertheless maintained, if barely.”
00:02:06 Maria Golia City of Sand.
MONTAGE CONTINUED
00:02:24-30 CARD: “20 million people, 14 million vehicles”
00:02:45 AYMAN: English - “It’s flowing today…or I’m making it flow actually – I’m driving pretty fast”
00:02:55 “Ghorza is a stitch. It’s like when you pass in between them, very squeezed. Right here, what I did right now. This is also another stitch.”
00:03:10 “I just wanna go!”
Arabic “I want to see an space and fill it.”
“It’s more of a video game.”
Arabic – “ Don’t follow taxis, they stop suddenly.”
“Don’t follow a microbus, it’ll stop suddenly. Pedestrians will appear on the left.”
00:03:30 Arabic – “These two could crash any minute. And their chatting…”
00:03:40 Arabic – “It’s a one way! It’s your fault!”
00:03:54 HAGG RAMADAN – ALL ARABIC
“There’s a honking language – like curses. When you here the horn, then you hear the curse. For example…”
00:04:14 HONKS…“That was cursing his mother”
“This, Your wife is the man.”
“Most of them are, cursing mothers, with horns.”
00:04:38 GEORGE AZMY – ARABIC
“There’s ‘I love you, I love you’, like this…okay”
00:04:45 “If you’re a good driver, you can master the language of horns.”
00:04:51 “If you want to pass a car, there’s this…Please. He lets me pass. Once you pass you say…thanks.”
00:05:03 “Now if you honk like this…he won’t let you pass.”
00:05:14 MICROBUS – ALL ARABIC
“October District!” “Hurry! There’s a cop!”
00:05:28 “Go, Go.”
00:05:35 “Give me a light.” “I don’t have one.”
00:05:40 “Got a light?” HONK “Here”.
00:05:57 “Coming?”
“The city’s crowded and awful. I have to keep stopping to let people off.”
00:06:08 “It causes traffic, but it’s not my fault.”
00:06:20 TAXI DRIVER – ARABIC
“These microbuses are the main cause of traffic. Some without licenses, driving badly, stopping in the wrong places.”
00:06:32 GEORGE – ARABIC
“For them, a person is money. To make a pickup, he’ll go from the far right, to the extreme left. Honking the whole time.”
00:06:45 MICROBUS HONKS ON MONEEB – MICROBUS DRIVER –ARABIC
“Everyone blames the traffic on microbuses. They say we’re useless, we’re uneducated- Low-life microbus drivers.”
00:06:59 AYMAN OFF CAMERA – ARABIC
“You have to admit, you stop everywhere to pick people up!”
MB DRIVER – “What choice do I have?”
00:07:17 HAGG RAMADAN – ARABIC
“These tuk-tuks are a disaster. Tuk-tuks are the biggest problem.”
00:07:33 AMIRA - English
“Ya’ani we’re a highly communicative…civilization, yeah. Because you’ve gotta interact! I’m interacting with everybody. Of course in Cairo…where it’s extremely crowded and the Law is not really that clear…”
00:07:51 “We could say about Cairo that…that…uh, excuse me, sorry.”
“Of course, it is hell in Cairo, but there’s almost always still a human aspect. The human side of people is actually so thirsty to come out – it wants to come out, it wants to be.”
FEW B-ROLL SHOTS – CITY WIDE
00:08:30 GEORGE AZMY – ARABIC
“Look at these people, trying to cross the street. There’s no system! The idea of pedestrian cross walks doesn’t exist. To cross the street you have to improvise, see?
Drivers must stay alert, pedestrians too, everyone fully alert at all times!”
00:08:52 “Which is why Egyptians are so tired and unproductive, we’re drained! You consume a lot of energy, doing the most basic things…Remember Frogger? Same game! With nothing to help you cross.”
00:09:15 – FROGGER POV --
00:10:22 --CROSS STREET MONTAGE
00:10:23 GEORGE AZMY ON STAGE – Arabic
“In the future, toes of the Egyptians, except the big one, will evolve into wheels. So when we get off a bus…And brake with the big toe!”
00:10:43 “Secondly, Egyptians will grow a pocket on our foreheads, to put our IDs, and not waste time at checkpoints.”
00:10:53 CUT TO GENERAL – Arabic
“Traffic is a universal problem in every city in the world. Yet elsewhere, there is order. When you’re in a line, and next to you a line, and everyone’s moving, you don’t get annoyed at all.”
00:11:17 “But when someone cuts you off, from the left, then the right, someone honks, another on the phone…It’s frustrating. But traffic exists.”
00:11:28- POLICE CHECKPOINT – MONTAGE.
00:11:40 POLICE OFFICER – Arabic
“Good morning. Driving license? License? Pull over to the side. Pull over to the side. Pull over to the side.”
00:11:52 POLICE TO TRUCK DRIVER - Arabic
“Show me your pass. Your right of access.” “The law is no trucks from 7am until 8pm, right or wrong?” “Is this a fair law?” “I don’t know, I only enforce the rules.” “Is it a fair law? Does it allow me to work? We have to work, we can’t stay home. Just as you work, so if there’s any way…
00:12:17 POLICE: “I can forgive the seatbelt ticket.” “One wound is enough, if I get two I might die. Still no hope?...I shouldn’t have left home this morning. I could’ve stayed home, spent the money on my kids. Am I right? You’re still taking my license? Sir? You’re still going to do it?”
00:12:45 AYMAN: Arabic - INT. CAR “Yesterday I bought things for my restaurant. Provisions that arrive by truck. I can’t get my goods until 8pm.”
00:12:58 AYMAN: English – “The government started this new thing, they don’t allow trucks to go into certain areas.”
Arabic – “Look at all these parked trucks. They’re all delivering goods. Ridiculous!” “Where are you? I see you, look the other way. I’m here.”
00:13:24 AYMAN TO VENDOR: Arabic – “Hello” “Cops wouldn’t let me get closer.” “They’re all sons of bitches.” “3, 4, 5, 6, 7…” “This shit we live in, where nothing works right. You buy something and pick it up in the street, like a criminal! Does it make sense?!”
00:13:45 English - “They give me my stuff, I have to tip everybody – because of what they’re doing. Thanks.”
00:13:52 AYMAN English – “It makes me really frustrated. But we have to cope with it…and we have to find ways to go around, you know. We bribe the cops to let the cars in. A day in the life for an angry Egyptian citizen.”
00:14:09 CHECKPOINT B-ROLL. COP AND ONE ARMED MAN. – Arabic “Why is your car not adapted? Aren’t you scared for your passengers?” “Sir, I’ve been driving like this for 10 years.” “We have no problem with that. But your car must be handicap equipped. Go see the officer.”
00:14:33 “Why is this a problem? Man, be my witness! I’m an army veteran. I can’t find a job. Tell me how can I work? Sir, I lost my arm in the army, and I’ve been looking for work for 13 years. Have I found a job? No>
00:14:57 “We’re here for your safety. Aren’t you a citizen? Your well-being is important to us.” “Then help me.” -“Your safety is…” “Get me a job.” -“Me?” “Who else? Aren’t you in the government? Get me a job!”
00:15:14 COP – “You want to joke around now?” “No, I just want to work.” “Sir, get in your car, an officer will escort you.”
00:15:38 HAGG RAMADAN – Arabic “They keep changing the driving laws. Like, a first-aid kit in the car. What kit? Seatbelts! Do we need a seatbelt on these side streets? Of course not! If you take my license, or give me a ticket, how will my wife and kids eat? If you enforce laws, enforce them on everyone equally.”
00:16:10 Shall we have a tea? Yes, once these idiots stop teasing. I live here. Oh, brother.
00:16:22 TRAFFIC COP – Arabic – “Of course, traffic tickets are the same every where. Using a cell phone while driving, not wearing a seatbelt, carrying a child on the…on the lap of the driver.”
00:16:40 SOCCER MONTAGE –
00:17:18 MOTAZ – English – “Driving has made me extremely patient…and has taught me more than anything else, about non-violence, actually. I make mistakes too, so maybe I can just give everybody that excuse, lets see what that’s like. And that’s helped me be less angry than I typically would be. “
00:17:40 “This is supposed to be like a three lane road, but its really like a 4 lane road, or whatever – depends how many cars it can take. There are rules that we go by. And it’s a very, very simple logic, the rule is eh? If there is space – occupy it. Bas. And it’s intuitive.
00:18:02 SIGN: RA DRIVING SCHOOL. TEACHER –Arabic - “I see a broken line and… a solid one. On a broken line I can switch lanes with a signal. On a solid line? No! It’s like a curb. A solid curb. You know a curb?
00:18:26 English – “They have their own way of driving. It is exactly like Frank Sinatra’s song, you know ‘I do it my way’ – so it is, again they do drive, and they reach from point A to point B, again, they do it their own way.
00:18:37 B-ROLL. TRAM INTERSECTION.
00:18:49 OFFICE GENERAL – Arabic – “Our goal is to raise a new generation that understands traffic rules through a presence in schools. The Kids Driving Program is complete and being implemented in schools.”
00:19:13 KIDS PROGRAM – English - “Red, red, red, red means stop. Green, green, green, green means go. Yellow, yellow, yellow, yellow means wait, Even, even, even, even if your late!”
00:19:22 TEACHER – Arabic – “Nice but raise your voices. One, two, three”
“Red, red, red, red means stop. Green, green, green means go. Yellow, yellow, yellow, yellow means wait.
00:19:40 RA DRIVING SCHOOL – Arabic – “The teacher tells you release the clutch, and push the what? The gas pedal, and the car moves. The second part, here, is called the cylinder head. Aren’t these cylinders. It’s the head. Got it?
00:20:05 JEHANE – DARB – Arabic – “So far, I’ve never driven alone. I don’t have a license, it’s difficult to get. Usually I drive with my husband. Never alone.
00:20:19 KARINA – Arabic – “The answer to all my problems is learning to drive. Late for work, you should drive. Tired of the crowds, you should drive. Taxis harass me, you should drive. So I need to drive. I am practicing for my driver’s license test. We’re going to practice in the streets.”
00:20:39 KARINA EXTERIOR W/ SHADI – Arabic – “The front wheel should start here. I’ll focus with you in one second.” English – “Anybody want some chewing gum?”
00:20:52 JEHANE W/ DRIVING TEACHER – Arabic “Press the clutch. Give it some gas, slowly lift the clutch. Lighter on the clutch. Lower your hands. Come on give it some gas, we’re going up a bridge.”
00:21:13 JEHANE SIT DOWN – Arabic “If I can go somewhere without a bridge, then I do, I don’t like bridges! If there’s only two lanes, I don’t care, I’m in the middle. Drivers are impatient. That’s the problem.”
00:21:36 KARINA EXT. SHADI – Arabic – “Take a loop, and try to park here.”
00:21:50 JEHANE DRIVES
00:21:59 KARINA EXT. Arabic – “No, it’s too far. Should I try in reverse? Okay, Shadi.”
00:22:05 JEHANE – DRIVER HONKS.
00:22:12 KARINA – Arabic – “Will I hit? And with cars, it’ll be much harder?” –“Yes, much harder. I’ll stand behind the car, you try to park, okay?”
00:22:27 BANG “sorry! Oh my!”
00:22:35 AMIRA INT. CAR – English – “So you have to always try and read what the person is doing. I don’t get what this guy’s doing right now, I think he’s coming back.” Arabic –“Ask him what he’s doing. Leaving? Today or tomorrow? Let’s go Mohamed, I’ve got errands to run!”
00:23:01 DRIVING – English – “I think we should not be fighting anymore and I think-“ HONK Arabic - “Alright, just pass!” (00:23:16) “Why? Get out of here, you ass!”
00:23:22 WIDE CAIRO – TAXI DECORATION MONTAGE –
00:23:58 CONT. – TAXI MARKET – TAWFIKAYA Arabic –
“Matches, only 1 pound!”
00:24:12 VENDORS – Arabic - “This is Tawfikaya market. You can buy anything here. Look at this! Show him! This is made in Egypt!” - “But they wrote ‘made in Taiwan’. Public Republic of China.”
00:24:40 KID – Arabic – “Ready?” ALARM – NIGHT MONTAGE.
00:25:05 HALL – LIZA’S SEAMSTRESS – Arabic “I left my house at 3:30pm. I arrived at Liza’s at 6pm. Over 2 hours on the road.” -“Where’s Liza?” “In the hall.”
00:25:25 LIZA TO SOUND MIXER – Arabic – “I want a…” -“A low level” –“A nice level. I don’t wan’t people doing this.”
00:25:30 BAND – LIZA DANCES
00:25:55 EXT. LIZA GETS CAB – Arabic – “Here comes a taxi.”
English – “Alright this is the best time to drive in Cairo – at night. I would never, never drive here! I’d be putting my life and other people’s lives at risk – they’ve got an invisible language, you know. Flashing lights here means ‘I might kill you. Stop. Or Go.’ You don’t know…and the constant hooting of cars, it’s their language. It’s a chaotic city and everything kind of works.”
00:26:28 Arabic – “Yes, this is it.” -“Here?” “Yes.” English - “Give him a little extra, yeah?” “I will.”
00:26:35 CABBIE BACK HOME – Arabic – “Can I ask you something?” “Can you close the window?” -“Of course. Good? Seriously? She’s a dancer in Egypt?” -“Her name is Liza Laziza.” “Oh, Liza Laziza. Thank God, I like to laugh now and then. But jokes are a bit difficult. Because life is a joke unto itself.”
00:27:07 “I didn’t see it, but was surprised…Kolobali, Obali, or…? His name is Obali? Or Kobali?” -“Who?” “No, not Bush…the new one! I was shocked that Obali, or Kobali won.” -“His name is Obama.” -“Obama, yes. What do you think of him?”
00:27:35 EXT. OBAMA IN CAIRO MONTAGE – WITH TAXI DRVRS. - Arabic “The president of the biggest country coming to visit us.” - “I heard he’s giving a speech.” - “Obama? American President? It’s his first visit to Egypt. He wants to see the country he’s heard so much about.”
00:28:04 “The streets are being cleaned. Everyone wants Cairo to look nice in Obama’s eyes. (00:28:25) – “They’ve left nothing.” – “Broken lights will shine again!” -“May God shed His light!”
00:28:27 “They’ll have to make Thursday a holiday. Because he can’t move in this traffic. Or they’ll block roads for hours. He’ll say, ‘How do people get to work?’ (00:28:55) HONK – “What’s all the noise from?” -“Heat! People’s nerves have snapped, from traffic and heat. Everyone’s honking, it’s the heat. God help Obama!”
00:29:12 “I love my country, I never thought of leaving. Because this sun, that we’re so annoyed by…Europeans love it!”
00:29:25 INT. COFFEE SHOP – TV “Salaam Aleikum.”
English – “I am honored to be in the timeless city of Cairo…I want to make it clear that America is not at war with Islam.” -“What words!”
00:29:50 CARD: “Downtown Cairo during Obama’s Speech.” INT. TAXI – Arabic – “It’s another country!” -“Clearly.” “It was a vacation. Everyone was stuck at home.”
00:30:14 COFFEE SHOP – English – “Thank you. May God’s peace be upon you. Thank you.”
00:30:22 INT. – TAXI NIGHT – Arabic – “What was the point of that? They should’ve let him walk the streets amongst the people. For a few hours, see our reality. If you