Ahmed Malek Joins the Cast of Australian Feature the Furnace

Australian director Roderick MacKay has selected Egyptian young actor Ahmed Malek to take the lead in his feature film debut The Furnace. Set in Western Australia's 1890s gold rush, The Furnace is an unlikely hero's tale, navigating greed and the search for identity in a new land.

Ahmed Malek will play Hanif, a young cameleer who forms a partnership with Mal, a bushman on the run with Crown gold. Together, they must outwit zealous troopers in a race to reset the gold bars at a secret furnace.

The film is set to go into production in Western Australia next month. The film has received production support from several institutes, including Screen Australia, in association with Screenwest and Lotterywest and the Western Australian Regional Film Fund.

Alongside Malek, The Furnace stars celebrated Australian actor David Wenham, Baykali Ganambarr, who won the Best New Talent awardat the Venice International Film Festival for his role in The Nightingale, Trevor Jamieson, Erik Thomson, Mahesh Jadu and Osamah Sami.

Director Roderick MacKay says about his new film, "I'm thrilled to have this opportunity to shine a light on a crucial yet little known chapter of Australia's history, celebrating the cultural diversity of our early pioneers. In addition to our talented and diverse supporting cast, I could not be more excited to be working with iconic Australian actor, David Wenham, and rising Egyptian star, Ahmed Malek, whose heartfelt performances will anchor the story's rugged gold rush setting."

Known for playing diverse roles, young actor Ahmed Malek was selected as one of TIFF's 2018 Rising Stars Programme. He was also selected to serve as a jury member for the Short Film Competition of the 2nd El Gouna Film Festival.

Malek took part in several blockbusters, the latest of which includes The Guest and Gunshot, in addition to Ras El Sana and About Her that will be coming soon to theaters. Through these films, Malek was able to reintroduce him self to audiences, while keeping his same old position as a professional young actor, but with more profound and mysterious aspects.