A man and a woman are together in bed in a dimly lit bedroom. He remains motionless and distant, engrossed by something on his laptop, as she snuggles against him, trying to attract his attention. This is the opening scene of the trailer of “The Wedding,” the forthcoming movie by the Egyptian American director Sam Abbas. It foreshadows the marital disaster to come.

Abbas' film features the story of Rami, a homosexual Egyptian Muslim played by Abbas, who is forced to marry Sara, played by Nikohl Boosheri. The movie is scheduled for a November release, but the trailer, posted Aug. 23 on various movie sites, has already caused a stir. “The Wedding” has also made international headlines in various industry magazines as the first Egyptian queer movie, although a number of other Egyptian films have addressed homosexuality since the 1970s.

Abbas, who also wrote the screenplay, told Al-Monitor that the film is meant to lend support to homosexuals living in conservative societies, sending the message that they are not alone. “I would really hope that people who have watched the film walk away with the understanding that life is too short to have a double life,” Abbas said. “That's how I felt, and that’s why I made this movie.”

“The Wedding” is the first movie produced by ArabQ, the newly established Alexandria-based film company dedicated to supporting LGBTQ rights. Abbas and an Egyptian producer who has chosen to remain anonymous co-own the company, which they are positioning as producing feature films as well as documentaries focusing on the LGBTQ community. It is required that all projects have a self-identified queer, gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender director or lead producer.