Her first feature-length film Molly's Way which, like her 2 following feature films was co-authored by Esther Bernstorff received an advancement award at the Filmfest München (film festival Munich) in 2005 for best script and the Grand Jury Award at the Mar del Plata Film Festival, the only A-Festival in South America as well as several other awards. Her second feature-length film Das Fremde in mir which deals with a young mother having postnatal depression also received several awards and was screened at the Cannes Film Festival. She then got a scholarship from the Cinéfondation in Cannes which she used, to write her next movie Töte mich. that is distributed by Les Films du Losange Kill Me was voted as best fictional foreign language work at the 2013 Bradford Film Festival. Atef directed her first TV film Königin der Nacht (Queen of the night) a family drama shot in the Black Forest for the ARD in 2016. In the same year Atef directed Wunschkinder a true story about a couples extreme endeavour to adopt a child in Russia. Written by the Grimme prize winner Dorothee Schön and produced by X Filme Creative Pool. Atef shot the film in Poland and Berlin. In 2017 Atef directed a TV Drama, Macht euch keine Sorgen (Don't worry, I'm fine) for the ARD produced by ZeroOne Film, a about a father who finds out his 19-year-old son has left to Syria to be part of ISIS. The film opened at the 51’s Hof International Filmfestival in the Autumn of 2017 and will air on German TV in 2018.

In 2017, Emily Atef wrote and directed the feature film 3 Days in Quiberon It depicts 3 emotional days of one of Europe’s biggest stars, Romy Schneider where she gave her last German interview to ‘Stern’ magazine. 3 Days in Quiberon will have it's world premier in the competition section of the 68. Berlin International Film Festival and will be competing for the Golden Bear.