Red Sea Film Festival – Red Sea Film

TAJREEB SCREENINGS

Films in our Tajreeb Screenings series are at the intersection of punk and filmmaking. 12 films have been selected to showcase the dynamism, creativity and originality of young Saudi filmmakers. These films are diverse in genre, form, length, and subject matter but are all connected with a common theme of inspiring change from within. Screened for a limited time on our YouTube channel, these films are not to be missed.

Mc with Marwan Hamed

The first in a series, award-winning filmmaker Marwan Hamed delivered a masterclass at the Saudi Art Council in November 2019. The session explored the art of storytelling, raising finance, and creating a successful film with a distinctive Arab identity – all through the lens of his rich experience.

Marwan Hamed is an Egyptian director and producer with a career spanning more than 20 years. His directorial debut, the short film LILLY (2001), based on a short story by the novelist Youssef Idris, earned him wide critical acclaim. In 2006, Marwan directed his first feature film THE YACOUBIAN BUILDING (OMARET YACOUBIAN) (2006), which garnered many awards, followed by THE BLUE ELEPHANT (2014) and its 2019 sequel, considered one of the highest-grossing films in the history of Egyptian cinema.

Khairy Beshara: Retrospective

Renewing cinema through plots, stories, and performances – encounter the eternal innovator Khairy Beshara through a masterclass and screening program

This month, meet and learn from a renegade Egyptian filmmaker in the Khairy Beshara Retrospectives Masterclass

Enjoy his classic films in their original glory – remastered by the Red Sea International Film Festival

In 1996, at the apex of his career, Khairy Beshara quit filmmaking. Two blockbusters in one year, the highest salary of any Egyptian filmmaker, more than 30 feature and documentary films, awards and acclaim, couldn’t stop him from walking away from the limelight and the industry he had defined for more than two decades. It was a characteristically rebellious move from a renegade filmmaker. A mark of his integrity, it would lead to a 16-year hiatus. 

Unconventional boundary-breaking has defined Beshara’s career. In the 1980s, he was a leading director in the Egyptian Neo-Realism movement, a style of cinema that responded to the psychological strife of everyday life, exploring ideas of identity, culture and heritage within settings familiar to ordinary people. Ever the renegade, Beshara moved away from the style he’d been so instrumental in shaping. With a new decade, a new chapter – Crab (1990) introduced the genre of folk fantasy to Arab cinema. 

When he returned to filmmaking with his experimental docu-fiction Moondog (2012), he had embraced and mastered the innovations of digital filmmaking. Beshara has never followed anyone else’s script, founding movements and then transforming them, developing new techniques.

Meet the Master

The filmmaker will share his unique outlook and wealth of experience in a special masterclass for Jeddah’s aspiring filmmakers. The session will look at ways of “renewing cinema through plots, stories, and performances”.

Following a screening of The Collar and the Bracelet (1986), remastered by the Festival , critic Mohamed Sayed will join the acclaimed director, with the class moderated by Antoine Khalife, Director of the Arab Program. 

After the masterclass and the retrospective, get better acquainted with Beshara’s life and work through a new publication. The Festival is releasing a new biography on Beshara, edited by film critic Mohammed Sayyed Abdel Raheem, featuring never before seen archival images. 

On the big screen 

Though Beshara’s films are some of the best known and most loved in the Arab canon, they’ve never been seen on the big screen in Saudi Arabia – until now. A retrospective series arrives in Jeddah’s cinema’s this month. 

One of the most iconic films in Egyptian cinema history, The Collar and the Bracelet (1986) is a searing dramatic thriller, acclaimed for its unflinching social commentary and poetic style. 

Bitter Day, Sweet Day (1988) is a portrait of Egyptian society reshaped by the forces of globalization, through the story of widow Aisha, her five children, and a manipulative and controlling son-in-law. A moving look at poverty and drastic social change on an individual’s values and ambitions. 

Ice Cream in Gleam (1992) is a film of hope against the odds, staring the legendary Amr Diab as Saif. Working in a video rental store, Saif dreams of another life, making his name in music. But fate seems to have other plans – he’s fired and lands in jail. There he meets and forms a trio with a songwriter and infamous musician, discovering his aspirations still reach the hardest of places.

Set in 1973, Abracadabra America (1993) follows a hapless group as they flee Egypt after the October War, attempting to emigrate to America. Arriving at their first stop on the Hungarian border, they discover they’ve been conned. To survive, they must learn to overcome their differences.

A remarkable film shot entirely on the busy streets of downtown Cairo, Traffic Light (1995) is a glimpse of mid-90s Egyptian society, reeling from the changes of globalization. At a stop sign, on hold for a passing VIP, a group find themselves at emotional and social ‘crossroads’ – a love story blossoms, a baby is due, and a man is on fire!

The Collar and the Bracelet (1986)

Bitter Day, Sweet Day (1988)

Ice Cream with Gleam (1992)

Abracadabra America (1993)

Traffic Light (1995)

48 Hr Film Challenge

What a difference a day (or two) makes! Could you write, produce and shoot a short film in just 48 hours?

2020 has been a bust. Stuck at home, with routines and habits we’d rather forget. And time has stood still. Challenging aspiring filmmakers to a creative experiment, Alliance Française, the Consulate general of France in Jeddah, The embassy of France in Saudi Arabia, the Red Sea International Film Festival, and La Fémis the film and television school want to change all that with two fast-paced and imaginative days.

 The adventure is open to the Kingdom’s aspiring filmmakers – Saudis and Saudi residents alike – aged 18–25. Apply for the 48Hr Film Challenge, where successful applicants will enjoy three days of technical workshops and mentorship before the action-packed shoot in a race against the clock. And that’s not all – the winning team leaders will be crowned for their achievements with a prize of filmmaking residency at La Fémis, in France, next year. 

Get your team (max. 5) together and let us know why you want to participate in this filmmaking adventure – applications are open now. Check out the submission guidelines for your chance to be part of a wild 48 hours, turning two days into a brand new, original short film!

SHORTLISTED PROJECTS

01 Phosphene

Team Leader: Safiah Husain Talib
Nadeem Siddiq
Qusai Alqahtani

Jood Simbawah
Monaifah Alhajery

02 Ventca

Team Leader: Abdulrahman Abu Habayeh
Nader Wahbah

03 Into the sun

Team Leader: Abir Almadani
Rahaf Aleiadhi
Amas Alshammari

04 Azor Ahai

Team Leader: Khalid Fallatah
Ammar Hafiz

05 Nostalgiers

Team Leader: Anmar Rdoeiny
Tala Al-Asadi

Refal Mushref
Rana Mattar
Khawlah Alhalwani

06 What’s the menu?

Team Leader: Rahaf Shami

Sara Saber
Bayan Majed
Khadija Alhebshi

07 TSC

Team Leader: Sara Bukhari

Shahad Alqahtani

08 The Falcons

Team Leader: Abdullah Alamoudi
Taha Baageel
Yasser Alzahrani

Roula Dakheelallah

09 Art Angels

Team Leader: Abdulaziz Al-Gethami
Amal Alshehri
Lina Algethami

Maha Algethami

10 Alzayer Brothers

Team Leader: Amer Al Zayer
Ziyad Alzayer

11 Pink Camels

Team Leader: Talal Saud
Younis Mohamed

12 Hustlers

Team Leader: Shouq Bakri
Mohammed Atabani

Aseel Morya

13 The Normal Picture

Team Leader: Mazin Shallal
Abdulrahman Alhamdan
Sultan Alsaud

Seif Ali Ridha

14 Watch me roll

Team Leader: Abeer Sultan
Abdullah Aljobelah
Arwa Alsari

Reema Ibrahim

15 Emerson Graduates

Team Leader: Farah Alturki
Sarah Alansary

Winning Projects

1. Edible by Art Angels

2. Dream of Dust by Watch me Roll

Watch the rest of the projects

Five Saudi women directors working on ‘Untitled Omnibus Feature’ introduced, with project set for world premiere at inaugural Red Sea International Film Festival

Five Saudi women directors working on ‘Untitled Omnibus Feature’ introduced, with project set for world premiere at inaugural Red Sea International Film Festival

Funded by the Red Sea International Film Festival, the film furthers the Festival’s commitment to daring new work by Saudi auteurs, supporting women in the creative industries with roles in all stages of production

13 January 2020, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia | The Red Sea International Film Festival introduces the five women directors brought together for a major new anthology film. ‘Untitled Omnibus Feature’ is produced and funded by the Red Sea International Film Festival, and produced by Jeddah-based production house Cinepoetics Pictures.

The project is a major platform for Saudi women in the film industry and is set to debut at the inaugural Festival in March 2020. The Saudi directors creating the project’s five short films are Hind Alfahhad, Jowaher Alamri, Noor Alameer, Sara Mesfer, and Fatima Al-Banawi. Award-winning Palestinian filmmaker Suha Arraf is screenwriting supervisor on the portmanteau film.

The five directors were selected following a pitching process. The Red Sea International Film Festival worked with Saudi production company Cinepoetics to attract a diverse range of stories created by established directors and promising newcomers. The final five projects were selected for their engaging narratives and strong female leads, with their stories representative of the distinctive voices found across the Kingdom.

The production crews assembled across the main team, as well as for each short, are women-dominated, including two out of three coordinating producers, and four out of five producers on the film teams.

The project sees the directors realize their proposed shorts in an intensive, collaborative effort, driven by women. Hind Alfahhad commented, “it has been a unique experience participating in a film alongside fellow Saudi women directors, all telling stories around womanhood in distinctive ways.” Noor Alameer added, “the process of making this film, as a writer and director, was challenging. But seeing the idea come to life was the most satisfying feeling.”

Festival Director, Mahmoud Sabbagh said: “We believe in film’s capacity to advance diversity and integration. Supporting innovative new works is central to this mission. There is no better way to work towards this than by creating opportunities for Saudi filmmakers to tell their own stories. This project provides powerful first-person accounts of contemporary life in Saudi, from Saudi women, at a time of fascinating change.”

Each women-centered narrative is an intimate character portrait. Together, their varied settings and storylines display the diversity of the Saudi contemporary film scene, with the directors hailing from across the Kingdom and the films set in cities, including Mecca, Medinah, Jeddah, and Riyadh.

As filming wraps, the teams move on to post-production, ahead of the world premiere at the Red Sea International Film Festival in March 2020. The screening is a component of the Festival’s broad program of Saudi content, curated to encourage international audiences to encounter fresh work from the Kingdom.

Established in 2019, with its inaugural edition taking place from 12–21 March 2020, the Red Sea International Film Festival is an annual event held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Located in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Jeddah’s Old Town, the Festival is committed to building a solid foundation for the film industry in Saudi Arabia, and to building connections between the Arab region and the world.

For more information, please contact:

[email protected]

Red Sea International Film Festival

Red Sea Film Festival restores two rare films by late Saudi photographer Safouh Naamani.

Restored version of “The Pilgrimage to Mecca” (1963), and “Glimpses of Jeddah”; a film composed of archival footage starting from 1954, will both premiere at the inaugural Red Sea International Film Festival, March 12-21, 2020.

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Dec. 18, 2019 – The Red Sea International Film Festival will honor Saudi photographer and cinematographer Safouh Naamani (1926-2016), one of the pioneers of color photography in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The festival will publicly present for the first time a rare documentary made by Naamani in 1963 on the journey to Hajj, in addition to a movie compiling never before seen film footage of the city of Jeddah, taken with Naamani’s personal camera between 1954 and 1968.

“The Pilgrimage to Mecca” is a 35-minute color documentary film, developed at the William Palmer laboratory in San Francisco, about the pilgrimage to Mecca, filmed during the 1963 Hajj season.

Naamani used his extensive knowledge of the holy city of Mecca to deliver an authentic perspective. The documentary captures Mecca’s inspiring landscapes and religious rituals while presenting the journey of pilgrims to Mecca. Previously, the film has screened in private or limited shows, and so will now be presented publicly for the first time.

“This discovery rewrites the history of national cinema in our country,” Festival director and CEO, Mahmoud Sabbagh said. “Discovering a film that was made in 1963 and that is complete in all aspects and production adds an original element to the story of Saudi cinema.”

The festival also presents for the first time a cinematic panorama of the city of Jeddah, captured by Naamani between 1954 to 1968 on his 16mm camera. The rare collection of footage documents the history of urban transformations that the city went through during the fifties and sixties.

The Red Sea International Film Foundation was able to develop and restore five reels of raw film belonging to Naamani at a film restoration lab in Munich, Germany. The restored footage has been edited into a short 30-minute film, which will debut at the 2020 festival.

Scenes from the film “Glimpses of Jeddah” range from the celebrations of the return of King Saud after receiving medical treatments abroad in 1954; as well as footage of commercial life in the port of Jeddah. Naamani was also able to capture rare shots of the coastline along the ancient port of Punt. As well as Al-Bay’a square, the Jeddah Palace Hotel, and the Bakashab building. The film also contains rare footage of the creation of Gold Street in 1964.

Sabbagh says, “We are expanding our history with new narratives of Jeddah’s metamorphoses through rare cinematic documentation captured by the late filmmaker Sufooh Namaani. It’s as if Namaani knew his work would be vital for generations to come”.

Naamani is one of the pioneers of photography and filmmaking in Jeddah, KSA. He started selling cameras and photography equipment in 1952 at his family-run “Al Naamani Stores” on King Abdulaziz road, before establishing “Studio Safouh” located in Abdullah Alfaisal building for portrait photography and photographic film development.

Restoring the work of Safouh Naamani and presenting it to a Saudi audience is a key component of the Red Sea Film Festival Foundation, which is tasked with reviving, preserving and highlighting the heritage of Saudi cinema for modern audiences.

For more information, please contact:

[email protected]

Red Sea International Film Festival

Red Sea International Film Festival partners with Cairo International Film Festival to support Arab filmmakers

The Saudi-based festival will select a Cairo Film Connection project from the fiction projects-in-development category to attend the inaugural Project Market of the Red Sea Souk from March 13-16, 2020

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, 22 November, 2019: The Red Sea International Film Festival will award an opportunity to a team of Arab filmmakers attending the Cairo Film Connection to participate in the inaugural Red Sea Souk, the international industry market taking place in Jeddah, from March 13–16, 2020. The partnership between the Red Sea International Film Festival and Cairo International Film Festival is an acknowledgement of their shared aim in supporting a new and exciting generation of Arab filmmakers.

One project will be selected by The Red Sea International Film Festival team from the fiction projects-in-development category. The winner will be announced during the Cairo Film Connection Award Ceremony taking place on November 26 at 6 pm at the 41st Cairo International Film Festival.

The chosen project’s director and producer will be awarded registration, travel, and accommodation to attend the Project Market of the Red Sea Souk, where they will pitch their project to more than 150 industry leaders. A total of 20 teams will participate in the Project Market, including 12 developed through the Red Sea Lodge. Pitching sessions will be followed by three intensive days of one-on-one meetings, with the best projects securing funding and backing for their films.

The Red Sea International Film Festival’s industry program is a major opportunity for international film executives to connect with the regional and local film industry. Programs including workshops, talks, masterclasses, and networking to build business between the Arab region and the world and generate awareness of the Saudi and Arab film scenes amongst new audiences.

The Red Sea International Film Festival is dedicated to supporting and showcasing Saudi, Arab, and international films, with a program reflecting the best of current world and regional cinema. Applications from new and established voices in film are encouraged and are open until 28th November 2019 via  redseafilmfest.com

For more information, please contact:

[email protected]

Red Sea International Film Festival

Red Sea International Film Festival announces 12 projects selected for development at the Red Sea Lodge

Projects selected by an international committee from over 120 submissions

12 teams of filmmakers from across the Arab world to undergo intensive development workshops in collaboration with TorinoFilmLab

Production funding totaling one million dollars available for two projects

30 September 2019, Jeddah: The Red Sea International Film Festival has announced the 12 winning projects for development at the inaugural Red Sea Lodge.

An international committee chose the winning teams out of 120 submissions, drawn from 16 countries. Female directors helm a third of the 12 successful projects, and over a quarter have female producers.

The selection includes six Saudi teams alongside projects from Jordan, Egypt, Palestine, Iraq, and Lebanon, demonstrating a commitment to furthering new work from the Arab world. The twelve teams of filmmakers include emerging directors making their first or second feature films, as well as more established names presenting new ideas and concepts.

The films will compete for two US$500,000 production prizes, with a world premiere opportunity at the Red Sea International Film Festival 2021.

The Red Sea Lodge is committed to the new wave in Arab cinema. Designed to train and mentor the next generation, it develops artistic and creative development, as well as production and promotion strategies.

Organized in collaboration with the acclaimed TorinoFilmLab, the comprehensive program includes three workshops in Jeddah’s historic district. Led by industry experts in directing, cinematography, sound, and post-production, the Lodge will explore every stage of filmmaking, from script consultations to a commercial focus on financing, sales, and audience engagement.

The program creates meaningful industry opportunities for all participants, commences in October 2019 and will culminate during the Red Sea International Film Festival in March 2020.

The committee comprised of industry veterans, including: Mahmoud Sabbagh (Festival Director, Red Sea International Film Festival), Julie Bergeron (Head of the Red Sea Souk), Antoine Khalife (Director of the Arab Program, Red Sea International Film Festival), Jane Williams (Head of Industry, TorinoFilmLab), and Savina Neirotti (Executive Director, TorinoFilmLab).

They were supported by a team of readers, including Fahad Alestaa (Saudi Scriptwriter and Film Critic), and leading media figure Layaly Badr (Arab Radio & TV Network). Saudi producer Jumana Zahid leads the Festival’s development program, as Manager of the Red Sea Lodge.

Through unique storytelling styles, the Saudi projects set themselves against significant socio-political and economic underpinnings, including the discovery of oil and the siege of the Holy Mosque in 1979. The projects also diversely explore women’s struggle and modern-day challenges to mental health, such as loneliness and isolation.

The selected projects:

Saudi Projects

1. Practicing Polygamy

Directed and written by Malak Qouta

Produced by Bentley Brown

An animated feature-length documentary exploring the customs, traditions, and daily reality of polygamy in Saudi Arabia.

2. Dr. Adly’s Smile

Directed by Ali Alsumayin

Written by Fatima Albanawi

Produced by Sarah Elnawasrah

Who saves who when there is family turmoil? When Dr. Adly’s mental health declines after getting divorced, his daughter Basma puts her life on hold to rescue him from his own delusions.

3. Four Acts of Disruption

Directed and written by Hussam Alhulwah

Produced by Mohammed Alhamoud

As Arab Bedouins and foreign prospectors meet, the future of the newly founded Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will be shaped. This conflict of vision and tradition is told through the stories of Saudi Ayad and American geologist Roy.

4. When the Star is Falling

Directed and written by Mohammed Salman Alsaffar

Produced by Mousa Althonian

One woman, one kingdom, many interconnected narratives. Short, linked vignettes jump through time and place to tell the story of a culture and a life shaped by diverse landscapes – from the traditions of the desert to the modern tumult of the city.

5. A Trip to Disney

Directed and written by Maha Alsaati

 Produced by Hussain Slam

The journey of a jilted lover. Abandoned in Saudi, a woman travels to Florida, anxious to encounter the man who has left her behind. Finding herself in the Disney empire, she discovers she is not his princess.

6. Sharshaf

Directed by Hend Alfahhad

Written by Manal Alawebeel

Produced by Talal Alharbi

Tracking the shockwaves of the 1979 Grand Mosque Seizure, a catastrophe that curtailed social and cultural freedom in Saudi Arabia, through the life of a typical middle-class woman, Haila and her love of film. This is the story of a nation and a generation.

Arab Projects

1. Inchalla it’s a Boy (Jordan)

 Directed and written by Amjad Alrasheed

Produced by Aseel Abu Ayyash

 Grieving the sudden death of her husband, Nawal must confront the realities of inheritance laws which rule that, without a son, she stands to lose the home she bought for herself and her daughter.

2. A Journey of Bullets and Bread (Egypt)

Directed and written by Mohammad Hammad

Produced by Mohammed Hefzi and Kholoud Saad

When a chance encounter between wild Awad and the shy, intellectual Youssef forges an unlikely friendship, their lives become tangled in acts of fate and betrayal.

3. Scheherazade Goes Silent (Palestine)

Directed and written by Amira Diab

Produced by Raya Aburub

Tragedy forces Shams to confront choices amid strict expectations. As she prepares to star in a dance piece based on 1001 Nights, she must live with decisions that put her at odds with her society.

4. The Basement Notes (Lebanon)

Directed and written by Hadi Ghandour

Produced by Habib Attia and Molka Mheni

In defiance of militant forces who have captured their city, three brothers form a band. As their music spreads underground, a desire for recognition puts their lives at risk.

5. I Am Arzé (Lebanon)

Directed by Mira Shaib

Written by Louay Khraish

 Produced by Zeina Badran.

Desperate for money to buy the scooter that will allow her to work, single mother Arzé steals a gold bracelet from her sister Layla. Now she’s got wheels, she’s getting along better with her son Kinan – until he discovers the scooter is stolen.

6. The Arabic Interpreter (Iraq)

Directed and written by Ali Kareem

Produced by Khalid Abu Sharif

Hassan is a frustrated actor; unable to find work in the theatre, he takes a job as an Arabic-German Interpreter so he can stay in Berlin. Listening to the refugees’ harrowing stories, Hassan relives the wars he experienced in Iraq.

For more information, please contact:

[email protected]

Red Sea International Film Festival

Film Submissions Open for the Inaugural Red Sea International Film Festival

Submissions open until November 15, 2019, for the inaugural Festival March 12–21, 2020

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, September 17, 2019: Submissions are open for the inaugural edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival. Entries are invited from September 17, 2019, until November 15, 2019, for a program presenting a distinctive selection of international, Arab, and Saudi feature-length, short and immersive works. The Festival will take place in the ancient Jeddah Old Town in March 2020.

Submission details and conditions can be found via the Red Sea International Film Festival website

at  redseafilmfest.com/programme/film-submissions, and are open via Eventival from September 17, 2019 until November 15, 2019.

In Competition is an international program, celebrating innovative approaches to storytelling, judged for cash prizes in the Yusr Awards by a jury of global cinema leaders. International films must have Middle East premiere status, and Arab films are required to be original works by emerging and established filmmakers, with special attention given to promoting films from the Global South.

The Yusr Awards offer cash prizes totaling $250,000 in diverse fields, including directing, screenwriting, and acting. The awards are designed to recognize daring, elevate new voices, and encourage film culture in Saudi and the region.

For short filmmakers from the Arab World, there’s also a Golden Yusr and a cash prize for the Best Short Film. The Red Sea Shorts Competition is for filmmakers from the Arab World, a section where audiences can encounter contemporary creativity from the region’s filmmakers and artists of any discipline.

A pioneering program exploring Saudi cinema called: New Cinema/New Saudi will make an introduction to vital filmmakers and artists from the Kingdom’s energetic new cinema wave.

Tajreeb is the home for Saudi-made, extroverted, impressionistic narrative, documentary or animated films that capture the zeitgeist.

The Festival’s setting in the UNESCO-listed, ancient coral labyrinth of Jeddah Old Town will be transformed through Immersive Cinema experiences, including Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality.

For more information, please contact:

[email protected]
Red Sea International Film Festival

Red Sea International Film Festival announces up to three million dollars in cash prizes, mentoring, and production funds

$350,000 in cash prizes to be awarded at the Red Sea International Film Festival.

Bait Al Montage post-production fund of $100,000.

Up to $3,000,000 in support for emerging Arab talent, including $1,000,000 towards the Red Sea Lodge, $1,000,000 towards the Tamheed Fund.

Competition to design the Golden Yusr Trophy.

The competition will take place at the inaugural Red Sea International Film Festival March 12–21, 2020

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, 28 August 2019: The Red Sea International Film Festival has announced cash prizes totaling $350,000 to be awarded at the inaugural Festival taking place in Jeddah from March 12–21, 2020. There will be $250,000 in cash prizes for films In Competition and $100,000 as part of the Bait Al Montage post-production fund.

The competition cash prizes reward cinematic excellence from around the world, emphasizing innovation and daring expression. The International Competition runs across six categories with winners chosen by a jury comprising eminent international film figures.

The Golden Yusr Trophy for Best Feature carries a $100,000 cash prize and the Silver Yusr Trophy for Best Director is presented with $50,000 in the International Competition.

A Silver Yusr Trophy will also be awarded for Best Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Cinematic Contribution.

An additional Golden Yusr Trophy awarded for Best Short Film attracts a $50,000 finance award for a future project plus a 3-month creative residency in Old Town, Jeddah.

The Best Short Film prize is part of the Red Sea Shorts Competition, featuring the most exciting contemporary voices from the Arab world, including student directors, first-time filmmakers, and contemporary Arab artists from diverse disciplines.

There will be an Audience Award carrying a cash prize of $50,000.

The Golden Yusr Trophy takes its name from the black coral formations found off the Red Sea Coast. An international competition to design the award, open to artists, will be announced shortly.

The details of mentoring and production funds were also revealed, showcasing the Festival’s commitment to extolling talents with daring storytelling approaches from the Arab world.

A new post-production fund, The Bait Al Montage Fund, supports up to six Arab films with grants totaling US$100,000. The grantees will be revealed during the Red Sea Souk, the Festival’s Industry Days, taking place March 13-17, 2020.

The announcement demonstrates the Festival’s support for a sustainable regional film industry, adding to the existing Red Sea Lodge – an intensive five-month mentoring and training program for twelve teams of Arab filmmakers.

Delivered in collaboration with TorinoFilmLab in the lead up to the 2020 Festival, two participants will be awarded grants of US$500,000 each following an ‘in Festival’ pitch to a jury of industry leaders.

Also supporting production, the one time Tamheed Fund will realize two new Saudi feature films bestowing grants of $500,000 each.

The enthusiasm of the local film scene was demonstrated in an overwhelming number of submissions, with The Book of Sun by Faris Godus and Forty Years and a Night by Mohammed Alholayyil selected. The films will be premiered at the inaugural Festival in March 2020.

Another production initiative is the $400,000 funding of a special Omnibus presenting up to 6 short films made by Saudi women filmmakers.

This articulates a commitment to new voices in Saudi filmmaking, encouraging stories from and by the Kingdom’s women.

The short films will be shown as a collective at the 1st edition of the film festival.

The Festival Begins in

ينطلق المهرجان خلال

TAJREEB SCREENINGS

Dir: Abdulla Albin Hamda

Dir: Qamar Abdulmalik

Dir: Asad Badawi

Dir: Lulua Al Dehaiemi

Dir: Ayman Al Ali

Dir: Ahmed Alhasawi

Dir: Moodi Al Zamil

Remember Me

Dir: Haidar Daoud, Rinda Limadjido

Dir: Anhar Salem

Mc with Marwan Hamed

Khairy Beshara: Retrospective

48 Hr Film Challenge

Winning Projects

Watch the rest of the projects

Five Saudi women directors working on ‘Untitled Omnibus Feature’ introduced, with project set for world premiere at inaugural Red Sea International Film Festival

Red Sea Film Festival restores two rare films by late Saudi photographer Safouh Naamani.

Red Sea International Film Festival partners with Cairo International Film Festival to support Arab filmmakers

Red Sea International Film Festival announces 12 projects selected for development at the Red Sea Lodge

Film Submissions Open for the Inaugural Red Sea International Film Festival

Red Sea International Film Festival announces up to three million dollars in cash prizes, mentoring, and production funds