Project Market
Rules and Regulations
The Red Sea Souk Project Market for Projects in Development or Production is designed to support projects by fostering international co-production and discovering new talents.
The Project Market, dedicated to industry professionals, will take place from 5-9 December 2026, in Jeddah as part of the Red Sea Souk, the film market of the Red Sea International Film Festival.
The Project Market will welcome feature films: fiction, animation, and creative documentary by Directors of African, Arab or Asian nationality or of Arab origin (Appendix 1) and currently in the development or production stage (minimum duration of 60’).
A press release will announce the selected projects of films to the international and regional industry.
The team (Director and Producer) of the selected projects will be allocated an industry mentor to support their participation in the market, assess what the project needs, and provide bespoke support to ensure the most useful market experience. Support will be both online before the Festival and in person in Jeddah prior to the Project Market.
A Book of Projects will be made available on the Festival website and delivered to the industry guests attending the Red Sea Souk, giving visibility to the teams and the projects.
Two invitations will be offered to the teams (Directors/Producers) of the selected projects who will present their projects at the Souk to an industry audience on December 5th and 6th, 2026.
One-to-one meetings between the project teams and the industry professionals attending the Red Sea Souk will be organized between 6-9 December 2026.
Additional Souk networking events, encounters, and meetings will allow Directors and Producers of the selected projects to interact directly with a wide range of industry decision-makers.
Selected filmmakers who do not speak English will benefit from the service of an interpreter hired by the Red Sea Souk.
All the selected projects will compete for cash awards offered by the Red Sea Fund and granted by an international Jury with a total of US$210,000
A selected project, which has already been supported once by the Red Sea Fund, is still eligible for these awards.
A project which has unsuccessfully applied to the Fund may also be considered by the Selection Committee to participate in the Project Market.
Selected projects will also compete for cash and in-kind awards to be granted by Souk partners. These awards will be announced mid-November.
All the winners will be announced during the Red Sea Souk Award Ceremony which will be held on the last day of the Red Sea Souk, 9 December 2026.
Projects must be submitted through the Red Sea Souk application process.
The call for projects will close on 11 June 2026.
Please pay attention to the following eligibility criteria:
- Directors must meet one of the following criteria:
- For Saudi directors, the Director must be of Saudi nationality or origin.
- For Arab directors, the Director must be of Arab nationality or origin.
- For African or Asian projects, the Director must strictly be of African or Asian nationality (Appendix 1)
- Treatments and artistic dossiers must be available in English. (Scripts will be requested from projects in production if applications are shortlisted).
- Projects must be submitted by the Delegate Company production for the application.
- For projects in the production phase, applicants are required to submit confirmation of secured financing representing at least 15% of the total budget.
- Only projects which have not started shooting before the closing of the Souk Project Market on 9 December will be eligible.
- The Director and Producer must be available to participate for the full duration of the Project Market in Jeddah (5-9 December 2026).
- Priority will be given to projects with a Producer or Co-producer with African, Arab or Asian (Appendix 1) nationality/origin.
- The project must not have been presented in any MENA project market prior to the Red Sea Souk.
Special attention will be given to projects with an international market potential and suitable for international co-production.
Projects which have not been presented in other international markets will also have priority.
Incomplete or ineligible applications will not be assessed
The following documents need to be submitted in English:
- Logline
- Synopsis
- Film's chain of title
- Treatment (8 pages maximum)
- Biographies and filmographies of any writer(s), director(s) and producer(s) already attached to the project
- Director’s note of intention
- Producer’s note
- Cast and crew list (if available)
- Financial plan and indication of sources of financing confirmed, if any
- A summary budget with main chapters figures detailed
- For projects in development, a Development Budget
- Project completion timelines
- Links to the previous work(s) of the Director
- Mood board/Storyboard
Any other materials that would support the application.
Please make sure to properly name all your documents using the format (Project Title - Name of Director” - Type of document - Date)
The selection of the projects is made by a committee composed of industry professionals and the senior Project Market team. Twelve projects will be selected. No justifications will be given for any refusal of the project.
The selection results will be communicated to the selected teams by early September 2026.
Producers of the selected projects must confirm their acceptance of the Red Sea Souk invitation within a week of the offer. This confirmation is binding for both Parties and will involve the acceptance of all regulations established by the Red Sea Souk.
Notably, the following conditions and undertakings will apply:
- The Red Sea Souk will cover two persons travel expenses and accommodation for seven nights, for the Director, and for one Producer, for each of the selected projects (03-10 December 2026 inclusive).
- The documentation required by the Red Sea Souk for the Book of Projects, one-to-one meetings platform and website will be duly completed and sent no later than 1 October 2026.
- The invitation made to each selected project will remain strictly confidential until the official announcement is published.
- The complete program and all activities of the Project Market are exclusively decided by the Red Sea Souk.
- No press will be given access to the pitching sessions without participant consent.
As a binding condition, all selected projects must include the authorized Red Sea Souk logo and the following mention in the closing credits of the film:
“With the support of the Red Sea Souk Project Market 2026”
The projects that will be awarded the Red Sea Souk Development Award, the Red Sea Souk Jury Mention Award, the Red Sea Souk Breakthrough Award, or the Red Sea Souk Production Award must display alongside the Red Sea Souk Logo with the appropriate mention:
“Red Sea Souk Production Award 2026”
“Red Sea Souk Development Award 2026”
“Red Sea Souk Special Mention Award 2026”
“Red Sea Souk Breakthough Award 2026”
and follow all other obligations with respect to credits which may be requested by the Red Sea Souk.
If other film partners appear in the opening credits, the Red Sea Souk logo and the award mention must also be included in the opening credits.
The project owners must ensure they are legitimately entitled to enter and represent the project at the Project Market.
Participation in the Project Market constitutes unconditional adherence to the present Red Sea Souk rules and regulations. All doubts arising from the interpretation of these rules and regulations will be solved by the Festival. The Festival reserves the right to settle any case not covered by the present or the Festival’s regulations, and to waive them in special and well-motivated instances.
Information contact : Souk@redseafilmfest.com
Appendix 1 (African, Arab or Asian Countries List): Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Benin Bhutan, Botswana, Brunei, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, China, Comoros, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Cyprus, Djibouti, DR Congo, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Macao, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, North Korea, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Philippines, Qatar, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Sao Tome & Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, South Africa, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
