The Red Sea Souk has unveiled the industry names that will serve as jurors for the fifth edition of the Souk Project Market, where they will determine the winners of its prestigious Souk Awards. The awards spotlight standout projects across Works in Progress, Projects in Development and Series, all helmed by visionary filmmakers from the Arab world, Africa, and Asia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are 28 awards available with a collective total of almost $700,000. All selected projects will compete for jury-granted awards offered by the Red Sea Fund. Further cash and in-kind awards will be presented by international award partners from across the film landscape including Arab Cinema Center, ART, Blue Bee Productions, CNC, DTS, FIlmmore, Freshly Ground Stories & Fineprint, Habbar, Ithra, Leyth Production & Easy Distribution, MAD Solutions, Oticons and Shift Studios<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Projects in Development & Production jury includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Work in Progress jury includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The SeriesLab Jury includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shivani Pandya Malhotra, Managing Director at Red Sea International Film Festival, said \u201cOur Souk Awards play a vital role in nurturing emerging and established filmmakers from the Arab World, Asia, and Africa, ensuring their projects receive the support they deserve. This impact is exemplified by filmmakers like Mahdi Fleifel, who came full circle: taking his Souk-supported project to major festivals worldwide and now returning as a member of our jury. We are honoured to welcome such distinguished local and international jurors to the fifth edition of the Red Sea Souk, each bringing invaluable expertise across festivals, studios, production and global storytelling \u2013 furthering our mission to bring transformative stories from these regions to life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Red Sea Souk Awards will be presented on 10th<\/sup> December as part of the Red Sea International Film Festival, running 4-13 December in Al Balad, Jeddah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Faisal Baltyuor, Chief Executive Officer of the Red Sea International Film Festival, said \u201cThe Souk Awards stand as a cornerstone of the Red Sea Film Foundation\u2019s year-round industry strategy. This year, they will sit at the heart of an expanded Souk that brings together the full spectrum of industry and media activities during the Festival. By doing so, we are strengthening the continuum between every stage of a film\u2019s lifecycle\u2014from development and financing to distribution and exhibition\u2014thereby reaffirming our role as a catalyst and accelerator for impactful film projects across the region and beyond.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Further information can be found at: https:\/\/redseafilmfest.com\/en\/red-sea-souk-awards-2025\/<\/a>