Tue 07 December 2021:
Saudi Arabia launched its first major film festival Sunday, less than four years after easing a ban on cinemas and eyeing a lucrative new business. Movie theaters were closed for decades until April 2018, but performers and filmmakers will walk the red carpet at Jeddah’s Red Sea International Film Festival for the next ten days.
The festival began the day after Jeddah staged its inaugural Formula One Grand Prix, in another attempt to promote Saudi Arabia in a positive light. It will screen 138 long and short films in over 30 languages from 67 nations.
“The inaugural session of the Red Sea International Film Festival started today from the historic city of Jeddah,” the festival’s administration said on Twitter.
يكرّم المهرجان المخرجة والمنتجة السعودية هيفاء المنصور @HaifaaMansour ، باعتبارها أحد الأسماء البارزة في صناعة السينما السعودية والعربية والعالمية، اعترافًا بإنجازاتها وتعزيزها لدور المرأة في السينما. pic.twitter.com/2o03QnTv1l
— RedSeaFilm (@RedSeaFilm) December 6, 2021
In a statement Nov. 9, the organizers said the film festival would be held from Dec. 6-15 on the eastern coast of the Red Sea in Jeddah, which is classified as a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
It also said that movie stars, directors, media professionals and film industry professionals from all over the world would attend the inaugural ceremony.
مباشرةً من السجادة الحمراء للعرض الافتتاحي للدورة الأولى من #مهرجان_البحر_الأحمرالسينمائي_الدولي
Live from the inaugural #RedSeaIFF21 opening ceremony. pic.twitter.com/Dwu9zWQgc1
— RedSeaFilm (@RedSeaFilm) December 6, 2021
Speaking at the inaugural session, Mohammed Al-Turki, chairman of the Red Sea International Film Festival Committee, expressed his delight at the commencing of the festival.
“This is the moment we have been waiting for for a long time,” Al-Turki said.
The festival program includes 138 long and short films from 67 countries in 34 languages, including 25 world premieres, 48 Arab premieres and 17 premieres in the Gulf region, according to the organizers.
مباشرةً من السجادة الحمراء للعرض الافتتاحي للدورة الأولى من #مهرجان_البحر_الأحمرالسينمائي_الدولي
Live from the inaugural #RedSeaIFF21 opening ceremony. pic.twitter.com/5sz3Fv4fzO
— RedSeaFilm (@RedSeaFilm) December 6, 2021
The festival is also keeping an eye on a growing market for film production and consumption in Saudi Arabia. According to a report by multinational accounting firm PwC, Saudi Arabia’s annual box office might exceed $950 million by 2030. It is estimated that the kingdom’s population of over 40 million people will be able to accommodate up to 2,600 movie screens.
The first Red Sea International Film Festival kicked off with a star-studded Red Carpet for the opening night in the Historic city of #Jeddah .🎞📽@RedSeaFilm
#مهرجان_البحر_الأحمرالسينمائي_الدولي#RedSeaIFF21 #FilmFestival #cinema #redcarpet pic.twitter.com/6AfMAjfBMc
— The Jeddah Times (@thejeddahtimes) December 6, 2021
Awards show
Several awards with prizes of up to $100,000 can be won by filmmakers at the festival.
Both feature-length and short films will be judged. There are categories designed to foster emerging Saudi talent, as well as international directors.
The New Saudi category is open to new and established directors who have produced films in which the lead creatives are from the Kingdom. The films must be produced or shot in Saudi Arabia.
The Tajreeb category focuses on Saudi films that are more experimental in nature.
Organizers selected judges from within the film community who have not taken part in the production of any film entered in the competition.
A social shift in the conservative Gulf state has included the lifting of a ban on women driving and allowing mixed-gender concerts and other events, even as a strict crackdown on dissent remains in place.
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