Everyone is awaiting special and exceptional surprises at the third session of the Muhr Jan Red Sea International Film Festival in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in terms of participating films and guests of honor, including international stars and honored stars.
Global presence
Hours before the start of the new session’s activities, international star Will Smith came to Jeddah to be one of the most prominent participants in the festival for the first time. The presence of Indian star Ranveer Singh, the famous German Diane Kruger, and Turkish star Burke Ozcivit was also announced.
Regarding the Red Sea Honor Award, the CEO of the Red Sea Film Foundation, Mohamed Al Turki, said in his statements that there is an international crowd that will be active in the festival this year. He added, “At the level of honor, we were keen to make the list very special. Therefore, we will honor an icon of Indian cinema, the actor Ranveer Singh, and the famous international actress Diane Kruger,” who presented a number of prominent characters such as the character “Helen” in the movie “Troy” and “Bridget Vaughn.” “Hammersmack”, which she performed in the film of the famous director Tarantino, “Anonymous Basterds”, as well as the character (Angel Katia) from the film “In the Vanishing” by director Fatih Akin, alongside the great Saudi artist Abdullah Al-Sadhan, who is considered a pillar of art in the Kingdom, and who performed throughout Two decades on, the series “Tash Ma Tash” returns in its first appearance on the big screen with the movie “Noura,” which is one of the films participating in this year’s Red Sea Competition.
Poster for the Saudi film “Noura” (festival management).
64 films
The third session includes more than 64 diverse films, including 36 long and short films from Saudi Arabia, 11 films in the “Arab Masterpieces” section, and 17 films between fiction, documentaries and animation from all over Asia, Africa and the Arab world, in the Red Sea Competition.
The Saudi film “Hawjan”, directed by Yasser Al-Yasiri, was chosen to be the opening film of the third session of the Red Sea Film Festival, in its world premiere. It stars Nour Al-Khadra, Baraa Alam, Nayef Al-Dhafiri, Al-Anoud Saud, Mohsen Mansour and Shaima Al-Tayeb.
The events of the film are inspired by the fantasy novel, by the Saudi writer Ibrahim Abbas, about the story of a gentle genie who lives in the city of Jeddah. One day he discovers the truth about his royal lineage, so his journey begins to regain his right and fight the forces of evil in order to maintain the balance between his world and the world of humans. During his adventure, he learns On the young medical student “Sawsan”, an unexpected romantic relationship develops between them.
At the end of the festival, the biographical film “Ferrari” by director Michael Mann will be screened, co-starring Adam Driver, Penelope Cruz, Shailene Woodley, and Patrick Dempsey.
Red Sea competition
The Red Sea Competition includes 17 diverse films, including “Beyond the Shrine” directed by Karim Ben Saleh, the Indian film “Dear Jassie” directed by Tarsem Singh Dhandwar, “The Unique of Its Kind” by director Iram Parveen Bilal, and “Sunday” by director Shakir Kholekov.
The Saudi film “Noura” by director Tawfiq Al-Zaidi is also participating, which is the first work to be filmed entirely in the Al-Ula region of Saudi Arabia.
Also competing in the same competition are the films “Hiding Saddam Hussein,” directed by Halkut Mustafa, “Behind the Mountains,” directed by Mohamed Bin Attia, and “Behind the Scenes,” directed by Afaf Bin Mahmoud and Khalil Bin Kiran.
Poster for the movie “Hiding Saddam Hussein” (Festival Management)
The film “The Professor” directed by Farah Nabulsi will also be screened, the Emirati film “Dalma” directed by Hamid Al Suwaidi, and the Saudi film “Night Representative” directed by Ali Al Kalthami.
Arabic masterpieces section
The “Arabian Masterpieces” program includes 11 films, including “I Miss You” by director Tamer Raghli, starring Nadine Labaki and Fanny Ardant, and the Saudi film “Dreams of the Age” by director Fares Quds.
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In its world premiere, new films will participate in the “Arabic Masterpieces” program, such as “Shamarekh” directed by Amr Salama, starring Aser Yassin and Amina Khalil, “A Nose and Three Eyes” directed by Amir Ramses, starring Dhafer El Abidine, and “Daughters of Olfa” directed by Kawthar Ben. Haniyeh, and finally “Hajan” by director Abu Bakr Shawqi.
As for the “International Selections” and “Treasures of the Red Sea” sections, there is a display of about 28 films produced during the past year, in addition to the masterpieces of old classic cinema, which include two films that were recently restored in cooperation with the Media Production City in Egypt.
The “Treasures of the Red Sea” program includes 7 films that fall under the list of classic masterpieces, including newly restored copies, shown for the first time on the big screen in the Kingdom. They are “The Triumph of Youth” by director Ahmed Badrakhan, starring Farid Al-Atrash and Asmahan, produced in 1941, and is considered one of the most important films. Musical films in the history of Arab cinema, as well as the film “Afrit Marati” starring Shadia and Salah Zulfiqar, produced in 1968.
The film Allihopa: The Dalkurd Story, directed by Kurdo Doski, will be shown in the “International Choices” program, along with 3 shows from Morocco, which are: “White Lies” by director Asmaa Al-Moudair, “Animalia” by director Sofia Alaoui, and “Gangs” by director Kamal Azraq.
Judgement comity
The jury for the third session of the festival this year is headed by international writer, producer and director Baz Luhrmann, the owner of the two famous films “Elvis” and “Moulin Rouge.”
As well as the Swedish-American actor Joel Kinnaman (whose works include the films “Silent Night”, the film “Suicide Squad”, and the series “For All Mankind”), the BAFTA-nominated actress Freida Pinto, whose works include the films “Slumdog Millionaire” and the film “Knight of Cups”, the Egyptian actress Amina Khalil and the actress Spanish actress Paz Vega, whose works include the series “O.A.” and many other works.
As for the Red Sea Short Film Competition jury, it is headed by Saudi writer, director, and film critic Hanaa Al-Omair, who produced the original Netflix series “Wasaws,” and the French-Moroccan actor Asaad Bou Ab, who starred in the movie “Everything Lola Wants,” and the film director, participate in the committee. And Turkish screenwriter and producer Fatih Akin.
New vision
One of the most important programs of the third session of the Red Sea Festival is the “Red Sea Visions” program, which aims to showcase films that present a new cinematic vision in Arab and international cinema. Six films participate in this context, the most prominent of which is the documentary “The Hidden Beauty of Iraq” by directors Suhaim Omar Khalifa and Jurgen Buedts. In addition to “In the Shadows of Beirut,” “Donga,” directed by Muhannad Al-Amin, and “The Sea and Its Waves,” directed by Liana Werino.
In the third session of the festival, there is a program entitled “Red Sea Series”, which includes 4 works: the documentary series “Makot South Africa” by directors Ashfaq Karim and Gokhan Duniz, “The Actor” by director Nima Javidi, and “Miles from Nowhere” by director Ghazala Golbakhsh. , and “The Deal” by director Lee Young-gun, which is a suspenseful Korean series about a kidnapping game that turns into reality.
Red Sea market
In the new session, the Red Sea Market highlights a variety of young talents in film production, from the Arab world and Africa. The “Red Sea 360°” program and “Networking Sessions” will be held from December 2 to 5, and “Talent Days” on the 6th and 7th of the same month, to showcase more new cinematic productions and exchange experiences and ideas between creatives of all nationalities.
As for the “Talent Days” program, it will organize a series of workshops that will bring together Saudi and international filmmakers with international industry professionals, with the presence and participation of a number of prominent figures and institutions.
The project market will present 12 projects, supervised by Red Sea Laboratories, and 4 of them will be selected to receive the annual production award from the Red Sea Lodge Program, worth $50,000 for each project.
14 projects from the Project Market will compete for cash prizes, presented by international arbitration committees. These prizes include: the development prize, valued at $35,000, the jury prize, valued at $25,000, and the production prize, valued at $100,000.
All films selected in the film-in-progress screenings will also compete for the Red Sea Market Post-Production Award worth $30,000, and the Jury Prize worth $10,000.
The “Red Sea 360°” program organizes more than 15 seminars and dialogue sessions, as well as a series of workshops, to talk about the future of the film industry in the Arab world, Africa and Asia, and its broad impact on the entertainment industry globally.
Participating in this program are entertainment industry expert Karim Zreik, Jordanian writer and director Tima Shomali, Korean producer Woo-Sik Seo, Saudi Malek Najr, an animation director, and Colombian producer Diego Ramírez Shrimp, among others.
