Three Ithra-backed films showcase Saudi contribution to cinema world
Three new films made under the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) banner were unveiled at the inaugural Red Sea International Film Festival on Wednesday.
The first, “Sea of Sands,” is by Egyptian screenwriter and producer Mohamed Hefzy, who has written, produced and co-produced nearly 40 feature films in Egypt, the US, the UK and the Arab world.
The second, “Valley Road,” is an entirely Saudi production, including its cast, crew and location. It will be shot in Faifa and Soudah in the southern region of the Kingdom by the award-winning Saudi independent filmmaker Khalid Fahad.
The third is a feature documentary called “Anti-Cinema,” about the Kingdom’s cinematic heritage, directed by Ali Saeed and Hassan Saeed.
“Sea of Sands” and “Valley
Road” are both due for release in 2023.
Majed Samman, Ithra’s head of performing arts and cinema, and also the producer of “Sea of Sands” and “Valley Road,” told Arab News about “Anti-Cinema,” currently in post-production and expected to hit the international film festival circuit soon.
“Anti-Cinema will be the most controversial piece non-Saudi viewers will ever watch. It tells the history of cinema from the 1940s and 1950s all the way until the Red Sea Film Festival today,” he said.
“But for the outside world, they would say that they had no idea they have cinemas in Saudi and I had no idea that they were making movies. It’s going to be an eyeopener for a lot of people.”
“The two films that we’re going to premiere in 2023 are the first of many films, and they’re going to be showing the world and Saudi Arabia how quality films are made.”