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New talents featured at Saudi’s int’l film festival

Saudi Arabia is entering a new era in cinema as new talents were introduced as part of its goal to launch its entertainment on the international scene.
In a report by Saudi Gazette, the Red Sea International Film Festival will screen 107 features and shorts from fresh talents until March 12 at UNESCO’s World Heritage Site. The festival aims not only to bring various new selections of films to the Kingdom, but also to put a spotlight on new filmmakers and artists.
According to Saudi Gazette’s interview with festival’s director Mahmoud Sabbagh, the films will bring about a new era in Saudi cinema, saying that Saudi is “making its way through self-initiated initiatives from its makers, and we have started to get to see the features of the Saudi cinema.”
He also talked about the importance of criticism to help the cinema be better and improved, noting that acclaimed movies like Shams Al Maaref was not created based on any compliment.
The festival will comprise 16 films in-competition, seven out-of-competition titles, 15 retrospectives and classic works, three generation titles, five VR experiences, 11 pictures in New Saudi/New Cinema, 13 titles in the shorts competition, 23 best of the year films, 17 Tajreeb titles, and ‘Untitled Omnibus Feature’, an anthology that will be composed of five short films.
The competition jury will be composed of leading names in the industry, including American three-time Academy Award winner Oliver Stone.
Some of the countries who will join the festival’s competition for this year include Angola, Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Columbia, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Kosovo, Lebanon, Mongolia, Nigeria, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Spain, and United States.

Staff Report

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