RIYADH: Saudi filmmakers are taking part in the Malmo Arab Film Festival 2022 through 16 films, hoping to present a positive image of the development of the Kingdom鈥檚 film industry.
The event, which began on Wednesday and runs until May 9 in the Swedish city, invited 黑料社区 as a guest of honor. As a result, Saudi films will receive special screenings and seminars will be held to showcase the development of Saudi cinema.
Saudi filmmakers will present feature films in the competition, in addition to screenings of other formats.
The Saudi films entering the competition are 鈥淛unnah鈥 by directors Maan Abdul Rahman and Yasser Abdul Rahman in the feature film competition category; 鈥淧hone Kharban鈥 by directors Raghad Al-Barqi, 鈥淒iyar Hisma鈥 by Fahd Fayez, 鈥渁鈥 by directors Noura Al-Mawlid, Ragheed Al-Nahdi and Ruba Khafajiin the short film competition category; and a film by Nour Al-Amir and Fatima Al-Hazmi in the 鈥淎rabian Nights鈥 category.
The festival will screen five feature Saudi films: 鈥淔orty Years and One Nights鈥 by Mohammed Al-Halil, 鈥淭he Tambour of Retribution鈥 by Abdulaziz Al-Shalahi, 鈥淭he Journey鈥 by Kibon Shizuno (a Saudi-Japanese co-production), 鈥淪hams Almaarif鈥 by Faris Quds, 鈥淭he 10th Way鈥 by Omar Naim, in addition to seven short films: 鈥淯mm Al-Saaf and Al-Lif鈥 by Hala Al-Haid (a Saudi-US co-production), 鈥淗awas鈥 by Khaled Zeidan, 鈥淶awal鈥 by Mujtaba Saeed (a Saudi production, with German-French contribution), 鈥淪aaf鈥 by Wijdan Al-Marzouq, 鈥淪hams 89鈥 by Mansour Al-Badran, 鈥淭he Little Bird鈥 by Khaled Fahd and 鈥淣oor Shams鈥 by Fayza Amba.
The participation at the festival is in line with the Saudi film industry鈥檚 plan to promote itself on global platforms and build partnerships that build the sector, said Abdullah Al-Eyaf, CEO of the Saudi Film Commission.
He added that international film festivals represent a space to highlight Saudi talents and attract global talent in the field of filmmaking, especially after the remarkable shift in the industrial environment in the Kingdom through a government system that supports and stimulates the industry.
Al-Eyaf said that prominent partnerships from the private sector and the Kingdom鈥檚 great geographical diversity have also enabled the transformation.
Mansour Al-Badran, director of 鈥淪hams 89,鈥 said: 鈥淚 am very happy with the film鈥檚 participation in the festival. I think that the national achievement that was made in the film deserves to be watched and celebrated, on a local and international level.鈥
He told Arab News that the Saudi Film Commission has made great efforts to enable national talents to take part in the Malmo event, expressing confidence that the commission鈥檚 support will continue in other international forums to celebrate Saudi cinematic creativity.
The Saudi presence at the Malmo Festival was 鈥渉onorable,鈥 Al-Badran said, adding that the selection of the films that qualified to participate was 鈥渙bjectively decided.鈥
He said: 鈥淚 think that Saudi cinema is up and coming, and the Saudi films participating in the current festival are a good proof of that ... I think we are on the right track.鈥
The guest of honor program includes a symposium to introduce the Saudi Film Commission and its initiatives, and to showcase the Talents Bridge intensive training program. The event will conclude with a Saudi artistic night, in which a Saudi musical orchestra will perform.
The Malmo event is the largest Arab film festival in Europe. Since its establishment in 2011, it has received growing public interest due to its location in Sweden. Malmo is home to a diverse range of cultures, and the festival aims to build bridges between people based on film as a universal visual language.
Cinemas in 黑料社区 have made great achievements over the past four years, with box office sales exceeding 30.8 million tickets, the Saudi Press Agency recently reported.
Since its launch in April 2018, the Saudi Film Commission has licensed 56 theaters with 518 screens in 20 cities, in which 1,144 films were shown, including 22 Saudi films. The number of ticket sales amounted to 30,860,956 for films in 22 languages from 38 countries.
The cinema sector also employs 4,439 young Saudi men and women as part of efforts to increase the size of the media market, provide a favorable environment to diversify economic sources of income and create thousands of jobs for Saudi youth.
Using media as a strategic tributary of the national economy also comes in line with Vision 2030, the SPA said.
鈥淭his demonstrates growth that was achieved in four years, indicating that the cinema sector is an attractive element for local and international investors, in light of the initiatives and projects offered by the commission that enable beneficiaries to easily engage in media activities of all kinds,鈥 it added.
