Saudi Filmmaker Sarah Taibah on Horror, Romance, the Modern Woman

Sarah Taibah is the Saudi filmmaker behind two hits right now: horror movie “HOBA”, currently in cinemas, and the surreal love story “A Matter of Life and Death”, which premiered at Jeddah’s Red Sea Film Festival. But despite the momentum, she will still sit down and have a conversation with you, especially if it's about film or drama. She co-hosts the weekly Dubu Podcast for that reason exactly, diving into conversations on the industry that she plays a leading role in, without ever keeping it too serious. Taibah and her co-host Hisham Fageeh analyze and criticize, but they also laugh and joke - a lot.

Taibah brought this energy to the Red Sea Film Festival this year, where she stole the spotlight with the buzz around “A Matter of Life and Death” - which she directed and starred in herself. The plot follows a superstitious Hayat who is convinced she’s cursed and destined to die young. When she meets a shy heart surgeon named Yousef, their relationship leads to a pact that turns into an unlikely, life-affirming love story set in Jeddah. “HOBA”, on the other hand, begins with a mother whose life unravels into psychological and supernatural terror after her husband returns with a second wife and a dark force invades their home.

Walking down the festivals's red carpet, Taibah looked like a natural in her baggy grey suit, long black hair, chunky rings, and silver kitten heels, but what she really wanted was to be sat in a front row seat of every film. In the three years since Taibah was named the rising star at the 2022 Red Sea Film Festival, she has indeed cemented herself as a leading figure in the Saudi, regional, and international film industry. Taibah wears many hats - actress, writer, and creator - and often at the same time, from creating and acting as the lead in 2022 dark comedy series “Jameel Jiddan” as well as her role in thriller “Mandoob El Lail” Night Courier (2023) - sliding seamlessly into characters far removed from her bubbly charm.

In a conversation with SceneNowSaudi, Taibah dives into the process behind “A Matter of Life and Death” and “HOBA” - her latest genre-bending films - while discussing the complexities of producing a psychological horror film in the Gulf and challenging stereotypes of Arab women on screen.

“HOBA” is a horror movie that begins with a wife’s betrayal when her husband brings you home as his second wife, and “A Matter of Life and Death” is a chaotic, and ironically comedic, love story where you try to beat your own death. How does it feel to star in two wildly different films defining the moment?

It definitely feels cosmically chaotic. I shot “HOBA” at the end of 2023 and “A Matter of Life and Death” at the beginning of 2025. I am definitely grateful that the two characters are completely different, so I get the opportunity to show some range.

How do you choose your roles at this point in your career?

I care more now about who I am working with - director and team - and what I am working with - character and script. I’m also happy that I'm a screenwriter which means I get to take breaks from acting and focus on writing. This gives me the choice to be picky when it comes to choosing roles.

Does this ‘creative self’ ever clash with your ‘actor self’?

Writing makes the acting better and vice versa. I don’t think they clash because I’m not acting when I’m writing, unlike directing where you have to have to act and direct simultaneously.

Okay, let’s discuss “HOBA”. You play the really interesting role of Zahra - the mysterious second wife whose presence blurs sanity and threat. What drew you to this character who exists in such a beautifully ambiguous moral space?

Zahra is my first villain role, so I couldn’t say no! I wanted to experiment and play such a difficult non-relatable role. I also really respect the director, Majid Al Ansari, for believing in me and for choosing me.

Did you ever feel uncomfortable playing Zahra?

It’s funny that the answer is “no” because Zahra was so far off from anything familiar to me. I didn’t link her to any suppressed feelings I have. Instead, I had to dissociate to find her. With much simpler characters, I slip into them more easily, and the line between us gets blurry for brief moments.

When it comes to making a psychological horror film in the Gulf, how did you root the narrative in ‘Arab household’ dynamics rather than Western tropes?

That was the only way to do it. How culturally relatable “HOBA” is drew me to say yes to this project. I loved the script - I thought it was intelligent and deep.

Building off of that, how does it feel to watch a Khaleji horror film resonate internationally as “HOBA” sweeps festivals worldwide?

It was really a surreal experience to get accepted in the world’s top two genre fantasy festivals and win best horror film in one of them. We lowkey made history.

Let’s move to your “A Matter of Life and Death” premiere at Red Sea, which you didn’t just star in - you wrote. What inspired this story?

I have always loved quirky, unconventional love stories in film and the dark comedy genre itself. I also really want to see more of it in Saudi films. I want to laugh and cry and root for the characters to end up together. I’ve been building the courage to be a raw and real artist who doesn't shy away from vulnerability and writing characters with so much depth, flaws and relatability.

We also wanted to portray characters who struggle with obsessiveness and wanting to have control over their lives, which is a struggle most of our generation faces. I want to portray modern love as it is - complicated and deep - not your regular 90’s rom com.

Speaking of romance, your on-screen love interest is Yaqoub Alfarhan. How did you two build that dynamic?

Yagoub is a dear friend and a very talented artist, so it was absolutely easy to work with him. We mirrored each other and gave it our all.

Jeddah clearly plays a huge role in this film - its humour, contradictions, superstition, and chaos. Why did you choose Jeddah?

Jeddah will always be a main character in my personal projects. I could be commissioned to write a project based somewhere else, but when it comes to my passion projects, they will always be in Jeddah. This particular film also takes place in the Al-Hamra’a neighbourhood, where we have the landmark fountain - which is key to the film.

What was your biggest challenge when it came to the screenwriting itself?

Creating a magical, unrealistic, and slightly fantasy world, while keeping the characters super raw and real.

Ok so, if Zahra from “HOBA” and Hayat from “A Matter of Life and Death” met in a room…who would survive that conversation?

Oh poor Hayat! She’s already superstitious and scared. Zahra will ruin her. Or Hayat's persistence and annoyance will drive Zahra crazy!

Let’s zoom out a bit and talk about the film industry at large and in the Arab world.

You’re between commercial cinema in “HOBA” and a major festival debut in “Matter of Life and Death”. How do you view the divide - or overlap - between mainstream and arthouse right now?
I will forever love both and want to write both and star in both, mainstream and arthouse. I follow the good script and the good story wherever it is found.

When you look at film in Saudi and in the region, what genre are you dying to see more of?
I want to see more dark comedies, romance, and well-done psychological thrillers.

You’ve become part of a generation rewriting how Arab women appear on screen. What stereotypes are you focused on changing?

Oh, so many. However, all I care about is to portray women as three-dimensional characters with clear flaws, wants and needs. Not just this pretty supporting role that needs to be chased or saved.

If you could greenlight any Saudi film tomorrow, what’s the story, and who plays the lead (besides you, of course)?

I’m in the mood for Drama - like a really well-written lifetime drama. I’d love to work with women like Rahaf Ibrahim, Mila Al Zahrani, and Summer Shesha, and men like Yagoub Al Farhan and Baraa Alem.

Your characters this season are psychologically complex, maybe even a bit cursed. So tell us, what’s the most normal thing you’ve done this month to balance them out?

It’s been a whirlwind lately. However, the most normal thing is cleaning my apartment after it was flooded with rain.

Last but not least, when people look back at this “Sarah Taibah Season,” what do you hope they say?

Despite it all, somehow she made it happen!