Saudi Cinema Association & Ithra Unveil Saudi Film Festival Highlights

The Saudi Cinema Association and the King Abdulaziz Centre for World Culture (Ithra) have unveiled the highlights for the 11th edition of the Saudi Film Festival, the longest-running festival of its kind in the Kingdom. Scheduled to take place from April 17th to the 23rd, the festival is supported by the Film Commission and will showcase 68 screenings, including 36 feature, short, and documentary films from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf region.

Under the theme ‘Cinema of Identity’, films screened at Saudi Film Festival will delve into themes of individual, national and diverse cultural identities, exploring their complexities and transformations. This year, the festival expands its global footprint by featuring 12 short films from Arab and international filmmakers, presented in collaboration with the world-renowned Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival in France.

Additionally, in partnership with Japan’s Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia, audiences can experience screenings of eight Japanese feature and short films, accompanied by discussions with Japanese filmmakers. “Many of these films will screen for the first time at the festival,” notes Vice President of Saudi Film Festival, Mansour Al-Badran.

Beyond screenings, the festival’s program will feature a cultural symposium, delving into themes of individual, national, and diverse cultural identities, exploring their complexities and transformations.

Returning this year is the festival’s Production Market, which will showcase 22 projects from 22 different exhibitors in Ithra’s Great Hall. Unlike production markets at other international festivals, this one is exclusively dedicated to the Saudi film industry, offering unique opportunities for filmmakers to connect with industry professionals. “Ithra has increased the number of screens to ensure greater accessibility to the films,” Al-Badran added.

As in previous years, the festival will continue to incorporate script-development workshops for short and feature-length screenplays, including advisory sessions with industry mentors.

“The Festival acts as an exceptional platform for filmmakers to present their cinematic creativity and bring their stories to audiences,” Ahmed Al-Mulla, Saudi Film Festival Director, said. “It offers a diverse selection of films and programmes focusing on successful production experiences in the cinematic landscape, allowing attendees to engage with and learn from industry professionals.”

The festival will culminate in an awards ceremony, recognising excellence across multiple categories. A total of 285 films have been submitted for the film awards, 116 for the production and market competition and 313 scripts for the unproduced screenplay competition.