Organisers of the first ever Red Sea International Film Festival, to be held in March 2020 in Jeddah, are now accepting entries from international, Arab and Saudi filmmakers.
Entries are open for ‘In Competition’, the festival’s international programming, which will be judged for cash prizes at the Yusr Awards.
To qualify, films must have a Middle East premiere status, and Arab films are required to be original works by emerging and established filmmakers. A total of $250,000 (Dh918,121) will be awarded in directing, screenwriting and acting.
For short filmmakers from the Arab World, there’s also a Golden Yusr and a cash prize for the Best Short Film. The Red Sea Shorts Competition is for filmmakers from the Arab World, a section where audiences can encounter contemporary creativity from the region’s filmmakers and artists of any discipline.
A pioneering programme exploring Saudi cinema called: New Cinema/New Saudi will make an introduction to filmmakers and artists from the Saudi Arabia’s new cinema wave.
Tajreeb is the home for Saudi-made, extroverted, impressionistic narrative, documentary or animated films that capture the zeitgeist.
The festival will be held in the Unesco-listed Jeddah Old Town. Entries will be accepted until November 15 on redseafilmfest.com.
