The fifth Saudi Film Festival took place between March 21 – 26th 2019, and here are the moments you need to know about.
Mohammed Al Turki at the Saudi Film Festival
Many countries in the Gulf were celebrated
For the fifth edition of the festival, each of the six days was dedicated to a celebrating and explore different Gulf country. The UAE, Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait all shared films and were featured.
And for 2019, an incredible 143 productions and scripts were accepted for the 2019 edition of the film festival.
A new slogan
Previously, the slogan of the festival was ‘The blink of an eye.’ But adding a sense of optimism for 2019, this was updated to ‘Dreams come true.’ The inspiration behind the change was the opening of cinemas in Saudi Arabia in 2018.
The organisation – which is run by the film festival is a non-profit initiative created in partnership with the Saudi Arabian Society for Culture and Arts and the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture.
Important talks
After the screenings, talks were held to discuss the arts. And some, in particular, was hosted by famous faces. Salman Khan, Mohammed Al Turki and Cuba Gooding Jr all turned up for the special event.
Oscar-winning Cuba delivered a talk about his decades in the industry.
Golden Globe-nominated Mohammed Al Turki, a Saudi Arabian producer, also hosted a talk about his career within filmmaking.
Workshops
As well as celebrating talent, the film festival fostered it too. Workshops were hosted throughout the event, included a masterclass for the skills of cinema arts hosted by Salman Khan.
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