Red Sea Film FestivalThis year’s second edition includes two development competitions, a work-in-progress competition, and the Red Sea 360º event, held in association with Winston Baker, with 13 industry panels.
The Red Sea Souk is integrated within the Red Sea Film Festival Foundation’s wide strategy to create an eco-system for the development, co-production and distribution of films from Saudi Arabia and the wider region. This includes the $10 million Red Sea Film Fund, which is catalyzing a growing network of coproduction partners within the region and in Europe.
The fruits of the Red Sea Fund’s investments are evident in multiple projects showcased in the Souk, and also in the various sections of the overall Red Sea fest. There are 21 projects in the two development competitions – 11 in the Red Sea Lodge section, and 12 in the Red Sea Souk section. The 11 Lodge projects will now present their final pitches. Two projects will be chosen for the annual Red Sea Lodge Production Prize – a $100,000 grant for each of the two pics, from the Red Sea Fund, in addition to the opportunity to have the Arab premiere of their films at the Red Sea Film Festival.
There are six films competing in the Red Sea Work in Progress Showcase, with two pics from Morocco, and one each from Senegal, Jordan, South Africa and Yemen. The genres include drama, documentary and dark comedy. The Middle Eastern distributors attending the Souk include five from Saudi Arabia , seven from Lebanon , three from Egypt , and two from Dubai .