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Red Sea Shorts, New Saudi Cinema Competitions Kicks Off

Red Sea Shorts, New Saudi Cinema Competitions Kicks Off
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Red Sea Shorts, New Saudi Cinema Competitions Kicks Off

Red Sea Shorts, New Saudi Cinema Competitions Kicks Off

The Red Sea International Film Festival screened the first films participating in the Red Sea Shorts Competition and the New Saudi Cinema Competition.
The event is testimony to the organizers' dedication to nurturing and promoting Saudi cinematic talent.
The films selected for the New Saudi Cinema category, introduced at this year's festival, demonstrate the creative works of the Kingdom's filmmakers, according to SPA.
The festival aims to empower emerging talent, foster opportunities for success and provide a platform for them to exhibit their creations.
The 19 selected films have a duration of 5 to 44 minutes. They cover a diverse range of topics, such as confronting extremism, social adaptation and personal conflict resolution. All the films were produced by Saudi teams, with a majority of the production or filming taking place in Saudi Arabia.
The selected films in the short films category include: Street 105, The Ride, Fishbowl, Kum-Kum, I'm Fine, The Menace from Above, Saleeg, Antidote, Fishy, The Old School, Art Block, Detour, The Last Winter, Khaled El Sheikh: Between the Thorns of Art and Politics, and Fiasco Run.
Program Manager of the New Saudi Cinema at the Red Sea Film Festival Foundation Mohyeeddin Qari emphasized the festival's dedication to representing and celebrating Saudi cinema. He said that the organizers look forward to presenting diverse and inspiring stories from all parts of the Kingdom that showcase creativity and innovation.

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Saudi Film Commission Set to Launch Fourth Edition of Saudi Film Confex 2026

Saudi Film Commission Set to Launch Fourth Edition of Saudi Film Confex 2026
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Saudi Film Commission Set to Launch Fourth Edition of Saudi Film Confex 2026

Saudi Film Commission Set to Launch Fourth Edition of Saudi Film Confex 2026

The fourth edition of Saudi Film Confex 2026 will be held on October 28 and 29 at JAX Film Studios in Riyadh under the patronage of Minister of Culture and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Film Commission Prince Bader bin Abdullah bin Farhan.

Held under the supervision of the Saudi Film Commission and organized by Benchmark, the event will take place under the theme "Industry Shapers' Edition," bringing together film sector leaders, decision-makers, professionals, and industry specialists.

The new edition will continue the Confex's role as a key catalyst for advancing Saudi Arabia's film industry and expanding investment and partnership opportunities across this vital sector, in line with the National Culture Strategy under Saudi Vision 2030.

The Confex serves as a specialized business platform that brings together the full spectrum of the film ecosystem, from production and distribution companies and technical service providers to investment entities, financing funds, educational institutions, and relevant government bodies. It creates opportunities to forge partnerships, sign agreements and exchange expertise across the industry.

The 2026 edition will take the form of a focused, two-day industry event designed for film professionals and sector stakeholders. It will serve two principal groups: executives and decision-makers, including corporate leaders and representatives of government entities and nonprofit organizations active in the sector; and industry professionals and specialists, including producers, directors, screenwriters, production and distribution companies, and creative and technical service providers.

The program will feature a conference with panel discussions, an exhibition showcasing companies operating across the film sector, and specialized workshops. These activities will enable participants to exchange knowledge and expertise and connect with organizations and companies working throughout the industry.

The 2026 edition builds on the Confex's track record of tangible partnerships. Across its first three editions, 94 agreements were signed with a combined value exceeding SAR1 billion.

Through the Confex, the Saudi Film Commission reinforces Saudi Arabia's position as a regional hub for film industry development and support, contributing to the growth of a thriving Saudi film sector capable of competing regionally and globally.

Entertainment

Kanye West's Planned Russia Concerts Cancelled, Organizer Says

FILE PHOTO: Rapper Kanye West makes a point as he holds his first rally in support of his presidential bid in North Charleston, South Carolina, US July 19, 2020. REUTERS/Randall Hill/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Rapper Kanye West makes a point as he holds his first rally in support of his presidential bid in North Charleston, South Carolina, US July 19, 2020. REUTERS/Randall Hill/File Photo
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Kanye West's Planned Russia Concerts Cancelled, Organizer Says

FILE PHOTO: Rapper Kanye West makes a point as he holds his first rally in support of his presidential bid in North Charleston, South Carolina, US July 19, 2020. REUTERS/Randall Hill/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Rapper Kanye West makes a point as he holds his first rally in support of his presidential bid in North Charleston, South Carolina, US July 19, 2020. REUTERS/Randall Hill/File Photo

Two concerts by ‌US rapper Kanye West in Russia that had been scheduled for October have been cancelled, the show's organizer, Say Agency, said.

West, who is also known as Ye, had been due to perform in St Petersburg. However, a week after the concerts were announced in mid-August, the venue due to host them said it had never signed a contract with the organizers, a separate Moscow-based company.

The ‌shows had ‌remained in limbo ever since, ‌with ⁠organizers providing no clear ⁠confirmation of whether they would go ahead.

"Friends, it is with sincere regret that we inform you that the YE concerts in St. Petersburg will not be able to take place on the scheduled dates. We will issue an official ⁠statement regarding the status of the project ‌and our future plans ‌in the near future," Say Agency posted on Telegram ‌on Wednesday.

West has faced concert cancellations and ‌performance bans in several European countries this year following a series of past antisemitic remarks, including praise for Adolf Hitler, and the use of Nazi imagery.

In January West ‌apologized for the remarks, which he attributed to an undiagnosed brain injury and ⁠untreated bipolar disorder.

Had ⁠the concerts gone ahead, West would have become one of the biggest international music stars to visit Russia since Moscow launched its full-scale war against Ukraine in 2022.

The planned gigs had drawn criticism from some Russian pro-war military bloggers, who questioned the appropriateness of hosting a US performer while Washington continues to provide military and financial support to Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova criticized the planned shows, calling them unacceptable and citing what she described as the West's "glorification" of Hitler.

Entertainment

Kenneth Branagh Examines the Scars of Iraq War in 'Atonement'

Kenneth Branagh, Hiam Abbass and Boyd Holbrook star in 'Atonement', which examines the long tail of conflict. Rodin Eckenroth / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
Kenneth Branagh, Hiam Abbass and Boyd Holbrook star in 'Atonement', which examines the long tail of conflict. Rodin Eckenroth / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
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Kenneth Branagh Examines the Scars of Iraq War in 'Atonement'

Kenneth Branagh, Hiam Abbass and Boyd Holbrook star in 'Atonement', which examines the long tail of conflict. Rodin Eckenroth / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
Kenneth Branagh, Hiam Abbass and Boyd Holbrook star in 'Atonement', which examines the long tail of conflict. Rodin Eckenroth / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP

Screenwriter Reed Van Dyk was leafing through a magazine one day in 2012 when he came across an article about the human cost of war that stopped him in his tracks.

He knew that one day he would have to bring it to the screen, but he did not feel he had the leverage in Hollywood to tackle such a weighty issue.

"I wasn't in a position to make a film about this back then," he told AFP.

That all changed after his short film "DeKalb Elementary" won critical acclaim and earned an Oscar nomination in 2018, so he went back to the New Yorker article and began work on "Atonement," which goes on limited release on Friday.

The film, based on the magazine piece, begins in 2003, when the lives of an Iraqi family and a war veteran became tragically intertwined in a Baghdad under fire.

Mariam Khachaturian, played by Hiam Abbass, and her family are trying to reach their home when their two vehicles are fired on by a Marine unit that believed it was under threat.

Three passengers die in the shooting, including Mariam's husband.

Eventually, the widow tries to leave the war behind by moving to the United States with her daughter.

Marine Lou D'Alessandro (Boyd Holbrook) also wants to move on, but the consequences of what he was involved in continue to haunt him.

The only way he feels he might be able to exorcise his demons is to seek out Mariam.

"I was so touched by this piece of writing and the story and all these characters and the way that their lives had intersected very tragically, and then by some miracle, they all intersect again a decade later," Van Dyk said.

In the movie, Lou and Mariam sit face-to-face in California, brought together by the efforts of Michael Reid (Kenneth Branagh), a journalist who had interviewed both of them about the war.

"I was very drawn to the idea of that complexity, and very drawn to the idea of being this witness at this remarkable meeting over years with two people trying to process the enormous pain and loss of very different kinds," Branagh told AFP on the sidelines of the Toronto International Film Festival.

"And then the really compelling drama of this immensely difficult thing, meeting again to feel, discuss, forget, forgive," said the British actor, whose character is inspired by journalist Dexter Filkins, author of the original article.

- 'A new context' -

"Atonement" arrives in US theaters days after the US formally ended its decades-long mission in Iraq, but with the country again at war -- this time with Iran.

"I was pulled to write about and explore these trio of people, and so that was in spite of the fact that you know it wasn't a story that headlines were echoing at the time of my writing," Van Dyk said.

But "as we're making the film, the world has sort of backslid into war everywhere. So it brings a new context to all of our work."

For Holbrook ("Narcos"), portraying the tormented Lou was "a fantastic experience," but also an intimidating one.

"The preparation for a film like this is everything, and for me it was life altering," he told AFP.

"It was something that I had to really find and discover in myself, the empathy and the courage that [his character] Lou had."

Abbass ("Blade Runner 2049" and "Succession") said she had wanted desperately to do justice to Mariam.

"I wanted to take her place and shout out my feelings and my anger towards why this should happen," she said.

"Why on Earth we keep going all the time, causing these pains to people, whoever they are, whatever they are, whatever nationality they come from, whatever conflict we're talking about."