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Saudi Film Festival to Screen 69 Films this Year, New Awards are on Offer

Saudi Film Festival to Screen 69 Films this Year, New Awards are on Offer
    Dammam - Asharq Al Awsat
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Saudi Film Festival to Screen 69 Films this Year, New Awards are on Offer

Saudi Film Festival to Screen 69 Films this Year, New Awards are on Offer

The Saudi Film Festival announced that 106 movies of the 117 registered by late March have been accepted and that 69 movies were nominated to take part in the Festival’s eighth edition launching on the second of June.

Thirty six of these movies were nominated for all categories, 8 were chosen for the feature film category, 28 for the short films category, and 32 will be screened in parallel.

In an effort to shed light on the pioneers of the film industry in the Gulf, this year’s festival will honor the Saudi filmmaker Khalil bin Ibrahim Al-Rawaf, who is considered the first Arab actor to play a role in a Hollywood movie, and the Kuwaiti filmmaker Khaled Al-Siddiq.

The Saudi and Gulf movies taking part for the first time are competing for the Golden Palm awards and the cash prizes that come with them. Added to older categories like best film, best actor, and best cinematography are new ones like best Gulf film and best screenplay.

In addition to screening Golden Palm films and parallel screenings, children’s films, and poetry films, the Festival offers an array of cultural programs, including seminars and advanced training workshops. It also provides production companies, producers, and filmmakers with a space to find funding for their projects.

The Saudi Film Festival is also working on publishing and translating 15 books as part of the knowledge series it publishes every year.

The 8th edition of the Saudi Film Festival is scheduled to run between the second and ninth of June, and it is organized by the Saudi Cinema Association in partnership with the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithraa) and with the support of the Ministry of Culture’s Film Commission.

This year, the Festival chose poetic cinema as its theme, dedicating several symposia to discussion on the place of poetic cinema in filmmaking.

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Varieties

8 Arrested in Brazil for 'Brutal' Attack on Capybara

Wounds are seen on the muzzle of a capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) under care at the Center for Wildlife Animal Recovery of Estacio de Sa University in the Vargem Pequena neighborhood, in the southwest zone of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on March 23, 2026. (Photo by MAURO PIMENTEL / AFP)
Wounds are seen on the muzzle of a capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) under care at the Center for Wildlife Animal Recovery of Estacio de Sa University in the Vargem Pequena neighborhood, in the southwest zone of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on March 23, 2026. (Photo by MAURO PIMENTEL / AFP)
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8 Arrested in Brazil for 'Brutal' Attack on Capybara

Wounds are seen on the muzzle of a capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) under care at the Center for Wildlife Animal Recovery of Estacio de Sa University in the Vargem Pequena neighborhood, in the southwest zone of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on March 23, 2026. (Photo by MAURO PIMENTEL / AFP)
Wounds are seen on the muzzle of a capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) under care at the Center for Wildlife Animal Recovery of Estacio de Sa University in the Vargem Pequena neighborhood, in the southwest zone of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on March 23, 2026. (Photo by MAURO PIMENTEL / AFP)

Rio de Janeiro police said Monday they had arrested eight people for brutally beating a capybara -- the world's largest rodent whose chill demeanor has inspired countless memes online in recent years.

Resembling a giant, gentle guinea pig, the shaggy, light brown capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) is often seen roaming in the Brazilian city, particularly near streams and lagoons.

In an incident filmed by security cameras before dawn on Saturday, a group of attackers beat the capybara with sticks and iron bars in the working-class neighborhood of Ilha do Governador.

"This is a brutal crime that shocks society," said Felipe Santoro, the police commissioner in charge of the investigation, was quoted as saying by the O Globo daily newspaper.

"It is an act of extreme cruelty toward a creature that posed absolutely no threat...yet was deliberately attacked nonetheless," he added.

The attackers -- including two minors -- were identified through CCTV footage and arrested on Saturday, AFP quoted police as saying in a statement.

The capybara, a 65-kilogram (143-pound) male, was taken to the Wildlife Care Center (CRAS) at the private Estacio University in southwestern Rio.

"We have been treating Rio's wildlife here for 22 years, and I have never before received a capybara subjected to such extreme aggression," veterinarian and head of CRAS Jeferson Pires told AFP on Monday.

He said the creature was doing better, but was "suffering from head trauma, swelling with internal bleeding around his left eye, and multiple injuries to his back."

In recent years the semi-aquatic capybara -- native to South America -- has gained a devoted following online, and its image is increasingly used on toys, clothing and home decor items.

It is often used in posts about being zen and going with the flow.

One popular meme is "Comrade Capybara" -- depicting the animal as a communist revolutionary -- inspired by the 2021 "invasion" by capybaras of a luxury gated estate in Argentina that was built on a wetland that had been their natural habitat.

In early January, the death of a stray dog after it was beaten to death by teenagers sparked a massive wave of outrage in Brazil, even prompting a reaction from First Lady Rosangela "Janja" da Silva.

Varieties

Stone of Scone Fragments Made into Ring

The Coronation Chair with the Stone of Scone at Westminster Abbey (Getty)
The Coronation Chair with the Stone of Scone at Westminster Abbey (Getty)
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Stone of Scone Fragments Made into Ring

The Coronation Chair with the Stone of Scone at Westminster Abbey (Getty)
The Coronation Chair with the Stone of Scone at Westminster Abbey (Getty)

One of the “hidden” fragments of the Stone of Scone was set into a ring that was lost or stolen shortly afterwards, it has emerged.

The ancient stone was snatched during an infamos raid in which a group of nationalist students took it from Westminster Abbey and returned it to Scotland. The stone broke in two during the heist, and was repaired in secret by a supportive stonemason named Bertie Gray, according to the Press Association.

A research project recently revealed Gray’s work may have produced around 34 fragments of the stone, also known as the Stone of Destiny, which he distributed to people around the Scottish nationalist movement. One ended up at the SNP’s headquarters after being gifted to Alex Salmond.

David Rollo is believed to have been gifted one of the fragments in 1951, which he had set into a ring. He was friends with Gavin Vernon, one of the four students who took the stone from Westminster Abbey.

Rollo died in 1997, aged 70, and his daughter Vivienne is now trying to unravel the mystery of the ring’s fate.

Her father left few clues as to what became of it, and told her the ring was either lost or stolen and that he had an idea of who had it but he would not name the person he suspected.

Vivienne, who lives in Wester Ross, told the Press Association: “I would definitely like to know what happened to it... It would be such a thing to have as a family heirloom.”

She said she believes Vernon had asked her father to join him in the fateful Christmas Day heist at the end of 1950, but he declined to take part.

“I’m pretty sure Gavin asked my dad if he wanted to come along for this,” she said. “My dad said ‘don’t be daft, you’ll never do it’.”

Rollo was called in for questioning by police in the days after the raid, as the authorities tried to recover the Stone of Destiny.

He told the police nothing and was not directly involved in hiding the artefact before it was later found by police at Arbroath Abbey in April 1951.

The missing ring is one of several stories that have emerged as a research project seeks to document the fate of the fragments from the sandstone block, which were considered “hidden” for many years.

Professor Sally Foster of Stirling University has been working to trace the stories of the fragments. She is still keen to hear from people who may have knowledge of the whereabouts of the pieces.

Varieties

High Prices and Weather Affect Egyptians’ Outings During Eid al-Fitr

Bad weather reduced visits to the beaches - Alexandria Governorate.
Bad weather reduced visits to the beaches - Alexandria Governorate.
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High Prices and Weather Affect Egyptians’ Outings During Eid al-Fitr

Bad weather reduced visits to the beaches - Alexandria Governorate.
Bad weather reduced visits to the beaches - Alexandria Governorate.

Ahmed Bahgat, a father in his late twenties, was surprised when taking his family to a movie at Cinema El Tahrir in the Dokki district. He found that evening ticket prices had surged by 20%, reaching 120 EGP ($1 equals 52.3 EGP in banks), forcing him to abruptly increase his budget for the first night of the Eid holiday.

Bahgat told Asharq Al-Awsat that the price hikes were not limited to tickets but also extended to the popcorn and soda he bought for his two sons. He noted that prices had risen significantly since their last visit during the mid-year school break less than two months ago, a reality that has forced him to "calculate the cost of every group outing to avoid embarrassing situations."

The surge in fuel prices mid-month, which exceeded 30%, has prompted various service and commodity providers to implement price increases. Some cinemas have also adjusted their rates as a result of rising operational costs.

Entertainment as a Non-Essential Expense

Economic expert Karim el-Omda confirmed to Asharq Al-Awsat that recreational activities, such as going to the cinema or general outings, are among the sectors hardest hit during economic crises, as entertainment is often the first "non-essential" expense to be cut.

El-Omda added that reducing or halting spending on outings is a common occurrence in any society facing such pressures, not just in Egypt. He pointed out that "this trend will not be limited to the Eid period but is expected to continue in the coming months, potentially impacting turnout across various entertainment sectors."

Bad weather curbed residents’ turnout at the beaches - South Sinai Governorate

Inclement Weather and Public Spaces

The holiday coincided with a wave of unstable weather, including warnings against traveling on certain highways during the first day of Eid, along with rain and wind in many areas. However, Ibrahim Metwally, Head of the Central Administration for Zoos, told Asharq Al-Awsat that ticket prices for provincial zoos remained unchanged. He noted that zoos that underwent renovations or added new animals saw a significant increase in visitors.

Metwally indicated that by the middle of the third day of Eid al-Fitr, ticket sales had increased by approximately 30% compared to the same period last year. He added that despite the unstable weather, the public’s desire to visit gardens and stay in open-air spaces to enjoy the festive atmosphere was remarkable across all age groups.

Conversely, the erratic weather drove many members of the Shooting Club (Nadi El Said) in Dokki to remain indoors, avoiding the club’s extensive green spaces and limiting their movement to periods of calmer weather.

Tourism and Pre-Bookings

Hotels in tourist hubs like Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada saw a noticeable influx of citizens for the Eid break. Most of these trips followed pre-arranged booking programs, typically lasting between three and four days, with a preference for hotels featuring private beaches.

Tourism expert Walid El-Batouty told Asharq Al-Awsat that the majority of bookings fulfilled during the Eid season were unaffected by recent price changes, as they were secured before the new hikes took effect.

El-Batouty added that while hotels are honoring previously set prices, they have already begun applying new rates to new bookings to avoid financial losses. He described this as a "standard periodic procedure" involving price adjustments for both Egyptian nationals and foreign tourists alike.