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Director Tawfik Al-Zaidi Tells Asharq Al-Awsat: ‘Noura’ Resembles AlUla in its Connection with Human, Art

Saudi film director Tawfik Al-Zaidi.
Saudi film director Tawfik Al-Zaidi.
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Director Tawfik Al-Zaidi Tells Asharq Al-Awsat: ‘Noura’ Resembles AlUla in its Connection with Human, Art

Saudi film director Tawfik Al-Zaidi.
Saudi film director Tawfik Al-Zaidi.

Saudi film director Tawfik Al-Zaidi expected the revenues of the Saudi cinema to hit one billion Saudi riyals by the end of 2022, after it exceeded 900 million riyals in November, highlighting the vital role Saudi Arabia has played in the cinema industry since 2018.

During an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, Al-Zaidi said Saudi Arabia has become a filmmaking-friendly environment, noting that the kingdom has got into the cinema industry with cinema theaters and specialized festivals like Jeddah’s Red Sea Film Festival, which was a game changer.

Al-Zaidi, who directed, wrote, and made his film “Noura” in a small town in AlUla city, said he chose AlUla as a geographic background for his feature film because he sees that the movie and AlUla, which represents an esteemed human heritage, are similar in their connection to humans and art.

Starred by Yacob al-Farhan, Maria Bahrawi, and Abdullah al-Sadhan, “Noura” tells the story of Nader, an artist who gave up painting and moved to western Saudi Arabia where he became a children teacher; and Noura, a young woman who lives with her little brother, Nayef, an independent life, away from male caretakers after the death of their father. In the movie, Noura discovers that Nader is an artist, then an artistic connection emerges between the two, which revives Nader’s inspiration and makes him introduce Noura to a world of possibilities outside her small town.

Tawfik Al-Zaidi believes that cinema is rewriting reality by creating a world and living in it. He chose filmmaking driven by his passion for visual storytelling and narration, and because he sees the visual language of films as a universal, human language and a key to understanding the meanings and messages proposed by the director. Al-Zaidi started his career when he was 12, filming his peers playing football in his neighborhood with his own camera. Despite his early skills at the time, he didn’t realize that he was taking his first steps in the cinema industry.

Tawfik al-Zaidi started directing his own short movies in 2006, and he’s considered an influencing and pioneering member of the new cinema wave in the kingdom. His short film, “The Perfect Crime”, won the Best Montage Award at the Jeddah Film Festival 2007, and his film, “The Silence”, won the Gulf Award for Short Films at the Muscat International Film Festival 2009. The movie was screened in over 20 countries, and was selected by a US organization to be displayed in their private library.

In 2014, he wrote and directed “Four Colors” with the support of Emirati company Two Four 54, and the film was screened at the Dubai International Film Festival. In 2015, he wrote and directed “The Other”, a film funded by Misk foundation. Starred by Syrian actor Mohammed al-Qass, and Saudi actor Meshaal al-Mutairi, the film won the Best Short Film Award in the Riyadh Film Festival 2016.

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Varieties

New Species of Ghost Shark May Have Been Found in Costa Rica

This image shows a partial view of the newly discovered Costa Rican ghost shark (Rhinochimaera costaricana) at the Museum of Zoology of the University of Costa Rica's Center for Research in Biodiversity and Tropical Ecology in San Jose, Costa Rica, on July 3, 2026. (Photo by Ezequiel BECERRA / AFP)
This image shows a partial view of the newly discovered Costa Rican ghost shark (Rhinochimaera costaricana) at the Museum of Zoology of the University of Costa Rica's Center for Research in Biodiversity and Tropical Ecology in San Jose, Costa Rica, on July 3, 2026. (Photo by Ezequiel BECERRA / AFP)
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New Species of Ghost Shark May Have Been Found in Costa Rica

This image shows a partial view of the newly discovered Costa Rican ghost shark (Rhinochimaera costaricana) at the Museum of Zoology of the University of Costa Rica's Center for Research in Biodiversity and Tropical Ecology in San Jose, Costa Rica, on July 3, 2026. (Photo by Ezequiel BECERRA / AFP)
This image shows a partial view of the newly discovered Costa Rican ghost shark (Rhinochimaera costaricana) at the Museum of Zoology of the University of Costa Rica's Center for Research in Biodiversity and Tropical Ecology in San Jose, Costa Rica, on July 3, 2026. (Photo by Ezequiel BECERRA / AFP)

Costa Rican scientists may have discovered a new species of ghost shark in Pacific waters near Cabo Blanco and Cano Island.

The latest discovery has a "shorter" snout, a "darker coloration pattern" and a "much longer spine on its dorsal fin," according to Arturo Angulo Sibaja, a biology professor at the University of Costa Rica.

The discovery marks the only such species "known for the Central American coast," Sibaja said, adding genetic analysis indicates the new species has "no reproductive contact" with other ghost sharks.

But earlier specimens collected "near Peru and Chile are very similar to the species" from Costa Rica, so scientists are still comparing the specimens before finalizing the conclusion, AFP quoted him as saying.

Three species of ghost shark -- a type of fish that is related to sharks -- have been discovered elsewhere, in waters off South Africa, Taiwan, Australia, Japan and in the Atlantic between Greenland and Brazil.

Ghost sharks belong to a group of cartilaginous fish called Rinochimaera that is related to sharks but genetically diverged from them nearly 400 million years ago.

Sibaja said it's "most likely" the new species "has broader distribution along the (Pacific) coast of Central and South America."

Varieties

Australia Welcomes Draft UNESCO Decision to Keep Great Barrier Reef Off Danger List

(FILES) In this underwater photo taken on April 5, 2024, marine biologist Anne Hoggett snorkels to inspect and record bleached and dead coral around Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef, located 270 kilometres (167 miles) north of the city of Cairns. (Photo by DAVID GRAY / AFP)
(FILES) In this underwater photo taken on April 5, 2024, marine biologist Anne Hoggett snorkels to inspect and record bleached and dead coral around Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef, located 270 kilometres (167 miles) north of the city of Cairns. (Photo by DAVID GRAY / AFP)
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Australia Welcomes Draft UNESCO Decision to Keep Great Barrier Reef Off Danger List

(FILES) In this underwater photo taken on April 5, 2024, marine biologist Anne Hoggett snorkels to inspect and record bleached and dead coral around Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef, located 270 kilometres (167 miles) north of the city of Cairns. (Photo by DAVID GRAY / AFP)
(FILES) In this underwater photo taken on April 5, 2024, marine biologist Anne Hoggett snorkels to inspect and record bleached and dead coral around Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef, located 270 kilometres (167 miles) north of the city of Cairns. (Photo by DAVID GRAY / AFP)

Australia welcomed a draft UNESCO decision not to list the Great Barrier Reef as an endangered site, its assistant tourism minister said on Saturday, despite ongoing struggles of the world's biggest coral reef ecosystem with coral bleaching.

The reef, which has suffered several mass coral bleaching events in recent years, is not currently on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) list of world heritage sites that are in danger, although UN scientists have previously ⁠recommended that it ⁠should be added.

Australia's government has lobbied for years to keep the reef - which contributes more than A$9.0 billion ($6.25 billion) to the economy annually - off the list, as it could damage tourism at the site, which receives more than ⁠2 million visitors each year.

Assistant Tourism Minister Nita Green said the decision overnight by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre "recognizes Australia's continued efforts to protect and manage this important icon,” Reuters reported.

"Australia welcomes UNESCO's decision to not list the reef as endangered, and recognize all of the work that's been going into protecting the reef," Green said in televised remarks from the capital Canberra.

The reef, home to 400 ⁠types ⁠of coral and 1,500 species of fish, stretches for some 2,400 km (1,500 miles) off the coast of the northern state of Queensland.

Since 2016, it has experienced five summers of mass coral bleaching, when large sections of the reef turn white due to heat stress, putting them at greater risk of death. Climate change is a primary driver of rising sea temperatures which cause coral bleaching, according to the Queensland government.

Varieties

Trump's Massive July 4 Firework Show Raises Health Alarms

LYNWOOD, CALIFORNIA - JULY 03: People watch fireworks explode during the annual Independence Day Celebration in the predominantly Latino community of Lynwood on July 3, 2026 in Lynwood, California. Mario Tama/Getty Images/AFP
LYNWOOD, CALIFORNIA - JULY 03: People watch fireworks explode during the annual Independence Day Celebration in the predominantly Latino community of Lynwood on July 3, 2026 in Lynwood, California. Mario Tama/Getty Images/AFP
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Trump's Massive July 4 Firework Show Raises Health Alarms

LYNWOOD, CALIFORNIA - JULY 03: People watch fireworks explode during the annual Independence Day Celebration in the predominantly Latino community of Lynwood on July 3, 2026 in Lynwood, California. Mario Tama/Getty Images/AFP
LYNWOOD, CALIFORNIA - JULY 03: People watch fireworks explode during the annual Independence Day Celebration in the predominantly Latino community of Lynwood on July 3, 2026 in Lynwood, California. Mario Tama/Getty Images/AFP

An "unforgettable" tribute to America, or a health hazard that will terrorize animals and pollute the environment?

That's the question as Washington prepares to break the record for the world's largest fireworks display on the United States' 250th birthday on Saturday.

The Trump administration's "Freedom250" project has hired Pennsylvania-based Pyrotecnico to launch more than 850,000 fireworks shells across 10 sites around the Lincoln Memorial and Potomac River, starting at 10:30 pm and lasting 40 minutes.

That is around 40,000 more than the current Guinness World Record, set in Bocaue, Philippines in 2016, and roughly 50 times more than Washington's usual annual show.

"Freedom250" has billed it as the "unforgettable" capstone for a day of performances, flyovers and acrobatics displays at the National Mall, claiming it will bring hundreds of thousands of visitors and calling it a generational event.

They haven't however disclosed the bill for the affair and did not respond to a request seeking the sum.

- 'Frightening' numbers -

"Fireworks are a tried-and-true American tradition," Jodi Dague, Pyrotecnico's director of marketing, told AFP. "They bring back childhood memories and allow families to create new ones. It's a reason to gather and celebrate."

Not everyone is convinced.

"First let me say, I like fireworks -- I think they're fun," Russell Dickerson, a professor of atmospheric chemistry at the University of Maryland told AFP, but said the number in question was "frightening."

"In my professional opinion, it's probably ill-advised to try to set off 850,000 fireworks... on a hot, stagnant, already polluted day. I'm not going down to the Mall and I certainly would not bring my grandchildren there."

The biggest concern is fine particulate matter, he explained -- particles 2.5 micrometers or smaller that can penetrate deep into the lungs, enter the bloodstream and even cross the blood-brain barrier.

The EPA's 24-hour standard caps exposure at 35 micrograms per cubic meter. After a fireworks show, "it dissipates substantially in a few hours, but in those few hours, people are going to be exposed to huge amounts," Dickerson said, adding that the smoke could cut visibility to a few hundred yards.

Making matters worse is a heat wave gripping the East Coast, with firework smoke and pollution liable to last longer without rain to clear it, and hot weather itself increasing background levels of pollution as the power grid strains under increased demand for cooling and as vehicles emit more.

"The amount of pollution that we produce is apocalyptic during this one particular day," Glory Dolphin Hammes, CEO of IQAir's North American division, told AFP.

Data compiled by the Swiss-based company from public and private sources showed that hourly PM2.5 in Washington peaked at 11 pm on July Fourth, last year at 133 micrograms per cubic meter. The Air Quality Index peaked at 208, levels more commonly associated with South Asian cities.

Epidemiologically, PM2.5 spikes are linked to a rise in emergency room visits, Hammes said, with longer-term impacts on heart and lung health from chronic exposure. Beyond particulate matter, fireworks contain trace metals that produce their bright colors, and burning fireworks releases harmful volatile organic compounds.

- Sounds of freedom -

Fireworks are also traumatizing for pets, particularly dogs, which tremble and even bolt from their homes in fear.

Adrian Aceves, a physician living in downtown Washington, said he'd be staying in with his five-year-old mutt Rosy, "trying to distract her with treats and toys, and I will medicate her."

Then there's wildlife: a recent European study found Arctic migratory geese flew away from their sleeping sites in response to New Year's Eve fireworks and never returned.

And a 2016 US government study found perchlorate, an oxidizing agent used in fireworks, had made its way into groundwater and surface water around Mount Rushmore National Memorial, which holds annual July 4 shows.

But Erica Walker, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Brown University School of Public Health, said the harms of fireworks need to be weighed against the joy they bring, drawing a distinction between ongoing sources of noise and pollution and those confined to a single day.

"As an American who has ancestors here who descended from slavery, Independence Day for me is incredibly relevant," she said. "I think for me those are the sounds of independence... it's also the sound of freedom, without trying to sound all corny."