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Red Sea Film Foundation Reveals Teams Selected for 4th Edition of '48hr Film Challenge'

Red Sea Film Foundation Reveals Teams Selected for 4th Edition of '48hr Film Challenge'
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Red Sea Film Foundation Reveals Teams Selected for 4th Edition of '48hr Film Challenge'

Red Sea Film Foundation Reveals Teams Selected for 4th Edition of '48hr Film Challenge'

The Red Sea Film Foundation has announced the teams selected for the fourth edition of the 48hr Film Challenge.
Launched in June 2024, this challenge is a collaboration between the foundation, the French Consulate in Jeddah, the Embassy of France in the Kingdom, and the Alliance Française, according to SPA.

The challenge aims to encourage emerging talents to think creatively in their cinematic pursuits and uncover innovative minds in independent filmmaking.
The selected teams will have the opportunity to participate in artistic workshops and guidance programs scheduled for July 19-20, 2024. These will include workshops on film directing, writing, and editing. The teams will then compete for 48 hours on July 26-27, 2024, with the winning teams set to be announced on September 19, 2024.
The French Consulate will provide 15 selected team members with two days of professional workshops in Jeddah and Riyadh featuring experts from France and the Kingdom. The workshops will include short film screenings and industry discussions, with the winning teams chosen by the jury.
The winning teams will be able to attend an artistic residency at the La Fémis School in France in 2025, organized by the French Consulate in Jeddah. The upcoming Red Sea International Film Festival in December 2024 will also screen the winning films.

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Varieties

US Moves to Protect All Species of Pangolin, World’s Most Trafficked Mammal

A Malaysian pangolin walks past cages containing 45 others as a wildlife officer watches in Kuala Lumpur August 8, 2002. (Reuters)
A Malaysian pangolin walks past cages containing 45 others as a wildlife officer watches in Kuala Lumpur August 8, 2002. (Reuters)
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US Moves to Protect All Species of Pangolin, World’s Most Trafficked Mammal

A Malaysian pangolin walks past cages containing 45 others as a wildlife officer watches in Kuala Lumpur August 8, 2002. (Reuters)
A Malaysian pangolin walks past cages containing 45 others as a wildlife officer watches in Kuala Lumpur August 8, 2002. (Reuters)

The United States on Monday moved to extend federal protections to all species of pangolins -- a step that would tighten trade restrictions and highlight the urgent conservation plight of the world's only scaly mammals.

Found in the forests, woodlands, and savannas of Africa and Asia, pangolins are small, nocturnal creatures known for their distinctive appearance, slow and peaceful demeanor, and habit of curling into a ball when threatened.

Often likened to a walking pinecone, they use long, sticky tongues to feast on ants and termites, give birth to a single pup each year -- and are the most heavily trafficked mammals on Earth. Their keratin scales are coveted in traditional medicine, and their meat is also considered a delicacy in some regions.

Despite steep population declines driven by poaching, habitat loss, and inbreeding, only one species -- Temminck's pangolin of Africa -- is currently protected under the US Endangered Species Act. Monday's proposal by the US Fish and Wildlife Service would extend that status to all eight known species.

In a statement, the agency said it intends to list the four Asian species -- Chinese, Indian, Sunda, and Philippine -- as well as the three other African species: white-bellied, black-bellied, and giant pangolins.

"I'm delighted the United States is doing its part to save these adorably odd creatures," said Sarah Uhlemann, international program director at the Center for Biological Diversity.

"Pangolins are on the razor's edge of extinction, and we need to completely shut down any US market for their scales. There's no good reason for anybody to ingest any part of a pangolin."

Pangolins are currently protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which prohibits international trade for commercial purposes and allows it only under exceptional circumstances.

Still, the illegal trade persists.

In April, Nigerian authorities seized nearly four tons of trafficked pangolin scales, representing the slaughter of some 2,000 animals. In November 2024, Indonesian officials intercepted another 1.2 tons.

US demand remains a factor. Between 2016 and 2020, border officials intercepted 76 shipments of pangolin parts, including scales and products marketed for traditional medicine, according to public data.