 | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 2020 |
| Jurisdiction | Government of Saudi Arabia |
| Headquarters | Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |
| Agency executives |
|
| Website | Official English Website |
The Saudi Film Commission is a commission of the Ministry of Culture within the government of Saudi Arabia. The organization was established to promote the country's film industry. [2]
In 2018, a 35-year ban on cinemas was lifted in Saudi Arabia as part of the country's broader modernization efforts overseen by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. [3] The Saudi Film Commission was founded as a branch of the Ministry of Culture in February 2020 to bolster the country's film industry. [4] [5]
The 101 Film Studio is a partnership with the Saudi Ministry of Education to provide film education to middle and high school students in the country. [6]
In 2019, prior to the official founding of the Saudi Film Commission, the Ministry of Culture established the Daw' Competition to financially support young Saudi filmmakers. [7] The contest is now administered through the Saudi Film Commission. [8]
The Saudi Film Commission Filmmakers Program was established in 2021 to train and support local talent through the filmmaking process. [9]
Representatives of the commission announced Film Saudi, a 40% cash rebate program to incentivize productions that film in the kingdom and hire local talent, at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival. [10]
Jafar Panâhi is an Iranian film director, screenwriter, and film editor, commonly associated with the Iranian New Wave film movement. After several years of making short films and working as an assistant director for fellow Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami, Panahi achieved international recognition with his feature film debut, The White Balloon (1995). The film won the Caméra d'Or at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival, the first major award an Iranian film won at Cannes.
The UK Film Council (UKFC) was a non-departmental public body set up in 2000 to develop and promote the film industry in the UK. It was constituted as a private company limited by guarantee, owned by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, and governed by a board of 15 directors. It was funded from various sources including The National Lottery. John Woodward was the Chief Executive Officer of the UKFC.
Middle Eastern cinema collectively refers to the film industries of West Asia and part of North Africa. By definition, it encompasses the film industries of Egypt, Iran, Bahrain, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Palestine, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. As such, the film industries of these countries are also part of the cinema of Asia, or in the case of Egypt, Africa.
Arab cinema or Arabic cinema refers to the film industry of the Arab world. Most productions are from the Egyptian cinema.
Cinema of Palestine is relatively young in comparison to Arab cinema as a whole. Palestinian films are not exclusively produced in Arabic and some are even produced in English and French. Elia Suleiman has emerged as one of the most notable working Palestinian directors.
Multiple forms of media including books, newspapers, magazines, films, television, and content published on the Internet are censored in Saudi Arabia.
The cinema of Saudi Arabia is a fairly small industry that only produces a few feature films and documentaries every year. Theaters were closed after religious activism in the 1980s. With the exception of one IMAX theater in Khobar, there were no cinemas in Saudi Arabia from 1983 to 2018, although there was occasionally talk of opening movie theaters, and in 2008 conference rooms were rented to show the comedy Mennahi. Saudis wishing to watch films have done so via satellite, DVD, or video. Cinemas were banned for 35 years until the first cinema in Saudi Arabia opened on 18 April 2018 in Riyadh. AMC Theatres planned to open up to 40 cinemas in some 15 Saudi cities over the following five years. The government hopes that by 2030, Saudi Arabia will have more than 300 theaters with over 2,000 movie screens. Cinema of Saudi Arabia, whether locally-produced or foreign-sourced, is subject to Saudi censorship.
Haifaa al-Mansour is a Saudi Arabian film director. She is one of the country's best-known and one of the first female Saudi filmmakers.
European Film Promotion (EFP) is an international promotion organisation and a unique network of 38 national film promotion institutes who represent films and talent from their respective territories. Under the EFP flag, the members team up on initiatives to promote the diversity and the spirit of European cinema and talent at key international film festivals and markets.
Jordan has quickly developed in the past few decades and established itself as an attractive filming country, due to a large number of combined factors: a variety of locations, advanced infrastructure, moderate and sunny weather, governmental support for the film industry, easy administrative procedures and financial incentives. The cash rebate varies between 10% and 25%, depending on the spending, while productions are exempt from Jordanian taxes. Combined with the cash rebate, they can get as much as 56% back.
Doha Film Institute (DFI) is a nonprofit cultural organisation established in 2010 by Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani to support the growth of the Qatari film community and to provide funding and international networking opportunities to creators. DFI hosts two major film festivals, Ajyal Film Festival and Qumra, each year. Since its inception, DFI has financially supported more than 600 projects from development through post-production.
The Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) is the national film agency under the Office of the President of the Philippines responsible for film policies and programs to ensure the economic, cultural and educational development of the Philippine film industry. It aims to encourage the production of quality films and to conduct film-related events that enhance the skills of the Filipino talents. The agency also leads the film industry’s participation in domestic and foreign film markets, and local and international film festivals, and is tasked to preserve and protect films as part of the country’s national cultural heritage.
A growing number of film festivals are held in the Arab world to showcase films from the region as well as international standouts. In addition, institutions and organizations in other parts of the world are increasingly honoring the new generation of filmmakers in the Arab world with Arab film festivals.
The General Entertainment Authority (GEA) (Arabic: الهيئة العامة للترفيه, romanized: Al-Hayʾah al-ʿĀmmah li-t-Tarfīh), formerly the General Authority for Entertainment (GAE), is a government department in Saudi Arabia that regulates the entertainment industry of the country. Established in May 2016 through a royal decree by King Salman, it is responsible for the development, advancement and expansion of Saudi Arabia's growing entertainment sector.
The General Authority of Media Regulation is a government organization in Saudi Arabia. It was founded in 2012 originally as the General Commission for Audiovisual Media (GCAM), and is responsible for the development, regulation, and supervision of audio-visual media transmission, publication, and overall media content within the state. The General Authority of Media Regulation reports to the Ministry of Media and is independent in terms of finance and administration. As of December 2022, Abdullatif bin Mohammed Al-Abdullatif has been appointed as CEO of the General Authority of Media Regulation.
Cinema in Qatar is a relatively young industry that evolved as part of the country’s plans to develop different local sectors with the aim of accumulating international recognition and status. Many major steps were taken to implement a long-term plan to develop the infrastructure as well as giving opportunities to local talents to have a platform that establishes their presence within the film industry with the support of the Doha Film Institute, and their various grants, workshops and festivals. The Qatar National Vision 2030 has three major pillars to development: human, social economic and environmental; this vision provides frameworks that enable the development of different elements within Qatar and its society; one of which is the high importance put on developing and cultivating artistic talents to represent and define Qatar on a global scale. Another important element in developing the movie industry is the influence and vision of Sheikha Al Mayassa who founded Doha Film Institution; the establishment of film as a mode of storytelling was imperative because it serves the purpose of granting Qatar a global presence through the talents that are supported and cultivated because of her initiative. The film industry plays a role in amplifying the Qatari national identity alongside the identity of the Arab world as a whole.
The cinema of Mauritius does not have a long-established and continuous tradition and organization. However, there have been recent efforts to encourage international filmmakers to shoot on the island and establish an indigenous film industry. Both Western and Indian movies are watched by Mauritians.
Goodbye Julia is a 2023 Sudanese drama film directed by Mohamed Kordofani. It is Kordofani's first feature film and the first movie from Sudan ever to be presented in the Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes Film Festival.
Norah is a 2023 Saudi film written, directed and produced by Tawfik Alzaidi. It stars Yagoub Alfarhan, Maria Bahrawi and Abdullah Alsadhan. It is the first Saudi movie to be shot entirely at Al Ula.
Tawfik Alzaidi is a Saudi screenwriter and film director. His movies have won several accolades, including his first short film, Perfect Crime, which won the best editing award at the 2007 Jeddah Film Festival, and his film Norah, which won the Best Saudi Feature Film award at the 2023 Red Sea International Film Festival.