Saudi studio Telefaz11, the groundbreaking label behind hit dark comedy “Mandoob” — in which a struggling man becomes a bootleg booze runner in Ryadh — is set to push the kingdom’s cultural envelope a bit further with a humorous take on the world of Saudi Arabia’s ultraconservative clerics.
Telfaz11 has announced that its next title will be the satirical drama “Saify,” directed by studio chief Wael Abu Mansour and set against the backdrop of the late 1990s, a time when, incidentally, cinema was banned.
“Saify” revolves around its titular character, a man in his 40s who is “clinging to the dream of quick wealth despite his poor skills by holding on to his small cassette shop which sells banned religious sermons,” according to the provided synopsis.
During the 1990s, dozens of stores in Riyadh and other Saudi cities sold cassettes of recorded sermons that expanded the popularity of Islamic clerics.
Telfaz11 has announced that its next title will be the satirical drama “Saify,” directed by studio chief Wael Abu Mansour and set against the backdrop of the late 1990s, a time when, incidentally, cinema was banned.
“Saify” revolves around its titular character, a man in his 40s who is “clinging to the dream of quick wealth despite his poor skills by holding on to his small cassette shop which sells banned religious sermons,” according to the provided synopsis.
During the 1990s, dozens of stores in Riyadh and other Saudi cities sold cassettes of recorded sermons that expanded the popularity of Islamic clerics.
- 9/19/2024
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Anthology film “Quareer,” by five young female Saudi directors, has emerged as the big winner at the eighth edition of the Saudi Film Festival, which is the country’s oldest film event.
“Quareer” consists of five segments depicting women taking risks to carve out their own spaces, and explores themes of abandonment, neglect, control, abuse and shame in Saudi’s now changing conservative society. The film scored five prizes in total at the festival, including the Golden Palm Tree for best film and the prize for best director(s), which collectively went to filmmakers Ragheed Al Nahdi, Norah Almowald, Ruba Khafagy, Fatma Alhazmi and Noor Alameer.
Additionally, “Quareer,” which had premiered last December at Saudi’s Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah, also scored awards for best cinematography, best script and best score.
Held in the eastern city of Dhahran, the Saudi Film Festival was founded by its pioneering artistic...
“Quareer” consists of five segments depicting women taking risks to carve out their own spaces, and explores themes of abandonment, neglect, control, abuse and shame in Saudi’s now changing conservative society. The film scored five prizes in total at the festival, including the Golden Palm Tree for best film and the prize for best director(s), which collectively went to filmmakers Ragheed Al Nahdi, Norah Almowald, Ruba Khafagy, Fatma Alhazmi and Noor Alameer.
Additionally, “Quareer,” which had premiered last December at Saudi’s Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah, also scored awards for best cinematography, best script and best score.
Held in the eastern city of Dhahran, the Saudi Film Festival was founded by its pioneering artistic...
- 6/10/2022
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
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