Film on extremism wins at Saudi festival

Saudi actor Mohammed Al-Qess waves his award for best actor in the film “The Departings” during the closing ceremony of the 4th Saudi Film Festival held on April 1, 2017, in coastal city of Dammam 400 kilometers eastern of Saudi capital Riyadh.
This year’s festival is the first since the kingdom began late last year a cautious push to introduce entertainment, despite opposition from Muslim hardliners. AFP

DHAHRAN, Saudi Arabia — A short film that tackles extremism has won the top prize at the Saudi Film Festival, organizers said Sunday, in an ultra-conservative kingdom that continues to ban public cinemas.

“Departures”, directed by Abdulaziz al-Shalahei, won the golden palm award at the fourth edition of the festival, which featured 58 homegrown films including 12 directed by women.

“The festival is growing as the level of films is improving,” its director Ahmed al-Mulla said, adding that several contenders this year addressed extremism.

READ: Film festival opens in cinema-less Saudi Arabia

“Departures” features a conversation on a plane between an extremist thinking of blowing himself up and a terminally ill man who is tempted to commit suicide.

Saudi-based Syrian actor Mohammed al-Qass, who plays the role of the sick man, also won the prize for best actor.

The festival, which concluded late Saturday, included four competitions for fiction films, documentaries, student productions, and unproduced scripts.

The festival was held in a large marquee in Dhahran, in Eastern Province, as public cinemas do not exist in the Islamic kingdom.

“We hope that we will have cinemas soon,” Mulla said.

Saudi Arabia late last year began a cautious push to introduce entertainment, despite opposition from Muslim hardliners.

Other events on offer for Saudi spectators have been the New York theatrical group iLuminate, the Comic-Con pop culture festival, and WWE wrestling. CBB