The third annual Jeddah Film Festival (JFF) that ends Friday has already scored what's akin to a box-office hit in Hollywood or Bollywood. From what has been screened so far in the four-day film festival that has 38 Saudi films in competition, there's good reason to suspect that the city is witnessing the unofficial birth of a film industry in Saudi Arabia where commercial cinema theaters are still absent for sociocultural reasons. The argument for financially backing a nascent Saudi film-making fraternity was put forward by Annie Bishou, an expatriate who attended the opening night's screening of Sabah Al-Lail (Night Good Morning). The film, though technically unsound, succeeded on the strength of a hilarious script that found modern-day life in contradiction with olden times well into the pre-Islamic past. Rashed Al-Shamrani convincingly portrays Abu Hilal, a gregarious truck driver of modern times who gets transported magically into the tribal wars of pre-Islamic Arabia where his Saudi slang is pitted against classical Arabic. “The script was brilliant,” said Bishou who had learnt her Arabic in Saudi Arabia by watching Saudi TV Channel 1 from as far back as the mid 1980s when she had first arrived in Jeddah. “Yes, it wasn't quite Oscar material but it sure does reveal a bubbling talent pool of Saudis out to create jobs for themselves. And imagine the endless number of jobs a film industry can offer – look at Hollywood and Bollywood.” Unemployment among Saudi youth who make up nearly 70 percent of the population is officially at 12 percent though other estimates put the rate far higher. Cinema in Saudi context JFF was launched in 2006 with the aim of having an annual cultural gathering but now the art form appears to have developed a Saudi life of its own “We are trying to improve the JFF every year,” said Mamdouh Salem, the festival supervisor, who was well aware of what that could mean. “The concept of cinema can match up with some people and can contradict with some others,” he said. “Our role is to present a cinematic industry that can serve Islam, the country, the cultural values.” Salem cited Iranian cinema as an example on how cinema can be a respectful medium. “They have succeeded in conveying their messages in a professional and conservative manner,” he noted. He was confident that Saudis would come up with even better cinema. “We are in a country richer in Islamic culture and which only needs to be unveiled in a way that can serve this society,” he said. The festival is held on a larger scale this year because Rotana Cinema TV channel has moved to help Saudi artists overcome their perpetual financial plight. “They paid SR150,000,” said Salem about the festival preparations. The Ministry of Information and Culture, which sponsored a film festival in Dammam earlier this year, is also keen on finding new ways to encourage creative talent among young Saudis. “We are seeking to stimulate creative talent and develop a visual culture on a local and regional level by providing opportunities for filmmakers to present their films,” Salem said. “Eventually we want to develop a culturally creative film industry which will serve the Arab and Islamic region.” Ahmed Al-Hassan, a Saudi novelist, director and actor who took part with a film titled “Loss”, spoke against misconceived notions that cinema would mean nudity and inappropriate scenes. “I respect these people's opinion, but they should not associate indecorous films with cinema,” he said. “Cinema is something else. It is a skillful technique that mirrors societies and cultures. We can't accept the screening of such impolite scenes for our families. Our aim is to take societies to well-regarded places.” Al-Hassan, who had taken part last year with a work titled “Tears of Shade”, felt that the festival would indeed open the door to ambitious Saudi youth. European films were also in the JFF show-list but not in the competition category. The prizes are for best short film, best documentary, best cartoon, best director, best actor, best editor, and best photography and best screenplay. Assistant Mayor Khaled Aqeel who inaugurated the event, said Jeddah has become a place for meaningful art. “This city has drawn the attention of the whole world at different political and economic levels. Now it is introducing itself as a source of culture and purposeful art.” The opening ceremony included a theater segment about how Saudi parents used story-telling to entertain children. The Culture and Art Society then presented folklore songs. Not everyone held hope that the festival this year would mark a turning point. Mohammed Hamza, a renowned Saudi actor and dramatist, in fact doubted whether the endeavor would be fruitful. “We want to see facts not words,” said Hamza who is the star of the famous TV series, Lailat Horoub (Night of Escape). “We are all talking and hoping, but those who are against any intellectual advance... they will taste the sourness of their thinking later on. May God help us all,” he said. “If you look at these works, you will find them all personal attempts – support is entirely missing. We hope that it is only an issue of no support. We hope that they'd leave us alone, but they are creating barriers. “Some 40 or 50 years ago, people came and put obstacles in the way of creative people,” he said. He did not accuse anyone in particular. __
