It was a busy day in the ‘In Conversation’ series at the 2024 Red Sea International Film Festival (RSIFF) with Academy Award® winners Catherine Zeta-Jones (WEDNESDAY), Michelle Yeoh (EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE) and Michael Douglas (BEYOND THE REACH) and megastars Cynthia Erivo (WICKED); Kareena Kapoor (CREW) & Eva Longoria (LAND OF WOMEN) sharing their experience of performing – and their stories of life beyond the screen.
Kareena Kapoor spoke passionately about the magic that happens when the stars align to make a film spectacular and thanked her legion of fans in Saudi Arabia for their unwavering support, while Yeoh detailed the ups and downs of constantly having to adapt over the course of her two decade career on screen. Cynthia Erivo spoke powerfully about her role in WICKED and how pertinent the film’s themes are in a divided world, while Eva Longoria shared her belief that changing the world starts with changing hearts, minds and making a positive impact on culture.
New Voices and Legends Take to the Red Carpet
The cast and crew of ten films walked the red carpet today, led by three of those in competition at this year’s Festival: SEEKING HAVEN FOR MR. RAMBO (Egypt. Saudi Arabia), directed by Khaled Mansour; TO A LAND UNKNOWN (United Kingdom, Palestine, France, Greece, Netherlands, Germany, Qatar and Saudi Arabia), directed by Mahdi Fleifel and SUPERBOYS OF MALEGAON (India), directed by Reema Kagti.
On the Arab Spectacular program, the cast of MY DRIVER AND I (Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom), directed by Ahd Kamel took a bow on the carpet, as did select cast and crew from Red Sea: New Vision film EAST OF NOON (Egypt, Netherlands and Qatar), directed by Hala Elkoussy and Red Sea: Families and Children celebration PANDA BEAR IN AFRICA (Denmark, Netherlands, France, Germany, Estonia and China), directed by Richard Claus & Karsten Kiilerich. Cast from Festival Favourites LITTLE JAFFNA (France), directed by Lawrence Valin; DREAMING OF LIONS (Portugal, Brazil and Spain), directed by Paolo Marinou-Blanco and ZERO (USA and Senegal), directed by Jean Luc Herbulot took their turn in the spotlight, before Hussein Fawzi, director of lovingly-restored Red Sea: Treasures classic, BREAD and SALT (Egypt), had his turn.
Masterclass in Gaming
The Red Sea Souk program kicked off with a masterclass in ‘Cinematic Storytelling in Interactive Media and Video Games’, by the legendary global publisher of some of the biggest video game franchises of all time, including ‘Final Fantasy’; ‘Tomb Raider’; ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ and ‘Fortnite’, Mike Fischer. The Red Sea Souk is the place where business and creativity meet, with the program offering five days packed with insightful panels, expert-led workshops and inspiring masterclasses that will bring together filmmakers, industry professionals and thought leaders from across the globe.
Making Connections
The Souk Exhibition – the premier film market in the MENA region – also opened, with the halls lined with 142 exhibitors from 32 different countries quickly becoming a buzzing hub where international, Arab, African, and Asian markets started connecting across themes to exchange ideas and value.
‘Power Dinner’ Unites Women in Arab Cinema
The Women in Cinema event, held at the Jeddah Yacht Club & Marina, saw prominent women from the Arab film world come together for a gala dinner, where global star Michelle Yeoh was fêted.
The ethos of championing women in the industry has been woven into the activity of the Red Sea Film Foundation since day one, with celebrating and spotlighting women’s voices, a primary focus. This year’s competition features eight female filmmakers, with 36 projects led by women in the programme, overall.
TunisianMonitorOnline (TMO correspondent Douha Saafi)
