Despite the recent boom in Saudi Arabia’s film industry, scholarly literature addressing the topic remains limited. This article fills the gap by drawing on my extensive research of the Saudi film industry, which has made innovative contributions to rethinking how we approach Saudi film and the Kingdom’s culture more broadly. Here I include interviews conducted in Saudi Arabia and Japan between October 2023 and May 2024. Among the individuals interviewed were leading film professionals, key figures in Film AlUla and other new Saudi film institutions, and a Saudi partner in Japan’s anime industry—many of whose perspectives have not been included in previous scholarly works. In addition, I discuss Mandoob and other recent Saudi films. Ultimately, I aim to provide a fresh vision of the industry’s history, its recent achievements and the factors shaping its future.
Purchase
Buy instant access (PDF download and unlimited online access):
Institutional Login
Log in with Open Athens, Shibboleth, or your institutional credentials
Personal login
Log in with your brill.com account
Abbas, Ibrahim (2013). Hwjn. Trans. Yasser Bahjatt. Riyadh: Yatakhayaloon.
Alzahrani, Hatem (2024). The Poet as Palm Tree: Muḥammad al-Thubaytī and the Reimagining of Saudi Identity. In Huda J. Fakhreddine and Suzanne Pinckney Stetkevych (eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Arabic Poetry, pp. 329–386. New York and Abingdon: Routledge.
American Chamber of Commerce Saudi Arabia (2023). US-Saudi Film Forum Industry Report. Riyadh: No Publisher.
Bedirian, Razmig (2024). Ali Kalthami on highlighting sidelined perspectives in his debut feature Mandoob. The National. Accessed 1 July 2024: bit.ly/4cE3QYx. 16 January 2024.
Bleasdale, John (2023). Greg Silverman’s Stampede Ventures and Film AlUla Celebrate 10 Project Partnerships with Variety at the Red Sea Film Festival. Variety. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://variety.com/2023/film/global/greg-silverman-stampede-ventures-film-alula-variety-red-sea-film-festival-1235820397/. 4 December 2023.
Boyd, Douglas A. and Joseph D. Straubhaar (1985). Development of the Home Video Cassette Recorder on Third World Countries. Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media, 29(1): 5–21.
Chaudhuri, Shohini (2022). Crisis Cinema in the Middle East: Creativity and Constraint in Iran and the Arab World. London and New York: Bloomsbury.
Chulov, Martin (2017). I will return Saudi Arabia to Moderate Islam, says Crown Prince. Guardian. Accessed 1 July 2024: bit.ly/45CRixY. 2017 24 October.
Ciecko, Anne (2022). A taste for cinema: Saudi Arabia’s mediated transitional public film culture. In Elsaket, Ifdal, Daniel Biltereyst and Phillipe Meers (eds.), Cinema in the Arab World: New Histories, New Approaches, pp. 220–243. London and New York: Bloomsbury.
Cinema Ticket Prices in Saudi Arabia no Longer Highest in the Region. (2024). Saudi Gazette. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://www.saudigazette.com.sa/article/639746. 2024 January 19.
Dickinson, Kay (2023). Import-Reexport: Reconsidering the Film Festival as a Port Economy. In Hudson, Dale and Alia Yunis (eds.), Reorienting the Middle East: Film and Digital Media Where the Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea, and the Indian Ocean Meet, pp. 207–228. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.
Dönmez-Colin, Gönül (2007). ‘Introduction.’ In Dönmez-Colin, Gönül (ed.), Cinema of North Africa and the Middle East, 1–11. London and New York: Wildflower Press.
Elsaket, Ifdal, Daniel Biltereyst and Phillipe Meers (2022). Introduction: New Histories and Approaches to Cinema the Arab World. Elsaket, Ifdal, Daniel Biltereyst and Phillipe Meers (eds.), Cinema in the Arab World: New Histories, New Approaches, pp. 1–23. London and New York: Bloomsbury.
Foley, Sean (2019). Changing Saudi Arabia: Arts, Culture, and Society in the Kingdom. Boulder, CO: Lynne Riener Publications.
Freitag, Ulrike (2022). Thinking of the City through Film and Cinema: Roll’em. Middle East Journal of Culture and Communication, 15(3): 241–258. https://doi.org/10.1163/18739865-01503006.
Gibbon, Gavin (2023). Saudi Domestic Tourism Drive takes off at Dubai’s Expense. Arabian Gulf Business Insight. Accessed 30 June 2024: https://www.agbi.com/analysis/tourism/2023/05/saudi-domestic-tourism-drive-takes-off-at-dubais-expense/. 29 May 2023.
Goodfellow, Melaine (2024). Saudi Thriller ‘Night Courier’ Tops 600K Admissions at Home In Fresh Hit For Telfaz11. Deadline. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://deadline.com/2024/02/saudi-feature-night-courier-tops-600k-admissions-box-office-hit-for-telfaz11-1235840410/. 28 February 2024.
Goodfellow, Melaine (2023). Ali Kalthami Talks Fall Fest Hit & Palm Springs Selection ‘Night Courier’: ‘I Wanted to Show What’s Happening Now in Saudi.’ Deadline. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://deadline.com/2023/12/ali-kalthami-mandoob-night-courier-palm-springs-contemporary-saudi-arabia-1235665362/. 13 December 2023.
Grobar, Matt (2023). Yvette Nicole Brown and Jonnie ‘Dumbfoundead’ Park Join Cast of Anderson Paak’s Stampede Pic ‘K-Pops!’; Live Nation Aboard as Strategic Partner. Deadline. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://deadline.com/2023/10/k-pops-movie-yvette-nicole-brown-dumbfoundead-anderson-paak-1235579197/. 20 October 2023.
Hamawi, Lama al- (2022). MBC Launches New Headquarters in Riyadh. Arab News. Accessed 26 June 2024: https://arab.news/wugf3. 19 September 2022.
Hariharan, Sindhu (2018). Saudi Arabia-Based Digital Media Startup Telfaz11 Raises US$9 Million Series A. Entrepreneur Middle East. Accessed 1 January 2025: https://www.entrepreneur.com/en-ae/finance/saudi-arabia-based-digital-media-startup-telfaz11-raises/315250. 18 June 2018.
Hudson, Dale and Alia Yunis (2023). Introduction: Interconnecting Histories and Migrating Cultures. In Hudson, Dale and Alia Yunis (eds.), Reorienting the Middle East, pp. 1–54. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.
Hopewell, John (2019). Agusti Villaronga’s ‘Born a King’ Catches Box Office Fire in UAE, Saudi Arabia. Variety. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://variety.com/2019/film/global/agusti-villaronga-born-a-king-catches-box-office-fire-uae-saudi-arabia-1203358684/. 4 October 2019.
Khudair, Deema al- (2019). Saudi National Day turns Spotlight on Cinema’s Golden Years. Arab News. Accessed 31 October 2024: https://www.arabnews.com/node/1558166/saudi-arabia. 22 September 2019.
Leigh-Hewitson, Nadia (2022). New Beaches and the Largest Exhibition Center in the Middle East: Can Bahrain Become a Tourist Hotspot? CNN. Accessed 28 June 2024: bit.ly/3xt9m19. 29 March 2022.
Mingant, Nolwenn (2022). Hollywood Films in North Africa and the Middle East: A History of Circulation. Albany, NY: SUNY Press.
Mirangi, Suzi (2020). Making the Final Cut: Filmmaking and Complicating National Identity in Qatar and the GCC States. In Ginsberg, Terri and Chris Lippard (eds.), Cinema of the Arab World, pp. 45–70. Cham: Springer Nature.
Müvī Sīnemā. @muvicinemas (2024) [X]. ‘Asmaʿa al-ʿArḍ alqawīy 🔥😎 ibtidāʾ min 25 Yanāyir ilā 31 Yanāyir taḏkirataku bi25 riyāl lilaflām as-Saʿüdiyya ʿalā jamīʿ at-Tajārib ḥattā suits fī #müvī_sīnemā 😏 [X]. Available at bit.ly/3L04Avg. Accessed 30 June 2024.
Lakhpatwala, Zaira (2020). Netflix Exec on the 5-year Partnership with Saudi Animation Studio Myrkott. Arab News. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://arab.news/r7ks2. 16 September 2020.
Masameer (2015). Junūd Ḵurāfa. YouTube. Available at: bit.ly/3VWpyRM. Accessed 20 June 2024.
Meza, Ed (2023). Breaking Boundaries Part of Saudi Arabia’s Storytelling Traditions, Says ‘Mandoob’ Director Ali Kalthami. Variety. Accessed 28 June 2024: bit.ly/3RD49L1. 8 October 2023.
Mullany, William (2019). HWJN—Saudi Novel to Become TV, Film Franchise. Arab News. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://www.arabnews.com/node/1497671/lifestyle. 16 May 2019.
Ntim, Zac (2023). Tawfik Alzaidi On Elevating Saudi Arabia’s Cinematic Ambitions with His Debut Feature ‘Norah’ & Being The First Local Production To Shoot In AlUla—Red Sea Studio. Deadline. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://deadline.com/video/tawfik-alzaidi-norah-saudi-arabia-alula-red-sea-studio/. 6 December 2023.
O’Falt, Chris (2013). Influences: The Movies That Inspired ‘Wadjda’ Director Haiffa Al-Mansour to Make History. The Hollywood Reporter. Accessed 1 January 2025: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/influences-movies-inspired-wadjda-director-665035/. 18 December 2013.
O’Toole, Lesley (2024). Muvi Leads Rapidly Growing Film Market in Saudi Arabia. Variety. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://variety.com/2024/biz/news/muvi-leads-rapidly-growing-film-market-saudi-arabia-1235872553/. 17 January 2024.
Red Sea International Film Festival (2024). Souq Exhibitors. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://redseafilmfest.com/en/souk-exhibitors/.
Ritman, Alex (2023). In Major Reversal, Gulf Moviegoers Are Now Traveling to Saudi Arabia to Watch Films Banned at Home. Hollywood Reporter. Accessed 29 June 2024: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/saudi-arabia-films-ban-travel-barbie-1235561673/. 11 August 2023.
Saeed, Saeed (2024). OSN to exclusively premiere new films and series from Warner Bros and Max Originals. National. Accessed 30 October 2024: https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/film-tv/2024/05/28/osn-warner-bros-pictures-max-originals/. 27 May 2024.
Salisbury, Mark (2022). How Local Production Norah Represents a New Wave of Saudi Filmmaking. Screen Daily. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://www.screendaily.com/features/how-local-production-norah-represents-a-new-wave-of-saudi-filmmaking/5174109.article. 5 September 2022.
Santana, Rebecca (2009). Bahrain’s Allure for Saudis Extends Beyond Alcohol. San Diego Union-Tribune. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2009/07/21/bahrains-allure-for-saudis-extends-beyond-alcohol/. 21 July 2009.
Saudi Arabia Television and Streaming Market Share Analysis (2023). Parrot Analysis. Accessed 28 June 2024: https://www.parrotanalytics.com/insights/saudi-arabia-television-and-streaming-market-share-analysis-q1-2023-netflix-hbo-mbc-shahid-and-cbs/. 5 July 2023.
Saudi Arabia to Allow First Alcohol Sales in 72 Years, Dividing Opinion. (2024). The Guardian. Accessed 15 June 2024: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/jan/25/saudi-arabia-to-allow-first-alcohol-sales-in-72-years-dividing-opinion. 25 January 2024.
Shafik, Viola (2007). Arab Cinema: History and Cultural Identity. Cairo: American University in Cairo Press.
Saudi Cinema Box Office reaches $800m, Top Gun: Maverick is Highest Grossing Film. (2023). Arabian Business. Accessed 20 June 2024: bit.ly/48YDAWu. 5 September 2023.
Szalai, Georg and Etan Vlessing (2023). Red Sea Film Festival: Zarrar Kahn’s ‘In Flames’ Wins Best Movie Award. The Hollywood Reporter. Accessed 20 June 2024: bit.ly/3zpisfI. 7 December 2023.
Thirty-one Saudi Movies Screened since 2018. (2023). Saudi Gazette. Accessed 20 June 2024: https://www.saudigazette.com.sa/article/631547. 12 April 2023.
Turki, Nada al- (2024). Award-winning Saudi film ‘Norah’ Premiers in Theaters across the Country. Arab News. Accessed 20 June 2024: https://www.arabnews.com/node/2534291/amp. 20 June 2024.
Vivarelli, Nick (2022a). Saudi Arabia Launches 40% Film Production Rebate. Variety. Accessed 20 June 2024: https://variety.com/2022/film/news/saudi-arabia-40-film-production-rebate-1235278230/. 26 May 2022.
Vivarelli, Nick (2022b). Saudi Arabia’s Neom Media Hub Announces First Sound Stages Along with Cash Rebate. Variety. Accessed 17 June 2024: https://variety.com/2022/film/global/saudi-arabia-neom-sound-stages-cash-rebate-1235372276/. 14 September 2022.
Vivarelli, Nick (2023). Saudi Thriller ‘Mandoob’ Beats ‘Wonka’ to Score Record Local Opening. Variety. Accessed 1 July 2024: https://variety.com/2023/film/global/mandoob-box-office-beat-wonka-record-opening-1235843607/. 18 December 2023.
Yupilami, Mars (2016). Hisham Fageeh: Dating Saudi-style. Accessed 2 November 2024: https://www.the-berliner.com/film/interview-hisham-fageeh/. 2 February 2016.
All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
---|---|---|---|
Abstract Views | 341 | 341 | 126 |
Full Text Views | 17 | 17 | 5 |
PDF Views & Downloads | 61 | 61 | 13 |
Despite the recent boom in Saudi Arabia’s film industry, scholarly literature addressing the topic remains limited. This article fills the gap by drawing on my extensive research of the Saudi film industry, which has made innovative contributions to rethinking how we approach Saudi film and the Kingdom’s culture more broadly. Here I include interviews conducted in Saudi Arabia and Japan between October 2023 and May 2024. Among the individuals interviewed were leading film professionals, key figures in Film AlUla and other new Saudi film institutions, and a Saudi partner in Japan’s anime industry—many of whose perspectives have not been included in previous scholarly works. In addition, I discuss Mandoob and other recent Saudi films. Ultimately, I aim to provide a fresh vision of the industry’s history, its recent achievements and the factors shaping its future.
All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
---|---|---|---|
Abstract Views | 341 | 341 | 126 |
Full Text Views | 17 | 17 | 5 |
PDF Views & Downloads | 61 | 61 | 13 |