Red Sea Film Festival Shutdown-Reschedule or Watch From Home

Due to heavy rain and flooding in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, all events have been cancelled for December 9th of the Red Sea International Film Festival. Run by the non-profit Red Sea Film Foundation, the RSIFF is meant to be an attempt to showcase Arab cinema to an international audience, encouraging engagement with local talent and promoting the region’s film industry. With uncertainty regarding whether or not screenings and talks will be rescheduled, many anticipated films will unfortunately go unseen by audiences, and filmmakers have lost a crucial opportunity to share and promote their art. The extreme weather, which led to road closures and disruptions, was unseasonal for Jeddah, leading esteemed visiting filmmaker Darren Aronofsky to comment on the need for “better sewers”. However, several cancelled titles are currently available for digital streaming, both to disappointed festival goers and international audiences at home, and cancelled films are being added to the remaining days of the program. While film festivals and cinema are valuable spaces for community and promotion, these films still deserve engagement and global reach despite their cancellations. Here are the current updated statuses of films from the December 9th program:

Sirât – RESCHEDULED + STREAM

Directed by Oliver Laxe

Available for streaming – Apple TV

Screening: December 12th, Culture Square Auditorium, 10:00 PM

The Settlement – RESCHEDULED + STREAM

Directed by Mohamed Rashad

Available for streaming: Tubi, Prime Video, Roku

Screening: December 10th, Culture Square Cinema 4, 9:45 PM

All That’s Left Of You – RESCHEDULED

Directed by Cherien Dabis

Screening: December 10th, Culture Square Cinema 2, 9:00 PM and December 13th, Culture Square Cinema 1, 9:00 PM

Irkalla: Gilgamesh’s Dream – RESCHEDULED

Directed by Mohamed Jabarah Al-Daradji

Screening: December 10th, Culture Square Cinema 1, 3:30 PM and December 13th, Culture Square Cinema 5, 4:00 PM

Wedding Rehearsal – RESCHEDULED

Directed by Amira Diab

Screening: December 10th, Culture Square Auditorium, 6:30 PM and December 12th, Culture Square Cinema 5, 9:15 PM

Kwibuka Remember – RESCHEDULED

Directed by Jonas D’adesky

Screening: December 10th, Culture Square Cinema 5, 4:15 PM

Sink – RESCHEDULED

Directed by Zain Duraie

Screening: December 12th, Culture Square Cinema 3, 6:45 PM

Roqia – RESCHEDULED

Directed by Yanis Koussim

Screening: December 10th, Culture Square Cinema 4, 7:15 PM

Couture – RESCHEDULED