The right costume can evoke emotions and awaken a character in a way that no other part of a film can. And this is why Film AlUla, the Royal Commission for AlUla’s film agency, has just announced that Italian-Japanese artistic and creative director Nicola Formichetti is its new costume mentor for its AlUla Creates initiative.
Developing AlUla as a tourist destination is a mega project for Saudi Arabia, and Film AlUla positions this northwest region in the country as an international filming destination, building it out with facilities and infrastructure for blockbuster film production. The 2023 film Kandahar, featuring Gerard Butler, was filmed in AlUla.
So, tapping Formichetti is a strategic move by Film AlUla, as his accomplishments in fashion have created iconic pop cultural moments in history. It was Formichetti who was behind Lady Gaga’s 2009 MTV Video Music Awards appearance, with her five dress changes in Jean Paul Gaultier...
Developing AlUla as a tourist destination is a mega project for Saudi Arabia, and Film AlUla positions this northwest region in the country as an international filming destination, building it out with facilities and infrastructure for blockbuster film production. The 2023 film Kandahar, featuring Gerard Butler, was filmed in AlUla.
So, tapping Formichetti is a strategic move by Film AlUla, as his accomplishments in fashion have created iconic pop cultural moments in history. It was Formichetti who was behind Lady Gaga’s 2009 MTV Video Music Awards appearance, with her five dress changes in Jean Paul Gaultier...
- 4/2/2024
- by Allyson Portee
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Santa Isn't Real: "After suffering a brutal attack on Christmas eve, a young woman, Nikki, struggles to convince her friends that the assailant was none other than Ol' Kris Kringle. When Santa returns to terrorize the group in their remote cabin the next Christmas, Nikki and her friends must overcome disbelief as they fight to stay alive."
Written and Directed by: Zac Locke (The Voyeurs, Black Christmas) Country of Origin: USA Language: English Genre: Horror Distributor: XYZ Films Run Time: 76 minutes Cast: Scarlett Sperduto, Dana Millican, Kaya Coleman
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The Cello: "Like many musicians, accomplished Saudi cellist Nasser (Samer Ismail) has aspirations for greatness, though he feels like he’s held back by the old, dilapidated instrument he’s forced to play. When Nasser is offered the chance to take possession of a gorgeous red cello by a mysterious shop owner (Tobin Bell), he finds new inspiration both for his playing and for his composing.
Written and Directed by: Zac Locke (The Voyeurs, Black Christmas) Country of Origin: USA Language: English Genre: Horror Distributor: XYZ Films Run Time: 76 minutes Cast: Scarlett Sperduto, Dana Millican, Kaya Coleman
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The Cello: "Like many musicians, accomplished Saudi cellist Nasser (Samer Ismail) has aspirations for greatness, though he feels like he’s held back by the old, dilapidated instrument he’s forced to play. When Nasser is offered the chance to take possession of a gorgeous red cello by a mysterious shop owner (Tobin Bell), he finds new inspiration both for his playing and for his composing.
- 12/4/2023
- by Jonathan James
- DailyDead
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live: "AMC Networks announced tonight that The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live, the highly anticipated next series in the Walking Dead Universe, will premiere Sunday, February 25, 2024 on AMC and AMC+. A new teaser for the series, which stars Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira as beloved Twd characters Rick Grimes and Michonne, was also released during tonight’s series finale of Fear the Walking Dead.
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live presents an epic love story of two characters changed by a changed world. Kept apart by distance. By an unstoppable power. By the ghosts of who they were. Rick and Michonne are thrown into another world, built on a war against the dead... And ultimately, a war against the living. Can they find each other and who they were in a place and situation unlike any they've ever known before? Are they enemies?...
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live presents an epic love story of two characters changed by a changed world. Kept apart by distance. By an unstoppable power. By the ghosts of who they were. Rick and Michonne are thrown into another world, built on a war against the dead... And ultimately, a war against the living. Can they find each other and who they were in a place and situation unlike any they've ever known before? Are they enemies?...
- 11/21/2023
- by Jonathan James
- DailyDead
Cannes, France – 18 May 2023 – In celebration of female voices in film, the Red Sea International Film Festival (RedSeaIFF) and Vanity Fair Europe hosted the Women's Stories Gala event this evening, shining a light on the achievements of women both on and behind the camera who are helping shape the film industry and inspire a new generation of talent in Saudi Arabia, Africa, and India.
During the event held alongside the 76th Cannes Film Festival at the spectacular Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Cap d'Antibes, the RedSeaIFF and Vanity Fair Europe honoured six women making significant strides, breaking down barriers and paving the way for future generations.
They include; Fatima AlBanawi – Saudi actor, director and writer who received international acclaim for her leading role in Barakah Meets Barakah (2016) and broke cinema records with her latest AlHamour (2023). She has played an array of roles ranging from the road-trip thriller Route 10, family drama Champions,...
During the event held alongside the 76th Cannes Film Festival at the spectacular Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Cap d'Antibes, the RedSeaIFF and Vanity Fair Europe honoured six women making significant strides, breaking down barriers and paving the way for future generations.
They include; Fatima AlBanawi – Saudi actor, director and writer who received international acclaim for her leading role in Barakah Meets Barakah (2016) and broke cinema records with her latest AlHamour (2023). She has played an array of roles ranging from the road-trip thriller Route 10, family drama Champions,...
- 5/20/2023
- by Adam Symchuk
- AsianMoviePulse
Vanity Fair Europe held a Cannes Film Festival party this year with the Red Sea International Film Festival, together hosting the Women’s Stories Gala After Party on Thursday at the famed Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Cap d’Antibes.
The glamorous event was attended by Maiwenn, Gaspar Noé, Katie Holmes, Storm Reid, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, The Weeknd, Gurinder Chadha, Fan Bingbing, Mila Al Zahrani, Freida Pinto, Simone Marchetti, Eva Herzigová, Jomana Alrashid and Naomi Campbell & more. They were hosted by Mohammed Al-Turki, CEO of Red Sea Film Festival, and Simone Marchetti, Vanity Fair European Editorial Director.
Scroll through the photos below to see what the stars wore.
The glamorous event was attended by Maiwenn, Gaspar Noé, Katie Holmes, Storm Reid, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, The Weeknd, Gurinder Chadha, Fan Bingbing, Mila Al Zahrani, Freida Pinto, Simone Marchetti, Eva Herzigová, Jomana Alrashid and Naomi Campbell & more. They were hosted by Mohammed Al-Turki, CEO of Red Sea Film Festival, and Simone Marchetti, Vanity Fair European Editorial Director.
Scroll through the photos below to see what the stars wore.
- 5/19/2023
- by Robert Lang
- Deadline Film + TV
Katie Holmes hit Cannes on Thursday to announce her involvement in a filmmaking mentoring program aimed at emerging Saudi Arabian female filmmakers, in a glossy event taking place in the newly refurbished Carlton hotel.
The program is the second part of the AlUla Creates initiative set up to nurture future generations of Saudi Arabian talent in the areas of film, the arts and fashion.
Related: Cannes Film Festival Full Coverage
Under the filmmaking mentoring program, Holmes will team up with Film AlUla to identify three emerging female Saudi filmmakers, who she will then mentor throughout the year.
The mentorship will kick off with a location scouting trip to AlUla to develop and structure a short film concept. The winning concept will be announced later this year and is slated for production in Q1 2024 in AlUla.
“I believe that women from all parts of the world should be empowered to follow...
The program is the second part of the AlUla Creates initiative set up to nurture future generations of Saudi Arabian talent in the areas of film, the arts and fashion.
Related: Cannes Film Festival Full Coverage
Under the filmmaking mentoring program, Holmes will team up with Film AlUla to identify three emerging female Saudi filmmakers, who she will then mentor throughout the year.
The mentorship will kick off with a location scouting trip to AlUla to develop and structure a short film concept. The winning concept will be announced later this year and is slated for production in Q1 2024 in AlUla.
“I believe that women from all parts of the world should be empowered to follow...
- 5/18/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
The programme will connect new female filmmakers with industry professionals
Saudi Arabia’s Film AlUla has launched a platform called AlUla Creates to support new talent in film, fashion and the arts.
The platform will include a global network of mentorships and is part of a year-round programme that aims to connect female filmmakers with industry professionals and access to development funds.
Saudi actor Mila Al Zahrani will act as one of the ambassadors for the platform.
AlUla Creates builds on Film AlUla’s existing development of the AlUla region as a hub for film production, including the construction of...
Saudi Arabia’s Film AlUla has launched a platform called AlUla Creates to support new talent in film, fashion and the arts.
The platform will include a global network of mentorships and is part of a year-round programme that aims to connect female filmmakers with industry professionals and access to development funds.
Saudi actor Mila Al Zahrani will act as one of the ambassadors for the platform.
AlUla Creates builds on Film AlUla’s existing development of the AlUla region as a hub for film production, including the construction of...
- 3/9/2023
- by Ellie Calnan
- ScreenDaily
Saudi Arabia’s emerging fashion design labels have been making their red carpet world premiere over the past few days at the Red Sea International Film Festival, running December 1-10 in the port city of Jeddah.
A raft of regional and international celebrity guests has been hitting gala red carpets in local creations, alongside other stars in outfits by long-established luxury brands, in an initiative spearheaded by the country’s fledgling Fashion Commission.
Related: Red Sea Film Festival News, Red Carpet & Deadline Studio Video: Full Coverage
The campaign comes just three years after the country relaxed ultra-strict dress codes stipulating that women had to wear an abaya and cover their hair in public, as part of reforms to open up society and diversify the economy away from a reliance on oil revenues.
The push to promote Saudi Arabia’s emerging fashion labels on the Red Sea’s red carpet is the brainchild of Burak Cakmak,...
A raft of regional and international celebrity guests has been hitting gala red carpets in local creations, alongside other stars in outfits by long-established luxury brands, in an initiative spearheaded by the country’s fledgling Fashion Commission.
Related: Red Sea Film Festival News, Red Carpet & Deadline Studio Video: Full Coverage
The campaign comes just three years after the country relaxed ultra-strict dress codes stipulating that women had to wear an abaya and cover their hair in public, as part of reforms to open up society and diversify the economy away from a reliance on oil revenues.
The push to promote Saudi Arabia’s emerging fashion labels on the Red Sea’s red carpet is the brainchild of Burak Cakmak,...
- 12/4/2022
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
The deal reveals growing synergies between the Egyptian and Saudi screen industries.
Saudi Arabian company Arabia Pictures Group has unveiled its involvement in a raft of high-profile Egyptian features, during a presentation at Cairo International Film Festival.
The Egyptian projects include Hani Khalifa’s drama Cairo Mecca.
Local star Mona Zaki plays a woman on a mission to participate in the Hajj, the annual Muslim pilgrimage to the holy site of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, to atone for past bad deeds.
It is lead produced by Cairo-based Film Clinic with Egypt’s Lagoonie Film Production and The Producers.
The company...
Saudi Arabian company Arabia Pictures Group has unveiled its involvement in a raft of high-profile Egyptian features, during a presentation at Cairo International Film Festival.
The Egyptian projects include Hani Khalifa’s drama Cairo Mecca.
Local star Mona Zaki plays a woman on a mission to participate in the Hajj, the annual Muslim pilgrimage to the holy site of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, to atone for past bad deeds.
It is lead produced by Cairo-based Film Clinic with Egypt’s Lagoonie Film Production and The Producers.
The company...
- 12/5/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
This review was initially published after the 2019 Venice Film Festival premiere of “The Perfect Candidate.”
As someone with a side gig on the programming team of an LGBT film festival, I’ve noticed that, while the coming-out drama is often tired and clichéd coming from American filmmakers, it can be thrilling when one is produced a part of the world where an honest conversation about queer lives is in its early stages.
It’s not a put-down, then, when I say that Saudi Arabia’s “The Perfect Candidate” reminds me of a cycle of Jane Fonda films from the 1970s and 80s — notably “Coming Home,” “The China Syndrome” and “9 to 5” — where she plays women who fight back against their understanding of the world and discover their own voices in the process. And Jane never had to do it while wearing a niqab.
With exquisite subtlety, director Haifaa Al...
As someone with a side gig on the programming team of an LGBT film festival, I’ve noticed that, while the coming-out drama is often tired and clichéd coming from American filmmakers, it can be thrilling when one is produced a part of the world where an honest conversation about queer lives is in its early stages.
It’s not a put-down, then, when I say that Saudi Arabia’s “The Perfect Candidate” reminds me of a cycle of Jane Fonda films from the 1970s and 80s — notably “Coming Home,” “The China Syndrome” and “9 to 5” — where she plays women who fight back against their understanding of the world and discover their own voices in the process. And Jane never had to do it while wearing a niqab.
With exquisite subtlety, director Haifaa Al...
- 5/15/2021
- by Alonso Duralde
- The Wrap
A lot has changed in Saudi Arabia since Haifaa Al-Mansour last made a film in her home country. Wadjda, Al-Mansour’s 2012 debut, was the first feature shot entirely in Saudi Arabia, and since then she’s worked in the US (Nappily Ever After) and UK (Mary Shelley). In the interim, Saudi Arabia passed laws that allowed cinemas to open in the country, women gained the right to vote, and in 2018 the country finally allowed women to drive. The Perfect Candidate, Al-Mansour’s keenly observed new film, examines a society in which women are acclimatizing to increased agency but still have a long way to go to equal rights.
A woman’s right behind the wheel hangs over the opening shot, which sees Dr. Maryam Alsafan (Mila Al Zahrani) drive up a muddy, disheveled road to the hospital where she works. Her shiny blue vehicle allows her the agency of traveling to and from work.
A woman’s right behind the wheel hangs over the opening shot, which sees Dr. Maryam Alsafan (Mila Al Zahrani) drive up a muddy, disheveled road to the hospital where she works. Her shiny blue vehicle allows her the agency of traveling to and from work.
- 5/13/2021
- by Orla Smith
- The Film Stage
It must have been exactly what conservative Saudis feared would happen: Let a woman like Haifaa Al-Mansour direct a movie (and the first movie ever shot in Saudi Arabia at that), and a few years later she’ll be back directing another. Only this time, there’ll be actual cinemas in the Kingdom that can show it. Let a 10-year-old girl like Wadjda, the eponymous heroine of Al-Mansour’s delightful 2012 debut, covet a bicycle, and next thing you know, women will be driving. In cars. Progress happens slowly, in little ticks and tocks of change.
- 5/12/2021
- by Jessica Kiang
- Rollingstone.com
Writer/director Haiffa Al-Mansour’s Saudi set tale tells the story of over-worked doctor Maryam Abdulaziz (Mila Al Zahrani) who, while applying for a job in Dubai, dispassionately signs up to run for office in the municipal council elections. Despite her candidacy being a formality to acquire paperwork for a job application, Maryam (the first female candidate) decides to build a campaign with her focus/aim to repair the damaged road leading to the hospital where she works.
Al-Mansour crafts a featherweight sashay through Riyadh’s cultural and political landscape with likeable/interesting characters, but the script/concept’s key themes should have better extrapolated then utilised to inform the drama to make it more commanding. Frustration and obstacles arise in the guise of societal/cultural sexism, conspiratorial MOs, ulterior motives, negative mindsets and a lack of peer support for Maryam, but the issues feel overly moderated to make Tpc wieldy.
Al-Mansour crafts a featherweight sashay through Riyadh’s cultural and political landscape with likeable/interesting characters, but the script/concept’s key themes should have better extrapolated then utilised to inform the drama to make it more commanding. Frustration and obstacles arise in the guise of societal/cultural sexism, conspiratorial MOs, ulterior motives, negative mindsets and a lack of peer support for Maryam, but the issues feel overly moderated to make Tpc wieldy.
- 3/25/2020
- by Daniel Goodwin
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
“The Perfect Candidate” by the Saudi-Arabian director Haifaa al-Mansour is one of the two films by the female filmmakers in the main competition of the Venice Film Festival, the other being Shannon Murphy with her feature debut “Babyteeth”. This is the second film that Al-Mansour completely shot in her home country, focusing again on strong female characters in a story in which men play only side roles.
Partly based on her own family, the story follows the struggle of a young doctor Maryam (Mila al Zahrani) who’s working in an emergency room in a small Saudi-Arabian town. She’s not only struggling with the conservative community whose inhabitants get rather examined by male nurses than by a much more qualified female doctor, she’s also trying to crack the tough bureaucratic system that denies help in improving the almost impossible working conditions – the road that enables ambulance cars to...
Partly based on her own family, the story follows the struggle of a young doctor Maryam (Mila al Zahrani) who’s working in an emergency room in a small Saudi-Arabian town. She’s not only struggling with the conservative community whose inhabitants get rather examined by male nurses than by a much more qualified female doctor, she’s also trying to crack the tough bureaucratic system that denies help in improving the almost impossible working conditions – the road that enables ambulance cars to...
- 9/4/2019
- by Marina D. Richter
- AsianMoviePulse
In 2013, Saudi Arabian filmmaker Haifaa al-Mansour burst on the scene with “Wadjda,” a female coming-of-age story set in a country where women’s rights still lag behind international standards. “Wadjda” was an instant success, launching al-Mansour’s career as a Hollywood filmmaker and landing her projects such as the Elle Fanning vehicle “Mary Shelley“ and the Netflix original “Nappily Ever After.” Her latest film, “The Perfect Candidate,” sees al-Mansour returning to her native country for another story of female empowerment, this time exploring the evolving political opportunities for women in Saudi Arabia.
Continue reading Mila Al Zahrani Is The Face Of Change In The First Trailer & Clips For Venice’s ‘The Perfect Candidate’ at The Playlist.
Continue reading Mila Al Zahrani Is The Face Of Change In The First Trailer & Clips For Venice’s ‘The Perfect Candidate’ at The Playlist.
- 9/2/2019
- by Matthew Monagle
- The Playlist
In “The Perfect Candidate,” the fourth feature film from Haifaa al-Mansour, Maryam (Mila Al Zahrani), a plucky young Saudi Arabian doctor, makes an impulsive decision to run for her local municipal council seat. In a nation where women are not even welcome to openly address a congregation of men, it’s an incredibly bold decision, even though the last decade has seen a series of changes and firsts for women in Saudi Arabia, and a relaxing of strict laws around women and travel, driving, and employment.
Continue reading ‘The Perfect Candidate’: Haifaa Al-Mansour Gently Marries Family Tradition & Equality [Venice Review] at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘The Perfect Candidate’: Haifaa Al-Mansour Gently Marries Family Tradition & Equality [Venice Review] at The Playlist.
- 8/31/2019
- by Christina Newland
- The Playlist
I'm happiest when I watch a great film. Not just a good one, but a really great one. Something that fills me with energy, that reminds me this is why I love going to film festivals. And I'm happy to report that the new film from Saudi Arabian filmmaker Haifaa Al-Mansour, titled The Perfect Candidate, is indeed an outstanding film. After spending some time in Hollywood making a few films, Al-Mansour returns to her roots in Saudi Arabia to tells this story of a young woman in the country who discovers her voice. It's an inspiring & uplifting film that moves briskly and gives us a good story to follow. No matter where you're from, you can connect with and enjoy this film. The Perfect Candidate is set in Saudi Arabia and follows a young doctor name Maryam, played by Mila Al Zahrani, who works at local clinic that is desperately...
- 8/30/2019
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
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