by Gill Pringle in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Now in its fourth year, the Red Sea International Film Festival in Saudi Arabia has swiftly become a hot destination for Hollywood royalty.
From its 2020 launch attended by Catherine Deneuve, Hilary Swank, Anthony Mackie and Clive Owen, the festival has expanded to include a Who’s Who of Oscar winners – Michael Douglas, Michelle Yeoh, Will Smith and Catherine Zeta-Jones among the many stars who graced last night’s opening night red carpet.
Adding to that dazzling list was Cynthia Erivo, Emily Blunt, Vin Diesel, Jake Gyllenhaal, Matt Damon, Park Sung Hoon and Eva Longoria.
One can only imagine that Egyptian filmmaker Karim Shenawy never expected such illustrious company to attend the Opening Night premiere of his drama The Tale of Daye’s Family [below], a Saudi-Egyptian co-production.
The star-studded premiere also served to unveil RSIFF’s brand new Cultural Square – a designated hub for film lovers boasting five screens in a grand building closely resembling the architecture of centuries past, situated in the old town of Al Badad in Jeddah, a UNESCO site.
With millions of dollars spent on infrastructure over the past four years, in addition to the construction of regional film studios and tax bonuses to lure filmmakers to Saudi, RSIFF has signaled its intention to stay in the film festival game for the long haul.
Co-hosting the Opening Night Ceremony was Australian-Lebanese actress Danielle Rahme, overseeing the presentation of three honorary awards – to award-winning Indian cinema icon Aamir Khan [left], presented by Eva Longoria; Academy Award nominee Emily Blunt, presented by Michelle Yeoh; and award-winning Egyptian actor Mona Zaki, presented by Minnie Driver.
A Special Recognition Award was also presented to Vin Diesel, to acknowledge and celebrate his body of work, presented by Michelle Rodriguez.
Rodriguez was among the many returning guests who have become enchanted by this ancient location overlooking the Red Sea, delighted to introduce her Fast & Furious co-star to its exotic delights.
“I’ve been coming here for quite a few years, and to see the evolution … it’s so beautiful.
“I mean, he’s going to come up and tell you himself, because all I’ve been doing is ranting and raving about this place for the last five years. And he’s like, ‘all right, let me go see what she’s talking about already’. So, let me just introduce to you a man who’s been in my life and been my partner in crime making movies for over 24 years.
“If it weren’t for Vin Diesel, I would have to say being a knucklehead kid from New York who’s really hard-headed and set in her ways and doesn’t like doing what anybody tells her to do, it’s really hard to find another partner when you’re like that. And the only human on this planet that stood by my side all those years and literally said, ‘we’re going to work together. We’re going to make this happen’. And you know, we’ve just been creatively in rooms, defending storytelling and defending people with our colour skin, and defending the beauty of the streets and the beauty of people who don’t necessarily live by the rules of others. And there’s nobody who’s just with a heart wide open defended that as much as that man that I’m about to introduce to you, Vin Diesel,” said the actress, clearly emotional.
Wearing shades, Diesel bounced up on the stage to collect his honorary award, saying to the largely Arab audience, “I’m just in awe with what you’re doing here. I’m just in awe of this film festival that you can feel the warmth and to see old friends, to see Michelle Yeoh, who I haven’t seen in so long, and to see Eva and Will and God knows, these films wouldn’t be made without Michelle Rodriguez.
“But even to see Spike – now, can I talk for a second about when I see Spike? In the ‘80s, I was doing extra work on Spike’s movies. So, when I saw Spike, I would try to run because they would say: ‘If anyone sees you as an extra, you’ll always be an extra’, so I was doing extra work on his movies and hiding. I would check in, hide the whole day, then come back later. But I bet you never knew that,” Diesel said, addressing the iconic Malcolm X and BlackKklansmen director from the stage, as he slowly took in the starry room.
“You know, there might be more familiar faces here than in some of the award shows back in America. Am I crazy to say that it’s just so many great people here?”
The week continues with a rigorous In Conversation program featuring Viola Davis, Andrew Garfield, Cynthia Erivo, Sarah Jessica Parker, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Nick Jonas, Olivia Wide, actor and poet Ibrahim Alhasawi, Moshal Almutairi, Johnny Depp and director Michael Mann.
While Baz Luhrmann served as Jury President last year, Spike Lee takes over the reins for the fourth edition, heading a jury consisting of Minnie Driver, actor/producer Daniel Dae Kim, Egyptian filmmaker Abu Bakr Shawky (Yomeddine), and Turkish actress Tûba Büyüküstün.
The all-new revamped Red Sea Souk market – again boasting a new home – returns with five days of opportunities for filmmakers and creatives, bringing together 142 exhibitors from 32 countries.
Showcasing 122 films from 85 countries, RSIFF features 46 world premieres also highlighting the works of 37 visionary filmmakers from 29 countries.
As with any good film festival, RSIFF brings together strange bedfellows and it was anybody’s guess what Will Smith and Vin Diesel were giggling about as they sat side by side in Cultural Square’s main cinema. Or indeed, what fellow Brits Cynthia Erivo and Emily Blunt were whispering about sat side-by-side in the front row.
Deeming the opening night of the 10-day program to be a grand success, Shivani Pandya Malhotra, Managing Director of RSIFF, said: “Our lineup of speakers this year brings together an incredible group of pioneering artists that will be sharing insights and anecdotes from their varied and acclaimed careers across our In Conversation programme. From award-winning filmmakers to stars of the screen, we’re truly honoured to be welcoming all of the speakers to Jeddah this year, as we come together in celebration of the best of filmmaking at our New Home of Film in Al Balad.”
