he Red Sea International Film Festival (Red Sea IFF) marked the closing of its third edition with a screening of Micheal Mann's Ferrari, a Red Sea International Film Financing project, and revealed the winners of its highly anticipated Yusr Awards. The festival also welcomed Hollywood icon Nicolas Cage, receiving a Red Sea Honoree award, and joining the 2023 Honoree line-up of Diane Kruger, Ranveer Singh, and Abdullah Al-Sadhan. Kristoffer Borgli's comedy horror Dream Scenario, starring Nicolas Cage, will screen as the Final Festival Gala on Saturday 9th December.
Two juries deliberated to finally select winners across 14 categories; led by Jury President Baz Luhrmann. Seventeen films in competition, as well as 23 shorts, were in the running for the coveted awards.
The festival this year celebrated its biggest year yet in terms of attendance – welcoming almost 6,000 accredited guests and selling more than 40,000 tickets across all screenings and In Conversations.
The Closing Ceremony was attended by Honouree Nicolas Cage, Jason Statham, Halle Berry, Gwyneth Paltrow, Adrien Brody, Dhafer L'Abidine, Henry Golding, Andrew Garfield, Yousra, Kaouther Ben Hania, Alia Bhatt, Mahira Khan, Saswan Badr, Baloji.
Jomana Al-Rashid, Chairwoman of the Red Sea Film Foundation said: “Over the past 8 days we have welcomed the world to Jeddah and celebrated this vibrant global film community together – with a goal of bridging cultures and creating new ties. We've done that with over 125 films from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Rwanda, Armenia,
Malaysia, Pakistan, New Zealand, France, India, Thailand, and many more – as well as an industry programme in the Souk with 348 Project submissions, and 44 Works in progress from more than 26 countries. We are proud to have created a meeting place for ideas, business, and inspiration to carry us into the new year.”
Mohammed Al-Turki, CEO of the Red Sea Film Foundation said: “Closing this edition of the festival with the MENA premiere of Michael Mann's turbo-charged biopic Ferrari, supported by the Red Sea International Film Fund, and honouring one of Hollywood's greats – master of his craft, Nicolas Cage – alongside the hugely deserving winners of our Yusr Awards, means we end this edition on an absolute high.”
The Festival is supported by Principal Sponsors: MBC Group, NEOM, Vox Cinemas, and Strategic Sponsor, Film Al Ula; Official Sponsors: Al Sagheer, Chopard, the Cultural Development Fund, Chery Pro, SRMG; and Support Sponsors Bloomberg Media, Nova, and Telfaz 11.
The Red Sea International Film Festival runs from 30 November – 9 December
Please see below the full list of winners:
Asharq Documentary
Awarded for Best Documentary In Competition – a $10,000 prize
Winner: Kaouther Ben Hania for FOUR DAUGHTERS
Chopard Rising Talent Trophy
Winner: Nour Alkhadra
Film AlUla Audience Award: Saudi Film
With a $50,000 prize
Winner: NORAH / Saudi Arabia – Red Sea: Competition
Film AlUla Audience Award: Non-Saudi Film
With a $50,000 prize
Winner: HOPELESS / South Korea – Festival Favourites
Check the review with the director
Shorts
SILVER YUSR FOR BEST SHORT FILM
With a $12,500 prize
Winner: SUITCASE – Directed by Saman Hosseinpuor and Ako Zandkarimi
GOLDEN YUSR FOR BEST SHORT FILM
With a $25,000 prize
Winner: SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN – Directed by Dahlia Nemlich
Features
BEST CINEMATIC CONTRIBUTION
Winner: OMEN / Baloji
BEST ACTOR
Winner: Saleh Bakri / THE TEACHER
BEST ACTRESS
Winner: Mouna Hawa / INSHALLAH A BOY
Check the interview with the director
BEST SCREENPLAY
With a $10,000 prize
Winner: SIX FEET OVER / Karim Bensalah and Jamal Belmahi
BEST DIRECTOR
With a $10,000 prize
Winner: Shokir Kholikov / SUNDAY
JURY PRIZE
With a $10,000 prize
Winner: Farah Nabulsi / THE TEACHER
Check the interview with the director
SILVER YUSR FOR BEST FEATURE FILM
With a $30,000
Winner: DEAR JASSI / Tarsem Singh
Check the interview with the director
GOLDEN YUSR FOR BEST FEATURE FILM
With a $100,000
Winner: IN FLAMES / Zarrar Kahn
Check the review of the film
