AND THE ENVELOPE PLEASE: SAUDI'S FIRST EVER FILM

C O N F I D E N T I A L RIYADH 000367 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/04/2013 TAGS: KPAO PGOV SA SCUL SOCI SUBJECT: AND THE ENVELOPE PLEASE: SAUDI'S FIRST EVER FILM FESTIVAL REF: 07 RIYADH 163 Classified By: CONSUL GENERAL JOHN S. KINCANNON FOR REASONS 1.4(b) AND (d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: From May 20 through May 24, the first ever Saudi film festival will be held in Dammam, Eastern Province. Organizers hope the event will usher in a period of greater cultural freedom and expression for the Saudi artistic community. While public SAG recognition is lacking, the festival organizers have received a 100,000 SAR ($26,667) donation from the Saudi Ministry of Culture and Information. Organizers report that although the event has been publicized in recent Saudi and international media outlets, they have yet to receive any condemnation or threat of interference from religious conservatives. The festival has received strong interest from many Saudi filmmakers and organizers are encouraged by the potential to create an annual cultural festival in ultra-conservative Saudi Arabia. END SUMMARY. -------------- NOT JUST A MOVIE FESTIVAL -------------- ¶2. (C) Recent news reports in the New York Times, BBC, Rotana and Qataria announced the first-ever Saudi film festival, to be held in Dammam, Saudi Arabia between May 20 and 24, 2008. The festival will be co-sponsored by the Eastern Province Literary Society ("EPLS") and the Arabian Arts and Culture Society ("AACS"). Both organizations are private groups based in Dammam and receive substantial financial support from the SAG. On February 28, PAO and PolOff met with the EPLS's executive director, Ahmed Al Mulla, to learn more about this event. Al Mulla explained how he and AACS's Abdulaziz Al Sumael wanted to promote the growing community of Saudi filmmakers who otherwise have no ability to screen their work (NOTE: Movie theaters are officially prohibited in Saudi Arabia because of the strict Wahhabi interpretation of Islam. Public exhibition halls are generally frowned upon unless they are under the strict control of SAG ministries. END NOTE). Al Mulla described how only three films made by Saudi directors were presented at the 2003 Emirate Film Competition held in Abu Dhabi. By 2006, that number had jumped to 18 films by Saudis. The lack of a venue to promote or screen such works in Saudi Arabia led Al Mulla and Al Sumael to develop the film festival concept. In addition to providing the manpower and logistical efforts, both the EPLS and the AACS will donate 15,000 SAR ($4,000). Al Mulla explained how he obtained a commitment of 100,000 SAR ($26,667) from Saudi Deputy Minister for Culture and Information Dr. Abdulaziz al Subael, who Al Mulla described as very excited about the project. ¶3. (C) Al Mulla commented he felt the support and lack of obstruction from the SAG represents one method for the government to support moderation. Despite privately approving the event and even providing funding, the SAG is simultaneously withholding explicit approval to refrain from angering the more conservative religious elements that support the government. According to Al Mulla, when asked if he would attend the event, the Deputy Minister replied he may "be out of town and not available." Despite Subael's ambivalence, by promoting a bottom-up reform model, Al Mulla feels the government is trying to counteract the negative public image of Saudi Arabia in the international media, without publicly advocating potentially controversial events. ¶4. (C) In the past, one significant obstacle to cultural events such as the film festival was interference by members from the SAG's Committee to Promote Virtue and Prevent Vice, otherwise known as the religious police or "Mutaw'a". Members of the committee have obstructed such events in the past on the grounds they would lead to the mixing of genders and violate Islamic tenets. The EPLS faced an altercation with these religious police in January 2007 when the Mutaw'a disrupted the screening of a movie at the Society's office building because of a rumor the movie would be shown in a room with mixed gender (REFTEL). This incident was diffused and the EPLS continues to hold weekly movie screenings in segregated rooms at its Dammam office building. ConOffs asked Al Mulla what the festival's organizers would do if the Mutaw'a appeared at the film festival. Al Mulla explained the organizers would use the same approach the EPLS utilized in 2007; they would invite the Mutaw'a to observe the festival for themselves and explain that the organizers were following proper Saudi customs. Al Mulla felt that so long as there were separate screenings for male and female audiences, the religious police would have no basis for complaint. -------------- GOLDEN PALMS: WHAT'S A SAUDI FILM LIKE? -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Al Mulla stated the organizers expect about 500-600 guests to visit during the five day film festival. Admission will be free and open to the public. Short films made by 20 to 30 Saudi directors will be screened twice during the festival. The film categories will be dramas, including comedy and action, animation, and documentaries. A panel of judges will select the best film from each category, with the film's creators winning a 10,000 SAR ($2,667) cash award along with a golden palm trophy. Additionally, a screenplay competition will be held, with the writer of the best work awarded 10,000 SAR cash towards the cost of producing their written script into a short movie. ¶6. (C) During the festival, a director's workshop will be held with Egyptian director Dr. Ali al Fifi. A lifetime achievement award will also be given to Abdulla al Moohasen, who began directing in the 1970s and is considered the pioneer of the Saudi film movement. Al Moohasen's most famous work is the movie "Shadows of Silence". Festival judges will include Qatif, Eastern Province native Abdulkhaled al Ghanem (also the director of the popular Arabic TV show "Tash Ma Tash"),Khaled al Sabeh (Hayat Newspaper critic),Fahd al Ousta (Sharq al Awsat Newspaper critic),and Amin Saleh (Bahraini movie critic). ¶7. (C) While the film festival has financial commitments from the SAG and the two cultural groups, the costs associated with publicizing the event, providing cash awards, and funding the travel and accommodations of the various participants are expected to easily exceed the current 130,000 SAR budget. Al Mulla acknowledged that while they are continuing to search for private donations to cover the shortfall, he was confident they would have all the necessary resources before May. (COMMENT: A test of Saudi society's interest in promoting and holding such cultural exhibitions in the future will be whether these "angel" benefactors are found in time. END COMMENT). (APPROVED: KINCANNON) FRAKER