Lebanese director Katia Jarjoura has picked up the top Red Sea Souk Production Award for Robbing Beirut, a heist thriller that includes a $75,000 grant award, as prize giving at the Jeddah, Saudi Arabia event got underway.
Robbing Beirut centers on an event planner in Beirut who, in order to raise funds for her sister’s medical operation, robs her own bank to reclaim savings frozen by the financial system amid her country’s economic collapse. But the heist takes an unexpected turn.
The main film competition for the fourth edition of the Red Sea Film festival is still to wrap deliberations and hand out its awards, with the jury led this year by Spike Lee. The fest will see 16 movies compete in the main competition lineup of its latest edition running Dec. 5-14, including Reema Kagti’s Superboys of Malegaon and Kurdwin Ayub’s Moon.
Other prize winners on Wednesday included the $70,000 Red Sea Labs Production Award for a Red Sea Lodge project going to Mahamed Al’Omda’s Blue Card; a $50,000 grant in the same category went to Lydia Matata’s Pepo Kali; and a $40,000 grant went to The Silent Ones, by director Jawahine Zentar.
In the category of projects in development, the Red Sea Souk jury gave a $30,000 prize to Makbul Mubarak’s Watch It Burn.
The prize giving on Wednesday followed the Red Sea festival unveiling 38 feature film projects and, for the first time, TV series projects featured at this year’s Red Sea Souk Project Market that are either works-in-progress or in development.
The projects from directors in the Arab world, Africa and Asia stemmed from the Red Sea Labs annual development program within the Lodge, which is run in partnership with TorinoFilmLab and sponsored by Film Alula.
Shivani Pandya Malhotra, managing director of the Red Sea Film Foundation, said in a statement about the prize giving: “This year’s Red Sea Souk winners reflect the incredible talent and creativity emerging from Saudi Arabia, Arab world, Africa, and Asia. These regions hold immense storytelling power, and through initiatives like the Souk, we’re proud to support these voices, offering them a platform to flourish.”
Holly Daniel, director of the Red Sea Souk, or market, added: “This edition of the Souk Project market had a record number of meeting requests for the projects in selection which reflects the high caliber and potential of the teams taking part. We thank all our award partners for their support of the Souk and the amazing projects that they continue to champion.”
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