Arab News | Film AlUla wants audiences to delve deeper than the screen

DUBAI: Film AlUla has brought Cinema Up Close back for a second edition, with a two-month program of screenings, talks and workshops at Villa Hegra.

More than 500 residents attended last year’s event. Zaid Shaker, Film AlUla’s acting executive director, told Arab News: “That turnout told me AlUla is ready for cinema and eager to go deeper than the screen.”

The program, which runs until Dec. 18, is presented with the French Agency for AlUla Development and powered by Saudi media platform Cinema Meem. It is organized around six themes: storytelling and production, comedy, independent cinema, criticism, animation and acting.

“Ten people can watch the same film and walk out talking about 10 different moments,” Shaker said. “Each one opens a different door into cinema.”

He said the organizers chose a two-month format over a festival model because “lasting appreciation takes time.”

The lineup includes Saudi director Wael Abu Mansour, who is sharing behind-the-scenes insights from his work, and Saudi actress Sarah Taibah, who will lead acting sessions alongside screenings of her films “Hoba” and “A Matter of Life and Death.” Actor Ibrahim Al-Khairallah, film reviewer Rakan Al-Shaya and animator Walaa Sindi are also taking part.

For families, the program is screening the animated film “Bilal: A New Breed of Hero,” inspired by Bilal ibn Rabah, a companion of the Prophet Muhammad and the first muezzin in Islam, with co-director Ayman Jamal in attendance.

“When a child sees their own history on the big screen, they start to imagine making films themselves,” said Shaker.

He described Cinema Up Close as the public side of Film AlUla’s effort to build a local film sector, including training 40 AlUla residents and Saudi nationals at AlUla Studios.

Shaker said Saudi cinemas sold 18.8 million tickets in 2025, 2.8 million of them for Saudi films.