A one-off award to realize new works for the inaugural festival, the Tamheed Fund supports feature films by Saudi filmmakers. A grant of US$500,000 for each of the winning projects will see their premieres at the Festival in March 2020.
The WINNERS are:
– THE BOOK OF SUN (SHAMS AL-MA’ARIF), directed by Faris Godus and produced by Sohayb Godus
– FORTY YEARS AND A NIGHT (ARBAOUN AMAN WA LAILA), directed by Mohammed Alholayyil and produced by Abdulrahman Khawj.
The competition received 24 submissions, with two by female directors. With diverse social settings, from major cities to villages and deserts, the projects were as eclectic as the Kingdom’s geography. With a range of distinctive genres – from neorealism to sci-fi and psychodrama – cultural heritage was explored, tracing the present moment of major social transformation into the past. More personal experiences of self-realization were charted through dramas focused on family relationships and passion for art.
THE BOOK OF SUN (SHAMS AL MA'ARIF)
THE BOOK OF SUN (SHAMS AL-MA’ARIF), directed by Faris Godus and produced by Sohayb Godus, tells the story of Hussam, a teenager about to graduate high school, who is distracted by the wave of Saudi YouTube content creation that reached its peak in 2010. Deciding to make a no-budget feature film, he puts his education and whole future at risk.
Producer: Sohayb Godus
Director: Faris Godus
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS:
Sohayb and Faris Godus came to fame through Telfaz 11 projects, especially in Jeddah. The brothers developed their own paths in film: Faris created a name for himself in directing and editing, while Sohayb developed his acting and production skills. Together, the Godus brothers made the short film DEPRESSING SCENE (2016) and recently participated in ANOTHER PLANET, a TV series on Saudi TV for the 2019 Ramadan season.
40 YEARS AND ONE NIGHT (ARBAOUN AMAN WA LAILA)
FORTY YEARS AND A NIGHT (ARBAOUN AMAN WA LAILA), directed by Mohammed Alholayyil and produced by Abdulrahman Khawj is the story of a family whose Eid al-Fitr gathering uncovers deep secrets hidden for decades. Relationships are poisoned and the stability of the family threatened.
