In his interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, Saudi writer and director Hakeem Jomah explained that he expects Saudi cinema to achieve international success over the few years after the country has rapidly developed the industry and become a regional cinematic force in a short time.
“It felt good to watch my movie (King of the Ring) screen at the Red Sea International Film Festival alongside the works of prominent artists from around the world. I am confident that this makes it clear that Saudi Arabia has the capacity to catch the world’s attention and show our cinematic identity and abilities.”
Elaborating on his point further, the Saudi director adds: “Saudi cinema is going to burst onto the scene over the next few years. It will compete globally, not just regionally. While the cinema and industry emerged late on in the Kingdom as compared to the rest of the Arab world, we are fast learners, and this has become apparent over the few years since the country began opening up artistically. Indeed, I believe that Saudi films could soon be added to the shortlist for an Oscar and even win.”
Discussing his new film ‘King of the Ring,’ Hakeem tells us that “it aims to encourage viewers to pursue their dreams and work to achieve them, regardless of the circumstances. It revolves around a character with dreams, and he knows well of the obstacles in his way. Nonetheless, he continues to dream and tries to break every barrier in his path.”
He adds that the Egyptian artist involved in making the film added special flavor to it. “No Arab artist does not adore Egyptian art and artists. I believe that their role added something special to the movie, especially that of Mohammed Lutfi, Shadi Alfonso, and Salma Abu Deif, who is acting in a Saudi film for the first time.”
“The most beautiful thing about acting is that it is not constrained by language or nationality. We thus need different schools to come together so that we can give the audience a good time and present high-quality work with a message,” he adds.
The director and writer also mentioned that he is currently writing a new film that he hopes will start filming next year so that it can be screened at the third Red Sea International Film Festival and win a prize
