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Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival kicked off its fourth edition on Thursday with the world premiere of Karim Shenawi’s Egyptian drama “The Tale of Daye’s Family” and a glitzy red carpet featuring Will Smith, Emily Blunt, Cynthia Erivo, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Eva Longoria, Michelle Yeoh, Minnie Driver, Michael Douglas and Vin Diesel, the latter of whom received the festival’s Iconic Characters Award.
Diesel took to the stage after a warm introduction by his long-time collaborator Michelle Rodríguez, who said the two have “been creatively in rooms defending storytelling, people with our colored skin and the beauty of the streets and the people who don’t necessarily live by the rules of others.”
Michelle Rodriguez, Mohammed Al Turki and Eva Longoria attend the opening ceremony at the Red Sea Film Festival. Courtesy of Ernesto S. Ruscio/Getty Images for the Red Sea Film Festival Accepting the award, the actor quipped about the star-filled room: “There might be more familiar faces here than in some awards shows in America,” he said, adding that he doesn’t usually speaks so freely at Hollywood events but he felt inspired by the “warmth in the room.” Before leaving the stage, Diesel pointed out seat mate Will Smith, saying his colleague was “having so much fun” at the festival.
Popular on Variety The ceremony, which saw its high-profile members take their seats over an hour and a half late, also featured career achievement awards for Emily Blunt, Indian star Aamir Khan and Egyptian actress Mona Zaki.
Michelle Yeoh Courtesy of Darren Arthur/Getty Images for Red Sea Film Festival This year’s festival theme of “Home” alludes to the event’s return to its original headquarters of Al-Balad, a UNESCO World Heritage Site at the heart of the historic city centre in Jeddah. The new home of the Red Sea Film Festival is a custom-built complex inspired by the classic local architecture and envisioned with the intent of becoming a site for year-round activities relating to film.
Chairwoman of the Red Sea Film Foundation Jomana Al Rashid spoke about the long history of Al-Balad, saying she and her team felt “inspired by the heritage and humbled by the history.” Of the new festival home, Al Rashid said the complex is “a space where a new film is taking roots, a film culture of the world and for the world.” The chairwoman went on to emphasize the historic year for the foundation, which included an Oscar nomination for Kaouther Ben Hania’s “Four Daughters” and the first-ever Saudi film to play at Cannes, “Norah.”
Cynthia Erivo Courtesy of Darren Arthur/Getty Images for the Red Sea Film Festival Head of the jury Spike Lee arrived early at the red carpet, where he briefly mentioned having just wrapped post-production on “Highest to Lowest,” a reinterpretation of Akira Kurosawa’s “High and Low.” Lee said he is aiming to have the film out in early summer and went on to highlight how thrilled he is about his fifth collaboration with Denzel Washington, calling the actor “one of the greatest filmmakers ever.” The director also said he hopes Washington lands an Oscar nomination for his recent role in Ridley Scott’s epic “Gladiator II.”
Speaking about his role as head of the jury, Lee fondly recalled being allowed a special grant to shoot sequences of “Malcolm X” in the holy city of Makkah despite not being Muslim and said that being at the festival reminds him that “Hollywood can only do so much.” “This is where we are going to see the future of cinema,” he concluded.
The festival’s opening film is a Saudi-Egyptian co-production and tells the story of an 11-year-old Nubian albino boy who travels to Cairo to participate in an Egyptian version of “The Voice.” “The Tale of Daye’s Family” is one of many films in a bountiful crop of Saudi produced or co-produced titles at this year’s event, joining the likes of “Hobal,” “Saify,” “Lail Nahar” and “My Driver and I.”
The Red Sea Film Festival runs between Dec. 5-14.
