The first of four funding cycles for 2022 has now opened for post-production.
Red Sea Film Foundation has announced a new funding strategy that will enable filmmakers from Saudi Arabia, the wider Arab region and Africa to bring more diverse and authentic films to global audiences.
The newly designed Red Sea Fund will expand from one funding cycle to four cycles throughout the year with two cycles dedicated to post-production, and separate cycles for development and production.
The first cycle for post-production starts on February 10 for feature films, documentaries, and animations and closes on February 24, 2022. The cycle for development support will open in April, followed by production support in June and concluding with the second post-production support cycle in August.
The four funding strands will accelerate the growth of film production and support the early careers of ambitious filmmakers in the Arab region and Africa by providing access to crucial funding throughout the year at various stages in the filmmaking process to propel projects further to completion.
Red Sea Fund launched in 2021 has received 650 submissions from 81 countries in 36 languages, of which over 30% were from female filmmakers. 97 of these projects have now received support in the form of grants and funds. Among the selected projects, 26 are from a new wave of Saudi filmmakers of which 15 have female filmmakers attached, 11 projects from African filmmakers and the remaining 60 from the wider Arab region.
Shivani Pandya Malhotra, Managing Director of Red Sea International Film Festival, said: “The Red Sea Foundation is committed to investing in, developing and promoting filmmakers from the Arab world and Africa as they continue to thrive and develop their skills to bring compelling and authentic stories across a range of genres, cultures and perspectives to the screen. Through the Red Sea Fund, we have supported a wealth of extraordinary projects, by boosting the programme with additional funding cycles, we aim to provide talented filmmakers with the tools they need to develop unique and compelling films that represent and reflect the Arab world and Africa.”
