The cinema of Saudi Arabia is a fairly small industry that only produces a few feature films and documentaries every year. Theaters were closed after religious activism in the 1980s. With the exception of one IMAX theater in Khobar, there were no cinemas in Saudi Arabia from 1983 to 2018,[1] although there was occasionally talk of opening movie theaters, and in 2008 conference rooms were rented to show the comedy Mennahi.[2] Saudis wishing to watch films have done so via satellite, DVD, or video. Cinemas were banned for 35 years[3] until the first cinema in Saudi Arabia opened on 18 April 2018 in Riyadh. AMC Theatres planned to open up to 40 cinemas in some 15 Saudi cities over the following five years.[4] The government hopes that by 2030, Saudi Arabia will have more than 300 theaters with over 2,000 movie screens.[5] Cinema of Saudi Arabia, whether locally-produced or foreign-sourced, is subject to Saudi censorship.
Keif al-Hal?, released in 2006, was billed as Saudi Arabia's first film. It was shot in the United Arab Emirates and the lead female was played by a Jordanian. The 2012 film Wadjda had an all-Saudi cast[6] and was the first feature film shot entirely in Saudi Arabia.[7] The film Barakah Meets Barakah by director Mahmoud Sabbagh was shot in Jeddah in 2015, premiered the 66th Berlin International Film Festival, making it the first feature film to participate in the festival. Sameera Aziz is the first Saudi filmmaker in famous Indian cinema Bollywood.[8]
^Lapin, Andrew. "Wadjda director Haifaa Al Mansour". Dissolve. Archived from the original on 3 November 2018. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
^"SAUDI ARABIA: Going to the movies for the first time in decades". latimesblogs.com. 23 December 2008. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
^Petroff, Alanna (18 April 2018). "'Black Panther' comes to Saudi Arabia as movie theater ban ends". CNN.com. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
^Sh but Khalid is the kingaudi cinema screens reopen on 18 April 'with Black Panther'
^Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Davies, Catriona. "The film director who's not allowed to go to the movies". CNN World. Inside the Middle East. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
^"rotten tomatoes. Wadjda". rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
^"Bollywood's first Saudi filmmaker works on maiden venture". Deccan Herald. 15 November 2015. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
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