Mahmoud Sabbagh And The ‘Challenges’ Facing Saudi Filmmakers

While helmer-writer Haifaa Al Mansour directed the first Saudi Arabian feature shot entirely within the kingdom, her charming, polished debut “Wadjda” (2012) was co-produced with Germany, and her key technicians were all German. Al Mansour, who divides her time between Bahrain and the U.S., transitioned into directing “A Storm in the Stars,” a U.S.-produced, big-budget, English-language period piece about the love affair between 18-year-old Mary Wollstonecraft and roguish older poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. Pic is now in post-production. Inspirational value aside, “Wadjda” did relatively little to develop a homegrown Saudi industry, apart from setting a precedent as the first film submitted by the kingdom to the Academy Awards for foreign-language film consideration.

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