Cinema of Saudi Arabia

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]