JEDDAH — The Saudi film project, “Sharshaf”, has been chosen to partake in the Tribeca Film Institute (TFI) Virtual Network, in partnership with the Red Sea Film Festival.

“Sharshaf,” directed by Hind Al Fahhad, written by Hana Alomair, and produced by Talal Ayeel, will represent Saudi Arabia at TFI Network, which will take place from April 27 to May 1, 2020. TFI Network will be conducted virtually this year in the wake of global outbreak of coronavirus.

“Sharshaf” is one of the inaugural Red Sea Lodge projects. The Red Sea Lodge program, launched as a partnership between the Red Sea Film Festival and Torino Film Lab where the 12 selected projects were to participate in three residency workshops; the first of which took place in November 2019. Six of the projects were from Saudi Arabia and an equal number of them from the Arab world. The final workshop of the program scheduled to take place in March has been postponed due to the ongoing coronavirus measures.

TFI Network presented by AT&T is a filmmaker/ industry market hosted each year during the Tribeca Film Festival. These market meetings provide an opportunity for filmmakers to meet and make valuable connections with industry executives, financiers, producers, marketers, and other key parties who can potentially help their projects.

This year 43 projects will take part in the event, four of which are from the Arab world. These exceptional projects, chosen both through partnerships and the application pool, are in all stages of development, production or post-production. These filmmakers also receive year-round mentorship and professional guidance by the TFI Artist Programs department.

Set in Riyadh in 1978, “Sharshaf” tells the story of a conservative Muslim woman “Haila", who expands her understanding of the society around her and builds bridges in her new marriage after her eyes are opened to the magic of cinema.

Director Hind Al Fahhad is a Saudi filmmaker who started directing in 2012. She began with short films which screened in local and international film festivals such as the Abu Dhabi International Film Festival, Dubai International Film Festival, and the Arab Film Festival in Arizona. She has also directed several television episodes.

Producer Talal Ayeel has worked as a film director and producer since 2002 in Saudi Arabia.

Screenwriter Hana Alomair is a Saudi writer, filmmaker and film critic. Her script “Hadaf” won Best Script in the Saudi Film Competition in 2008, and her second short film “The Complaint” won the award for Best Short Fiction Film in Saudi Film Competition in 2015. — SG