Jeddah : The Red Sea Fund, a program under the Red Sea Film Foundation, has announced the selection of nine winning projects for its first cycle of post-production grants in 2025. These grants are dedicated to supporting exceptional films in their final stages of production.
This cycle features nine projects from countries across the Arab world and Asia, such as Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Malaysia, France, Turkey, and Tunisia. These grants are intended to facilitate the final stages of post-production, supporting the selected projects in reaching international audiences and enhancing the diversity of cinematic storytelling in the region and beyond.
List of the winning projects in the first cycle of the Red Sea Fund’s 2025 grants:
“PROMISED SKY”
Director: Erige Sehiri. Producer: Didar Domehri. Country: France, Tunisia, Qatar.
“FUXI: JOY IN FOUR CHAPTERS”
Director: Jiongjiong Qiu. Producers: Jin Zhao, Ningyuan Ding. Country: Taiwan, Japan, Hong Kong, France, Saudi Arabia.
“MOTHER BHUMI”
Director: Keat Aun Chong. Producers: Stefano Centini, Kew Soon Wong. Country: Malaysia.
“PANGKU (ON YOUR LAP)”
Director: Reza Rahadian. Producers: Arya Ibrahim, Gita Fara. Country: Indonesia.
“GHOST SCHOOL”
Director and Producer: Seemab Gul. Country: Pakistan.
“A WINNER IS SEEN AT THE START”
Director: Zhannat Alshanova. Producer: Jean-Laurent Csinidis. Country: Kazakhstan.
“THE BARONNESSES”
Directors: Nabil Ben Yadir, Mokhtaria Badaoui. Producers: Benot Roland, Nabil Ben Yadir. Country: Belgium, France, Luxembourg.
“ROUND 13”
Director: Mohamed Ali Nahdi. Producer: Melik Kochbati. Country: Tunisia.
“VEHA”
Director: Elif Sozen. Producer: Okan Uzey. Country: Turkey.
Commenting on this announcement, Emad Eskandar, Head of the Red Sea Fund, said: "These nine projects embody the richness of captivating narratives from the Arab world and Asia, and we are proud to be part of their creative journey. Last year, we expanded our scope to include Asian projects, driven by our deep belief in the immense potential of filmmakers across the continent. Today, we are witnessing the fruits of this approach through this remarkable selection of projects with unique cinematic visions."
To date, the Red Sea Fund, under the Red Sea Film Foundation, has supported over 280 film projects, including titles that have gone on to screen at major international festivals and reach wide audiences. Among them is HOBAL, which premiered at the fourth edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival and sold over 190,000 tickets in Saudi cinemas. The Fund also supported “The Tale of Daye’s Family”, the opening film of the same edition, which was later selected for the 2024 Berlin International Film Festival.
