The Red Sea Film Festival closed its fifth edition on Thursday night with a star-studded awards ceremony in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia that saw Akio Fujimoto’s “Lost Land” take home the festival’s top honor, the Golden Yusr for Best Feature Film. The ceremony opened with honorary awards given to Anthony Hopkins, Idris Elba, Darren Aronofsky and Saudi director Ahd Kamel (“My Driver and I”), with Johnny Depp and Shailene Woodley among the star guests in attendance.
“Lost Land,” the first Rohingya-language feature, follows two young siblings fleeing persecution in Myanmar on a perilous journey to join an uncle in Malaysia. Presenting the Golden Yusr to Fujimoto, Sean Baker, head of the feature jury, said the film “confronts the plight of displaced children with unflinching empathy and poetic urgency.” Top honors also came with a $100,000 cash prize. The film had its world premiere in the Horizons section at Venice this year, where it was awarded the Special Jury Prize.
The Silver Yusr for Feature Film went to Palestinian director Cherien Dabis’ “All That’s Left of You.” Jurors said the film “reminds us of our shared humanity with extraordinary tenderness,” calling it “a deeply life-affirming film that moved us profoundly.” The feature traces three generations of a Palestinian family marked by displacement that never loses hope of returning to their ancestral home. Accepting, Dabis called the film’s very existence “an act of resistance.” The Silver Yusr comes with a $30,000 prize.
Baker, who presided over the jury that included Riz Ahmed, Naomie Harris, Olga Kurylenko and Nadine Labaki, said the slate of films had themes that “felt urgent and resonant.”
Juliette Binoche earned the Al Sharq Award for Best Documentary for “IN-I: IN MOTION,” marking the Oscar-winner’s first turn as a director. Binoche, who was in Jeddah last week, but wasn’t at the closing, sent remarks crediting the festival for encouraging her new craft.
Seo Su-Bin won Best Actress for “The World of Love,” with Kurylenko noting her “remarkable depth that left the jury heartbroken.” George Khabbaz took Best Actor for “Yunan,” with Ahmed praising a performance that “mesmerized us … digging deep to inhabit a lived experience.” The film also nabbed the best director prize of $10,000 for Ameer Fakher Eldon.
Cyril Aris won Best Screenplay for “A Sad and Beautiful World,” a full circle moment for a project developed in the festival’s Red Sea Labs, with a prize of $10,000.
The Yusr for Cinematic Achievement went to “Nighttime Sounds,” directed by Zhang Zhongchen.
Saudi standout “Hijra” by Shahad Ameen won both the Yusr Jury Prize and the Film AlUla Best Saudi Film Award. Harris said of the film, “It illuminates a community and journey that rarely take center stage. Cinema’s power to challenge and to heal is evident here.”
In the shorts competition, the Golden Yusr for Best Short Film and its $25,000 accompanying prize was awarded to “Coyotes” by Said Zagha, while the Silver Yusr went to “Empty Lands” from Egyptian filmmaker Karim Eldon Elalfy. The award comes with a $12,500 cash prize. Jorj Abou Mhaya’s “Jeem 1983” received a Special Mention.
