The decision to exhibit "Saleeg" at the June Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France has given the expanding Saudi film industry an additional push. The yearly celebration is regarded as the world's oldest and most significant animation festival. Since its inception in 1960, it has brought together thousands of global animation specialists and lovers to celebrate innovative animation styles.
The 2022 film "Saleeg" was created utilizing a variety of puppetry methods and shot in Amsterdam, Holland. The family drama, which has voices in Arabic and subtitles in Urdu, Tigrinya, and English, will have its world premiere at the festival and is up against 18 other films from 18 different nations, in the Perspectives Short Films category.
In an interview with Arab News, Saudi film director Afnan Bawyan shared that she turned to the industry in quest of a meaningful job. She discovered that films are a form of communication that unifies many components like narrative, color illustration, character creation, dialogue authoring, and life idea engineering into a single medium. Bawyan, a Makkah native with a bachelor's in chemistry, is primarily self-taught but has participated in courses led by the Saudi Film Commission and showcasing other specialists.
Bawyan stated that the detailed effort required to create small sets, create unique puppets, and efficiently manage them causes stop-motion movies to often take longer than other productions. The name of the movie is inspired by the traditional Saudi Hijazi dish from Taif City in the Makkah region.
The movie explores a number of topics in Saudi culture, such as the country's fast urbanization and the conflict between traditional and modern lifestyles, especially as it relates to the elderly. Hajar, the protagonist named after Bawyan's mother, faces challenges that push her to adapt, but ultimately lead to a positive outcome. Inspired by Bawyan's personal experiences, the story follows a lonely grandmother in a unfamiliar neighborhood. Accidentally spilling boiling rice, Hajar's obstinate independence is challenged as she confronts the threat it poses to her home and community, ultimately resulting in a beautiful ending.
Bawyan hopes that the festival will help her reach a wider audience, learn more about animation, and highlight the culture of the Kingdom. Bawyan has previously worked as a script supervisor on seven Saudi feature films. She has also participated in the Red Sea Film Labs, and won the Lab Award in 2021 during the first edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival in Jeddah.
In addition to the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, "Saleeg" will also be screened at the ninth edition of the Saudi Film Festival in May, further showcasing the growing presence of Saudi filmmaking on the global stage.
