Fast rising Saudi studio Telefaz11 – the label behind record-breaking wrestling comedy “Sattar” – is set to make an ambitious concept comedy titled “Alzarfa” that will combine the heist movie and film-within-a-film genres.
“Alzarfa” is being lead produced by Telfaz11 studio founder and creative director Ibraheem Alkhairallah, a comedian, actor, writer and producer who wrote and starred in “Sattar” (pictured) the tale of a man pursuing his childhood dream of becoming a freestyle wrestler. Last year the film scored more than $10 million at the home box office becoming the kingdom’s highest grossing local title since Saudi Arabia revoked a 35-year ban on the operation of commercial movie theaters in Dec. 2017.
“Alzarfa” is about three friends who end up behind bars after a failed heist attempt. Having absconded from the slammer, they subsequently wind up in a movie being bankrolled by a wealthy Saudi tycoon about his family’s history that is...
“Alzarfa” is being lead produced by Telfaz11 studio founder and creative director Ibraheem Alkhairallah, a comedian, actor, writer and producer who wrote and starred in “Sattar” (pictured) the tale of a man pursuing his childhood dream of becoming a freestyle wrestler. Last year the film scored more than $10 million at the home box office becoming the kingdom’s highest grossing local title since Saudi Arabia revoked a 35-year ban on the operation of commercial movie theaters in Dec. 2017.
“Alzarfa” is about three friends who end up behind bars after a failed heist attempt. Having absconded from the slammer, they subsequently wind up in a movie being bankrolled by a wealthy Saudi tycoon about his family’s history that is...
- 5/21/2024
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Saudi director Ali Kalthami’s debut feature Night Courier (Mandoob) was a hot ticket at the Red Sea International Film Festival in Jeddah earlier this month and expectations are running high for its local release, which begins at midnight today.
As is often the case in Saudi Arabia right now, the Red Sea screening felt like history in the making as an intergenerational local crowd packed out the auditorium alongside international guests, lapping up the drama and deadpan humor.
The Riyadh-set social thriller stars popular Saudi actor Mohamad AlDokhei as a Fahad, a man in his late 30s, who turns to work as a night courier (mandoob) after he is sacked from his job at a call center.
When he stumbles on an illegal alcohol ring, he hatches a plan to boost his meagre earnings but then falls foul of the gang running the operation.
Fahad’s nocturnal deliveries take...
As is often the case in Saudi Arabia right now, the Red Sea screening felt like history in the making as an intergenerational local crowd packed out the auditorium alongside international guests, lapping up the drama and deadpan humor.
The Riyadh-set social thriller stars popular Saudi actor Mohamad AlDokhei as a Fahad, a man in his late 30s, who turns to work as a night courier (mandoob) after he is sacked from his job at a call center.
When he stumbles on an illegal alcohol ring, he hatches a plan to boost his meagre earnings but then falls foul of the gang running the operation.
Fahad’s nocturnal deliveries take...
- 12/13/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
’We strive to make each film distinct from one another,’ says co-founder Ali Fadan
Over the past twelve months, Telfaz11 has established itself at the forefront of the Saudi production industry.
Its comedy Sattar became the number one Saudi film ever, and the fourth biggest release of all time at the Saudi box office, with over 918,000 admissions.
Two Telfaz11 films – Ali Kalthami’s drama Mandoob and Meshal Aljaser’s suspense thriller Naga – world premiered at Toronto.
Both are playing at Red Sea before being released later this month: Naga on Netflix on December 7 and Mandoob in theatres on December 14. Abdullah...
Over the past twelve months, Telfaz11 has established itself at the forefront of the Saudi production industry.
Its comedy Sattar became the number one Saudi film ever, and the fourth biggest release of all time at the Saudi box office, with over 918,000 admissions.
Two Telfaz11 films – Ali Kalthami’s drama Mandoob and Meshal Aljaser’s suspense thriller Naga – world premiered at Toronto.
Both are playing at Red Sea before being released later this month: Naga on Netflix on December 7 and Mandoob in theatres on December 14. Abdullah...
- 12/4/2023
- by Tim Dams
- ScreenDaily
Long before it was officially announced, in late 2017, that Saudi Arabia’s 30-year ban on cinemas would be lifted, there’d been widespread gossip across the kingdom that the news was incoming.
“There was this rumor going around that there were theaters in malls already, and they’d just pull the curtain back and be like ‘tada, cinemas!,” says Alaa Fadan. As Ibraheem Al Khairallah recalls: “I remember looking around and thinking, ‘Is that the corner of a cinema?’”
But Fadan and Al Khairallah weren’t simply Saudi movie fans eagerly waiting in anticipation. As co-founders of pioneering Riyadh-based content studio Telfaz11 alongside fellow multi-hyphenate Ali Kalthami, they’d spent years carefully preparing themselves and their company, which began life making online videos, in order to take full advantage whenever the historic news would land. As Fadan notes: “We were ready for it — everything that we’d done was about...
“There was this rumor going around that there were theaters in malls already, and they’d just pull the curtain back and be like ‘tada, cinemas!,” says Alaa Fadan. As Ibraheem Al Khairallah recalls: “I remember looking around and thinking, ‘Is that the corner of a cinema?’”
But Fadan and Al Khairallah weren’t simply Saudi movie fans eagerly waiting in anticipation. As co-founders of pioneering Riyadh-based content studio Telfaz11 alongside fellow multi-hyphenate Ali Kalthami, they’d spent years carefully preparing themselves and their company, which began life making online videos, in order to take full advantage whenever the historic news would land. As Fadan notes: “We were ready for it — everything that we’d done was about...
- 9/9/2023
- by Alex Ritman
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Neom, the Saudi Arabian region that is aiming to become a major film and TV production hub, and prolific Middle East-focused studio Telfaz11, have revealed a partnership.
The deal will see the creation of up to nine television and film productions over the next three years and includes two feature films and one series that are currently in development. Telfaz11 will also open offices this year in Neom’s media hub, complementing its existing offices in Riyadh and Dubai. Neom plans to leverage Telfaz11’s new offices to diversify its industry learning activities and multi-disciplinary talent development programs in order to create a talent pool.
“Sattar,” on which Telfaz11 is one of the producers, has become the highest grossing Saudi film of all time. Neom has provided the backdrop for 30 productions in the last 18 months, including Rupert Wyatt’s “Desert Warrior,” starring Anthony Mackie and Sir Ben Kingsley; Rajkumar Hirani’s “Dunki,...
The deal will see the creation of up to nine television and film productions over the next three years and includes two feature films and one series that are currently in development. Telfaz11 will also open offices this year in Neom’s media hub, complementing its existing offices in Riyadh and Dubai. Neom plans to leverage Telfaz11’s new offices to diversify its industry learning activities and multi-disciplinary talent development programs in order to create a talent pool.
“Sattar,” on which Telfaz11 is one of the producers, has become the highest grossing Saudi film of all time. Neom has provided the backdrop for 30 productions in the last 18 months, including Rupert Wyatt’s “Desert Warrior,” starring Anthony Mackie and Sir Ben Kingsley; Rajkumar Hirani’s “Dunki,...
- 6/1/2023
- by Nick Vivarelli and Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Saudi Arabian family comedy Sattar, set against the world of freestyle wrestling, has continued its record-breaking run at home to become one of the top five highest-grossing movies in the territory ever.
Since its release on December 29, the film has sold 723,000 tickets for a box office gross of $9.2M to date.
Distributor Front Row Arabia said that the film now sits in the fifth slot in Saudi Arabia’s historic box office charts after Top Gun: Maverick ($22.6M), Spider-Man: No Way Home ($17.4M) and two Egyptian films, Bahebek ($15.7M) and Waafet Regala ($15.6M).
The success comes just five years after the lifting of Saudi Arabia’s 35-year cinema ban at the end of 2017, and bodes well for the country’s burgeoning local filmmaking scene.
Kuwaiti filmmaker Abdullah Al Arak directs a cast led by stars popular Saudi actor and stand-up comedian Ibrahim Al Hajjaj, best known for the hit action...
Since its release on December 29, the film has sold 723,000 tickets for a box office gross of $9.2M to date.
Distributor Front Row Arabia said that the film now sits in the fifth slot in Saudi Arabia’s historic box office charts after Top Gun: Maverick ($22.6M), Spider-Man: No Way Home ($17.4M) and two Egyptian films, Bahebek ($15.7M) and Waafet Regala ($15.6M).
The success comes just five years after the lifting of Saudi Arabia’s 35-year cinema ban at the end of 2017, and bodes well for the country’s burgeoning local filmmaking scene.
Kuwaiti filmmaker Abdullah Al Arak directs a cast led by stars popular Saudi actor and stand-up comedian Ibrahim Al Hajjaj, best known for the hit action...
- 3/2/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Saudi feelgood comedy-drama Sattar, which has enjoyed a record-breaking theatrical run at home, will hit U.K. cinemas next month in a release spearheaded by Mena region distributor Front Row Filmed Entertainment.
Sattar, which is set in the world of freestyle wrestling, will be only the second Saudi Arabian film to be released theatrically in the U.K. after Haifa al-Mansour’s ground-breaking 2012 international breakout Wadjda.
The film will launch on around 10 U.K. screens in London and other major U.K. cities, including Manchester, Liverpool, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Birmingham and Leeds, on February 10.
Front Row, which has struck a direct distribution, revenue-sharing deal with Odeon Cinemas, is aiming to catch the wave of the film’s success in Saudi Arabia.
The target audience is Saudi Arabian and Gulf citizens living in the U.K. but Front Row expects it to appeal to a wider Arabic-speaking audience as well as local spectators without Mena ties.
Sattar, which is set in the world of freestyle wrestling, will be only the second Saudi Arabian film to be released theatrically in the U.K. after Haifa al-Mansour’s ground-breaking 2012 international breakout Wadjda.
The film will launch on around 10 U.K. screens in London and other major U.K. cities, including Manchester, Liverpool, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Birmingham and Leeds, on February 10.
Front Row, which has struck a direct distribution, revenue-sharing deal with Odeon Cinemas, is aiming to catch the wave of the film’s success in Saudi Arabia.
The target audience is Saudi Arabian and Gulf citizens living in the U.K. but Front Row expects it to appeal to a wider Arabic-speaking audience as well as local spectators without Mena ties.
- 1/25/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Saudi wrestling comedy “Sattar” is scoring record-breaking results at the home box office where the satiric actioner has obtained over 159,000 admissions and grossed 2.2 million since its Dec. 29 release.
The film has become the highest grossing local title since Saudi Arabia revoked a 35-year ban on the operation of commercial movie theaters in Dec. 2017.
Directed by Kuwaiti’s Abdullah Al Arak, “Sattar,” which launched positively in early December from the Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah, has now rapidly bested the the 151,000 admissions pulled by Saudi Arabia’s previous record holder for a local title, “Born a King,” through its entire run. Released in 2020, “Born a King” is an inspirational biopic of Saudi King Faisal, set against the backdrop of his diplomatic mission as a young prince in London in 1919 at the tender age of 13 to plead for non-intervention in Arabia.
By contrast, “Sattar” stars Saudi actor and stand-up comedian Ibrahim Al Hajjaj...
The film has become the highest grossing local title since Saudi Arabia revoked a 35-year ban on the operation of commercial movie theaters in Dec. 2017.
Directed by Kuwaiti’s Abdullah Al Arak, “Sattar,” which launched positively in early December from the Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah, has now rapidly bested the the 151,000 admissions pulled by Saudi Arabia’s previous record holder for a local title, “Born a King,” through its entire run. Released in 2020, “Born a King” is an inspirational biopic of Saudi King Faisal, set against the backdrop of his diplomatic mission as a young prince in London in 1919 at the tender age of 13 to plead for non-intervention in Arabia.
By contrast, “Sattar” stars Saudi actor and stand-up comedian Ibrahim Al Hajjaj...
- 1/9/2023
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Saudi Arabian family comedy Sattar, about a depressed man who decides to pursue his dreams of becoming a freestyle wrestling champion, has set a new box office record for a local film at home.
The film has drawn 159,000 spectators for a gross of 2.2m over the course of its first 12 days on release to become the highest-grossing local film of all time in the territory, according to distributor Front Row Arabia, the joint distribution label between pan-Arab distributor Front Row Filmed and local exhibitor Muvi Cinema.
The distributor said that in its opening weekend, Sattar took the top slot from James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water, then on its third week of release, outpacing the blockbuster by more than 40 in terms of admissions and 32 in gross.
Front Row Arabia said that strong word of mouth meant the film title dropped just 11 on the second weekend, in spite of widespread thunderstorms across the country,...
The film has drawn 159,000 spectators for a gross of 2.2m over the course of its first 12 days on release to become the highest-grossing local film of all time in the territory, according to distributor Front Row Arabia, the joint distribution label between pan-Arab distributor Front Row Filmed and local exhibitor Muvi Cinema.
The distributor said that in its opening weekend, Sattar took the top slot from James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water, then on its third week of release, outpacing the blockbuster by more than 40 in terms of admissions and 32 in gross.
Front Row Arabia said that strong word of mouth meant the film title dropped just 11 on the second weekend, in spite of widespread thunderstorms across the country,...
- 1/9/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Middle East distributor Front Row Filmed Entertainment has boarded Saudi wrestling comedy “Sattar.” The film is set for a wide release in Saudi on Dec. 29 via Front Row Arabia, its joint-venture with local exhibitor Muvi Cinemas.
Directed by Kuwaiti’s Abdullah Al Arak, the film, which launched positively from the recent Red Sea Film Festival, is produced by Saudi Arabia’s prolific production company Tefaz11 via its new production arm, AlShimaisi Films, in tandem with Muvi Studios. “Sattar” stars Saudi actor and stand-up comedian Ibrahim Al Hajjaj (“Rashash”), who plays Saad, a man whose floundering personal and professional life prompts him to pursue his childhood dream of becoming a freestyle wrestler.
The Saudi theatrical market has been booming in recent years. Following the Dec. 2017 removal of the kingdom’s 35-year-old religion-related ban on movie theaters, the kingdom is now the top theatrical market in the Middle East and was worth 238 million in 2021, as per Comscore.
Directed by Kuwaiti’s Abdullah Al Arak, the film, which launched positively from the recent Red Sea Film Festival, is produced by Saudi Arabia’s prolific production company Tefaz11 via its new production arm, AlShimaisi Films, in tandem with Muvi Studios. “Sattar” stars Saudi actor and stand-up comedian Ibrahim Al Hajjaj (“Rashash”), who plays Saad, a man whose floundering personal and professional life prompts him to pursue his childhood dream of becoming a freestyle wrestler.
The Saudi theatrical market has been booming in recent years. Following the Dec. 2017 removal of the kingdom’s 35-year-old religion-related ban on movie theaters, the kingdom is now the top theatrical market in the Middle East and was worth 238 million in 2021, as per Comscore.
- 12/19/2022
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
It’s 2002 and raining brains in Riyadh, at least from the gormless Nasser’s wonky perspective. Nasser’s doctor is firmly convinced he has a brain tumour, which is his explanation for the protracted hallucinations Nasser experiences and that he, Dr Ahmed, is all too ready to excise. Nasser isn’t so sure: his dreams, fantasies and visions are more fun than the rest of his life, yoked beneath the twin tyrannies of his fanatical father and his boss at the thinly patronized Dove Hotel. Why get rid of the good stuff? Especially once those visions start to include the mysterious young woman who arrived unannounced one day to ask for the key to room 227. She’s welcome to walk the corridors of his mind any old time.
Raven Song is Mohamed Al Salman’s debut feature and Saudi Arabia’s submission for the Best International Feature Oscar, following its...
Raven Song is Mohamed Al Salman’s debut feature and Saudi Arabia’s submission for the Best International Feature Oscar, following its...
- 12/14/2022
- by Stephanie Bunbury
- Deadline Film + TV
Company has three features at this year’s Red Sea film festival.
One of the hottest tickets at this year’s Red Sea Film Festival was to a party held in Jeddah’s old quarter by production company Telfaz 11.
Local filmmakers mixed with international guests along a section of the Al-Balad gold market converted into a party venue, complete with DJ sets.
The party appeared representative of the social change that seems to be sweeping Saudi Arabia – it was attended by a vibrant, mixed crowd, with no notable restrictions apart from the lack of alcohol.
The party also represented...
One of the hottest tickets at this year’s Red Sea Film Festival was to a party held in Jeddah’s old quarter by production company Telfaz 11.
Local filmmakers mixed with international guests along a section of the Al-Balad gold market converted into a party venue, complete with DJ sets.
The party appeared representative of the social change that seems to be sweeping Saudi Arabia – it was attended by a vibrant, mixed crowd, with no notable restrictions apart from the lack of alcohol.
The party also represented...
- 12/6/2022
- by Tim Dams
- ScreenDaily
Saudi Arabia’s prolific production company Telfaz11 – which is behind the kingdom’s international Oscar candidate “Raven Song” — is celebrating its 11th anniversary today (Nov. 11) by starting the shoot of its 11th film, the bold crime comedy “Night Courier,” directed by Ali Al Kalthami, who is one of the innovative shingle founders.
Cameras are rolling in Riyadh on “Night Courier,” starring Mohammed AlDokhi — who launched his career as an actor in various Telfaz11 digital productions — as a young man named Fahad Algadaani who is in desperate need of money to get medical treatment for his dad. After getting into a fistfight with his boss and losing his job, Fahad takes a gig as a driver with a delivery app, which leads him to an underground world of criminal activities. When he winds up in possession of six crates of illicit booze, Fahad has some tough choices to make, all while...
Cameras are rolling in Riyadh on “Night Courier,” starring Mohammed AlDokhi — who launched his career as an actor in various Telfaz11 digital productions — as a young man named Fahad Algadaani who is in desperate need of money to get medical treatment for his dad. After getting into a fistfight with his boss and losing his job, Fahad takes a gig as a driver with a delivery app, which leads him to an underground world of criminal activities. When he winds up in possession of six crates of illicit booze, Fahad has some tough choices to make, all while...
- 11/11/2022
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
Director Mohamed Al Salman’s Raven Song, a coming-of-age comedy about a young man, Nasar, who is dared by his best friend to reach out to a mystery woman by singing a love poem, has been chosen by Saudi Arabia as its contender for best international feature at the 2023 Academy Awards.
Shot in Riyadh, Raven Song stars Asem Alawad, Ibrahim Khairallah and Kateryna Tkachenko and is produced by Ahmed Mousa and Telfaz 11. Al Salman’s film was among the winners of the Saudi Film Commission’s Daw Film Competition to discover and support new Saudi filmmaking talent.
Also, Mongolia’s Harvest Moon, the directorial debut of Mongolian actor Amarsaikhan Baljinnyam, who played Kublai Khan’s brother Ariq Böke in Netflix’s Marco Polo drama, has been picked to represent that country in the Oscar competition for best international movie.
Baljinnyam, who also stars in Harvest Moon,...
Director Mohamed Al Salman’s Raven Song, a coming-of-age comedy about a young man, Nasar, who is dared by his best friend to reach out to a mystery woman by singing a love poem, has been chosen by Saudi Arabia as its contender for best international feature at the 2023 Academy Awards.
Shot in Riyadh, Raven Song stars Asem Alawad, Ibrahim Khairallah and Kateryna Tkachenko and is produced by Ahmed Mousa and Telfaz 11. Al Salman’s film was among the winners of the Saudi Film Commission’s Daw Film Competition to discover and support new Saudi filmmaking talent.
Also, Mongolia’s Harvest Moon, the directorial debut of Mongolian actor Amarsaikhan Baljinnyam, who played Kublai Khan’s brother Ariq Böke in Netflix’s Marco Polo drama, has been picked to represent that country in the Oscar competition for best international movie.
Baljinnyam, who also stars in Harvest Moon,...
- 10/28/2022
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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