At the Red Sea International Film Festival (RSIFF) 2025, “Lost Land,” the first feature film about the lives of Rohingya people, won the Golden Yusr award. The fifth edition of the festival in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, gives this top award to up-and-coming filmmakers from around the world. The win shows that RSIFF is dedicated to telling stories from less well-known areas.
The family drama “All That’s Left of You” by Cherien Dabis won the Silver Yusr and a $30,000 cash prize. Other categories honored the best entries, with Palestinian filmmaker Maha Haj’s “Playhouse” winning the Red Sea Souk Project Awards. The Souk Awards went to Sudanese director Mohamed Kordofani’s “About Love & September Laws.”
Michael Caine and Rekha, a Bollywood legend who was honored for her work in movies, were there. “Money Town” by Tony Koros and “Side Effects” by Hind Metwalli also won Souk Series Awards. RSIFF 2025 showed how Saudi Arabia is becoming more important in international film by bringing together Middle Eastern and global talents.
