"We don't all have long beards": How film can change Saudi Arabia

Mohammed Salman is a Saudi filmmaker who is responsible for the short film competition at the Saudi Film Festival and is the director behind Epouvantail, which he will be registering at the Cannes Short Film Corner. His short film tells the story of a family and how they wait for angels to come and bless their farm, so that it can become what it once was. To encourage the angels' blessings, the family puts men's clothing on the scarecrows of the farm. After learning of Mohammed's work from a fellow Qatifi, I requested Mohammed for an interview and we sat down for coffee one afternoon.

'Lady of the Arab screen' dies at age 83

albawaba.com

Yet another* icon of the Arab stage and screen has passed away. Egyptian actress Faten Hamama, who was well known for her film work in the 1940s and 1950s, died yesterday reports her son Tarek Sharif. Hamama had been hospitalized a few weeks earlier due to an illness.

How to win and lose at an international film festival

flipkey.com

Congratulations to director Nuri Bilge Ceylan! His film Winter Sleep just won the coveted Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. The Turkish filmmaker's work is about an Anatolian hotel owner and his relationships with those around him.

Watch a couple of Emirati brothers travel the world

Peetaplanet

Mohamed and Peyman Al Awadhi both host and produce Peeta Planet, a TV-web show where they travel the world and you, dear audience member, interact with them through social media. You tell them where to eat, where to go, and what to do.