More than 140 films are in the line-up for this 3rd edition of the RSIFF, scheduled to take place from 30 November to 9 December 2023 in the city of Jeddah. The event has been organised into several categories, including the Red Sea International Film Festival Favourites and Treasures Strands, which features films from the region including:
- "Allihopa: The Dalkurd Story" by Kordo Doski (Iraq)
- "Animalia" by Sofia Alaoui (Morocco)
- "Hesitation Wound" by Selman Nacar (Turkey)
- "Crossing the Bridge: The Sound of Istanbul" by Fatih Akin (Turkey)
- "Hounds" by Kamal Lazraq (Morocco)
- "The Mother of All Lies" by Asmae Moudir (Morocco)
- "Thiiird" by Karim Kassem (Lebanon)
- "The Last Snow" by Amir Hossein Asgari (Iran)
- "Victory of Youth" by Ahmed Badrakhan (Egypt)
- "My Wife's Goblin" by Fatn Abdel Wahab (Egypt)
For this new edition, the festival is inviting young Saudis and Saudi residents (18-25 years old) to submit a short film made in just 48 hours, in collaboration with the Alliance Française and the French Consulate in Jeddah. Participants will benefit from specialist support, mentoring and training tailored to their needs.
MENA and Iran feature films selected in competition are:
- "Hidding Saddam Hussein" by Halkawt Mustafa (Iraq)
- "Inshallah a Boy" by Amjad Al Rasheed (Jordan)
- "Six Feet Over" by Karim Bensalah (Algeria)
- "The Teacher" by Farah Nabulsi (Palestine)
- "Dalma" by Humaid Alsuwaidi (United Arab Emirates)
- "Behind the Mountains" by Mohamed Ben Attia (Tunisia)
- "Backstage" by Afef Ben Mahmoud and Khalil Benkirane (Morocco)
- "Mandoob" by Ali Kalthami (Saudi Arabia)
- "Norah" by Tawfik Alzaidi (Saudi Arabia)
- "Roxana" by Parviz Shahbazi (Iran).
“HWJN” by Dubai-based Iraqi director Yasir Al-Yasiri was chosen to open the festival.