THE RED SEA MAKES ME WANNA CRY honored with Special Mention at Malmö Arab Film Festival

The captivating short film, THE RED SEA MAKES ME WANNA CRY, directed by Faris Alrjoob, has achieved yet another milestone in its illustrious journey. This time, the film has been honored with a Special Mention in the Short Film Competition at the esteemed Malmö Arab Film Festival, which ran from April 22nd to the 28th.

Fresh from its successful European tour and previous acclaim at the El Gouna Film Festival, THE RED SEA MAKES ME WANNA CRY continues to captivate audiences and critics alike with its gripping narrative and exceptional performances. The film tells the haunting tale of Ida, who embarks on a poignant journey to the site of her partner’s disappearance, seeking closure and a final farewell.

Previously, the Jordanian short won the Best Connecting Cultures Film Award at the Ghent International Short Film Festival and the El Gouna Film Festival’s Silver Star For Short Films. It also played at several prestigious film festivals, including the International Cinematographers’ Film Festival (Manaki Brothers) in Macedonia, the Festival du Nouveau Cinéma in Canada, and Deutscher Kurzfilmpreis, where it was nominated for the Lola for Best German Short Film.

Starring the talented Mohamed Nizar, Clara Schwinning, Ahmed Shihab Eldin, and Anwar Khalil, the film has garnered praise for its profound storytelling and evocative cinematography.

Directed, written, and co-produced by Faris Alrjoob, and co-written by Matthew LaPaglia, the film boasts an impressive lineup of creative talent, including Mahmoud Belakhel as the cinematographer and Benedikt Strick as the editor. Distributed worldwide by MAD Solutions and produced by the prestigious German film school Film-und Medienstiftung NRW, THE RED SEA MAKES ME WANNA CRY continues to make a lasting impact on audiences globally.

Faris Alrjoob is an interdisciplinary artist working within the fields of film, video art, and performance, based in Berlin, he is a graduate student at the Academy of Media Arts in Cologne and previously at Emerson College in Boston.

In 2020, he directed his short film THE GHOSTS WE LEFT AT HOME, which world premiered at the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen in Germany and screened at prestigious festivals like the Malmö Arab Film Festival, the Red Sea International Film Festival, and the Internationales Frauenfilmfestival.