It took Qatari director Mohammed Al-Ibrahim 15 years to make his first feature “Sa3ood Wainah?,” which, starting from its title, is a pretty unique film blending thriller, fantasy and magic realism elements, all imbued with a strong local flavor.
Billed as the first “commercial” film to come out of Qatar, “Sa3ood Wainah?” – the title translates as “Where is Saoud?” – launched from the inaugural Doha Film Festival this week, where it was cheered by the home crowd. It’s produced by Katara Studios which is keen on fostering filmmaking and content production in the minuscule gas-rich Gulf nation.
Set in a remote Qatari farmhouse, “Sa3ood Wainah?” turns on two brothers named Hamood and Sa3ood, who one night entertain their friends with a magic trick passed down by their late father. This leads to the disappearance of Sa3oud and the blurring of boundaries between illusion and reality.
Katara Studios will be releasing the film theatrically in the Gulf region next year.
Al-Ibrahim, who studied filmmaking at UC Irvine, started his career working at the Doha Film Institute, and has been cutting his teeth making lots of shorts and commercials. As current head of longform at Katara Studios, he directed the music video for the FIFA World Cup 2022 song “Arhbo” that got more than 100 million views on YouTube.
Al-Ibrahim spoke to Variety in Doha about why it’s crucial that his feature debut be “a grassroots Qatari film.”
How did you come up with the concept, which is pretty innovative, especially for the region?
I consume quite a bit of genre, and I feel like people here have a huge appetite for genre as well. So it’s only fair that we as Qataris or people in the Gulf region can have some sort of visual representation of ourselves in that light. That was the first thing. And then my colleague Jassim Abel, and I co-wrote the story. I wrote the screenplay, he co-wrote the treatment with me. We were having a lot of “what if?” discussions. Such as how can we make a movie that’s self-contained? We were discussing films such as [Sidney Lumet’s courtroom drama] “12 Angry Men” and other films that take place on one location. We started with the “what ifs?” And the one that stuck with us was: what if a magic trick were not something magic. What if it was real?
It seems to me that you really wanted to make this film culturally specific. What were the elements from Qatari culture that you drew upon?
Magic is part of our folklore. This goes back to the time of ancient Egypt. It’s there, though it’s not talked about very much. So I definitely wanted some of that. As far as themes go, from a modern perspective, I think in our identities, we sometimes tend to lead double lives. So I wanted that to be a part of the film as well. And I wanted to look into why people decide to lead double lives from our perspective. We’ve seen it in lots of films coming from the West, but I wanted to have a take on that from here.
You cast all Qatari actors, which is an interesting choice since this is a commercial feature. Did you consider other options?
I’ll be honest with you, there was that conversation in the beginning. We were wondering if we should have some talent from Saudi Arabia or from Kuwait. But then we quickly realized that we had to focus on our mission. And that mission is a grassroots Qatari film. A Qatari story told and performed by Qataris. Not only for me, but I think for Katara Studios as well, it’s very important that we let people know that: hey, we’re here; we exist. And we want you to see what we’re up to.
The audience in Doha certainly seemed to enjoy it. How did it feel launching the flm at the inaugural Doha Film Festival amid a flurry of announcements from the nascent Film Committee about ways in which Qatar is building a film industry?
It makes me feel great. I feel like I’m getting involved. I mean it’s been a 15-year journey trying to make a feature film and to cement myself as a filmmaker. And I feel like I’m here in the right place at the right time. I feel like as a nation we are investing heavily in cinema as a cultural export. We realize the power of story and how it’s an extension of our identity, and an extension of diplomacy. The fact that the Qatar Film Committee is spearheading this is a testament to that.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Courtesy Katara Studios
