Saudi Film Confex, the film business conference held in Riyadh, that aims to postiion Saudi Arabia as a global production hub, has reported over 70,000 attendees for its second edition.
The event ran from October 9-12 at the Exhibition and Conference Center in the Saudi capital, with 127 booths from both local and international companies, and government representatives.
The Confex featured eight interactive zones, including a business zone. The event reports 25 deals worth SAR 226m (£46m) were signed across the four days.
The programme included 13 panel discussions, 23 workshops, film talks and masterclasses. Attendees included guest of honour Will Smith, who had previously visited the country for last year’s Red Sea International Film Festival.
The conference included discussions on topics including challenges and oppportunites in the global film industry with Jim Gianopulos, former CEO and chairman at 20th Century Fox, who said artificial intelligence (AI) should be seen as a tool for good rather than a threat to the sector; a panel exploring how the AI revolution and technology are both shaping filmmaking brought together Technicolor Group CEO Caroline Parot, ORI Group founder Qian Feng and Michael Wolfson, co-founder & COO, Untold Studios, in a discussion moderated by Olsberg SPI managing director Leon Forde; while David Unger, CEO of the US’ Artist International Group, said Saudi Arabia has the opportunity to be “at the vanguard of change” on a panel with Olsberg SPI founder Jonathan Olsberg discussing the growth of international content and potential investment opportunities.
Prince Turki Al Faisal bin Abdulaziz, chairman of the King Faisal Foundation’s Centre for Research and Islamic Studies, also participated in an in-conversation event in which he championed the “strong creative visions” brought by the Saudi government.
The event is part of the Vision 2030 strategy for enhancing Saudi Arabia’s cultural and creative sectors.
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