Basma Khaled
The Saudi cinema halls witnessed for the first time a screening of a joint production film between Saudi Arabia, Britain and Spain with a budget in excess of 18 million euros, written by the Saudi novelist Badr Al-Samar in partnership with Henry Fitzbert and Ray Lorega, and directed by Agosti Villaronga, starring Abdullah Ali and the participation of more than 80 young Saudis , And production of the Oscar-winning Spanish producer Andres Gomez.
Work on the movie "Born as a King" started from 2015 until 2019, and was shown twice in Riyadh, in the presence of intellectuals, media and politicians from inside and outside Saudi Arabia, before it was shown to the public at the end of last September in cinemas in the Kingdom and the Arab Gulf states.
The movie follows a true story of King Faisal, the 13-year-old Saudi Prince, from his birth in 1906 until his return from England in 1920, where he came from the Arabian Desert to London, on a high-risk diplomatic mission to secure the formation of his country.
In London, he must negotiate with some prominent figures of that era, such as King George V of England, and others such as Winston Churchill, Lawrence of Arabia and Foreign Minister Lord Corzon, while establishing friendship with Princess Mary that helps him and directs him through the corridors of power.
Not Gomez's first attempt
This is not Gomez's first or last attempt to shoot a movie in the Kingdom. He came to Saudi Arabia for the first time in 2010 to search for filming locations for an animated movie on spirits. Things took a different turn when Saudi television refused the order, and the Ministry of Culture told him that the production of a movie on spirits could be controversial.
Nevertheless, his interest in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia did not stop, and two years later, he performed a musical in Spain entitled "The Last Horseman", which is inspired by a Saudi story.
After that, Gomez began reading all the books related to Saudi Arabia, until he encountered the story of King Faisal. He wrote 12 pages of the text before contacting the King Faisal Foundation, then met Prince Turki Al-Faisal, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies, who agreed to the text immediately, but he told The product is that it needs the approval of the rest of the family. A month later, Prince Turki Gomez met in Paris and informed him of the family's consent.
He started writing the script and went to the Saudi novelist, Badr Al-Samri, who helped and directed him in the first steps of the story. With the help of Prince Turki, they were able to write the script with precise historical details, which he believed would break stereotypes about Saudi Arabia.
"Weld Malak" was the first western movie to be shot partially in Saudi Arabia, after perseverance by producer Andres Vicente Gomez, who spent four years in negotiations to obtain government permits there.