the more extreme religious leaders. Furthermore, the film Menahi was screened in Riyadh in 2009, although women were banned from attending. Finally, in 2017, efforts led by the King's son and Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohamed Bin Salman, targeted the enhancement of the entertainment sector in Saudi Arabia including strengthening the theatre and cinema infrastructure in Saudi Arabia. The kingdoms filmography started in 2004 with an approval from the Ministry of Culture for a location shoot in the UAE. What followed was a small string of local talent counting on foreign exhibitions to showcase their work: Sudan Syria United Arab Emirates There is an expanding film industry in the United Arab Emirates, strengthened by the annual Gulf Film Festival showcasing cinematic productions from the region, as well as the Dubai International Film Festival, which was launched in 2004. UAE film-makers have been able to contribute a large volume of films to these festivals. UAE's first horror film is set to premier in the fall of 2013 after some delays in production. Yemen See also Cinema of Africa Cinema of Asia Cinema of Central Asia East Asian cinema List of cinema of the world South Asian cinema Southeast Asian cinema World cinema Award Best Actressess in the Middle East for world References External links IMDB entry for Egypt The Hindu newspaper article covering the filming of 'A Bahraini Tale' IMDB entry for Oman IMDB entry for Yemen Middle East Asian cinema African cinema