Saudi Film Director Haifaa Al-Mansour Feted For Wadjda At Tribeca Film Festival

Saudi Arabia film director Haifaa Al-Mansour (right) receives the award of best film for her movie Wadjda at Dubai International Film Festival in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on Dec. 16, 2012.

Film director Al-Mansour has been challenging the restrictions on Saudi women for years. When she married an American diplomat in 2007, writes NPR, she “drove” herself to the wedding driving a golf cart. Women aren’t permitted to drive in Saudi Arabia or even ride a bicycle.

Note that a few weeks ago, the Saudi government reportedly decided that women can ride bikes in the country or other restricted areas. Women still must be covered head to toe when riding a bike and also be accompanied by a male guardian.

Haifaa Al-Mansour’s film Wadjda is about a young girl who wants to ride a bike. Because there are no public film theaters in Saudi Arabia, there is no worry that Wadjda will radicalize young Saudi women — at least until it appears on a satellite channel. Internationally, though, the film is on a winning streak.

Wadjda opened in New York at the Tribeca Film Festival last week, following its honors at the Venice Film Festival, the Dubai International Film Festival and the Gulf Film Festival. As the first woman to direct a film in Saudi Arabia — no easy task writes NPR — Haifaa Al-Mansour told the crowd: “I tried to make a film about hope, embracing change and moving ahead.”