Arakan News Agency | Exclusive
The Rohingya film Lost Land won the Golden Yusr Award for Best Feature Film on Thursday at the closing of the fifth edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It is the first Rohingya-language film to portray the tragedy of the persecuted Rohingya minority.
The film marks a significant milestone in representing Rohingya issues on global cinema platforms. It is directed by Japanese filmmaker Akio Fujimoto, known for his socially conscious works, who has been producing films in Southeast Asia, particularly Myanmar, for the past 12 years.
Lost Land competed with 15 other feature films from the Arab world, Asia, and Africa for the Yusr awards in the festival’s official competition. Screenings continue until December 13 in the cinema halls at Jeddah’s Culture Square.
The Saudi film Migration by director Shahd Amin received the Jury Prize, while director Amir Fakhruddin won Best Director for his film Greece. The Lebanese film Stars of Hope and Pain by Cyril Aris won Best Screenplay.
Lost Land tells the story of a Rohingya boy (4 years old) and his sister (9 years old) who leave a refugee camp in Bangladesh to embark on a dangerous journey to Malaysia in hopes of reuniting their family. The children spend days on an overcrowded boat until a tragic accident leaves them lost in Thailand.
More than 200 Rohingya participated in the film, including the two children in the leading roles, marking their first acting experience.
The film had previously won the Special Jury Prize at the Horizons section of the 82nd Venice International Film Festival in September.
Director Fujimoto previously stated: “I had heard a lot about the repeated persecution of the Rohingya people, and it was hard to believe such cruelty exists in our world today.”
The Red Sea International Film Festival is held annually in the historic Al-Balad area of Jeddah and is one of the most prominent cinematic events in the region.
The festival, which began in 2019, aims to support the Saudi and Arab film industry, discover talent, and showcase cinematic productions from around the world.
It is worth noting that over a million Rohingya from Rakhine State in western Myanmar fled to Bangladesh in 2017 due to the genocide carried out by the Myanmar army, as well as acts of violence by Rakhine (Buddhist separatist) militias in 2023 during their attempts to control the state.
The Rohingya currently live in camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, which the United Nations considers the largest refugee camp in the world, under harsh humanitarian conditions that force many to undertake dangerous sea journeys in search of a better life.
