“It felt quite absurd to be part of that social jungle”: Sara Balghonaim on Irtizaz at Red Sea International Film Festival 2025

Director Sara Balghonaim, with a background shaped by working with Haifa Al-Mansour and NYU, presented her film Irtizaz at the Red Sea Film Festival. Set in Riyadh, the movie follows Juju, a daughter pushed by her mother to impress a wealthy matriarch at a funeral, leading to absurd situations.

In her interview with The Upcoming, Balghonaim discussed how this mockumentary-style narrative exposes Saudi societal pressures surrounding marriage. She revealed that, through her own experience, “It felt quite absurd to be part of that social jungle,” deeply influencing the feature’s unique, darkly comedic tone. Balghonaim hopes the movie will encourage Saudi audiences to question collective behaviours for social approval.

Laura Della Corte

Irtizaz does not have a release date yet.