The sixth Red Sea International Film Festival has been postponed until the end of next year, organisers have announced.
The festival had been scheduled to take place in Jeddah from December 3 to 12, with film submissions and accreditation for the event already closed.
The Red Sea Film Foundation said the decision followed a review of the timing of the festival, including the logistical requirements involved in staging an international event of its scale. No specific reason beyond those considerations was given for the postponement.
The announcement follows weeks of uncertainty over whether the 2026 festival would go ahead amid escalations across the Gulf and wider Middle East stemming from the US-Iran war.
Saudi Arabia has also faced renewed conflict with Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi group, which has launched missile and drone attacks on the kingdom and recently made advances on Yemen's Red Sea coast.
The foundation did not link either conflict to its decision to postpone the festival.
The postponement means the event will skip 2026, despite preparations already under way. Its film submission window has closed, while the Red Sea Souk, the festival's industry market, had been scheduled to run alongside the event.
The change also raises questions for Arab filmmakers who had planned regional premieres at Red Sea this year.
The Red Sea Film Foundation's other activities will continue despite the postponement, including the Red Sea Fund and Red Sea Labs, which support filmmakers and film projects throughout the year.
The foundation will also introduce year-round programming at Culture Square in Historic Jeddah from November. The venue will host film screenings, cultural events and specialised programmes for the film industry, with further details to be announced.
Last year's film festival was held in Historic Jeddah in December 2025, attracting international stars including Dakota Johnson, Uma Thurman, Ana de Armas, Queen Latifah and Vin Diesel.
Filmmaker Sean Baker served as president of the festival's jury, while its industry-focused Red Sea Souk attracted executives from companies including Netflix, Amazon, Disney and MBC.
Launched in 2019, the Red Sea International Film Festival has become a significant part of Saudi Arabia's developing film industry following the lifting of the kingdom's decades-long ban on commercial cinemas in 2017.
The next Red Sea Film Festival will now take place in closing months of next year, with exact dates to be announced.
