OSN announces commission of Saudi film written and directed by Ahd Kamel

My Driver and I is the story of found family and will star a diverse Arab cast

Award-winning Saudi actress and filmmaker Ahd Kamel has written My Driver and I, to be produced by OSN. Photo: Odd Camel Films

Maan Jalal

Dec 08, 2022

Entertainment content company OSN announced plans to produce an OSN Original with Saudi actress and filmmaker, Ahd Kamel, at the Red Sea International Film Festival in Jeddah on Tuesday.

Written and directed by Kamel, My Driver and I is the story of a young, privileged Saudi girl, Salma, and the intimate friendship that forms between her and her driver Gamar.

Set in Jeddah in the 1980s and '90s, Salma, from an affluent Saudi family, meets Gamar, a young Sudanese man after he is employed as her driver. Their relationship lasts throughout her youth, leaving a profound effect on her in the years to come. My Driver and I is a story of independence, unlikely friendships and found family.

“I have been developing My Driver and I for several years and I wanted to base the film on my memories of Jeddah in the 1980s and '90s,” Kamel says.

“Witnessing Salma’s universal journey through adolescence, against the backdrop of societal expectations, is certainly a theme that tugs on the heartstrings of all audiences alike.”

Jordanian actress Saba Mubarak, left, with actress, writer and director Ahd Kamel. Kamel will be directing Mubarak in her film, My Driver and I. Getty Images

As an OSN Original, the film is being positioned as OSN’s growing commitment to investing in local talent from writers, crew and a diverse Arab cast. My Driver and I stars Jordanian actress Saba Mubarak, Saudi rapper Qusai Kheder, Sudanese actor Mustafa Shehata and Saudi actor Baraa Alem.

“It’s time the region’s untold stories deserve a wider audience,” said Joe Kawkabani, chief executive at OSN.

“My Driver and I is the embodiment of stories that deserve an expansive medium in the very city that the film is set in and there is no better platform than the Red Sea Film Festival to make this announcement.”

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OSN will be partnering with Red Sea Fund, MAD Solutions, the UK Global Screen Fund, and production companies Corniche Media and Caspian Films, to deliver the film, which will also be co-produced by Jeddah production companies Yellow Camel and Millimeter.

Filming has already begun on My Driver and I and the film is set to be shown on OSNtv and streamed on OSN+.