RIYADH: The Saudi Film Commission hosted a Cinema in 2022 workshop on Tuesday, Saudi Press Agency reported. The workshop was led by Saudi film critic Ahmed Ayyad, who was joined by a number of critics, directors and media students from Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University in Riyadh. Its first session, “The Arab Film Industry in 2022,” examined the economic conditions of the industry and the local, regional and international film projects that were postponed as a result. The second session of the workshop, “Arab Film Production 2022,” focused on critics’ assessments of Saudi cinematic production, the challenges that the national film industry faces as well as the need to boost the cinema scene on online platforms. The workshop also pointed to the positive elements of those challenges, such as the diverse tastes of audiences, regional competition, and disparities between quantity and quality in production. Attendees at the workshop stressed the need to focus on the effective marketing of films, the need to export content and the expansion of cinematic ideas.