DUBAI: Celebrities from around the world attended the amfAR Gala Venezia 2024, which was supported by Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea International Film Festival, on Sunday night in Italy. US singer Kelly Rowland performed at the event in an all-white gown by Cheney Chan and Chopard jewels as she hit the stage in front of a star-studded audience. The event took place on the sidelines of the 81st Venice International Film Festival and played host to celebrity guests, including Hollywood actor Antonio Banderas, British actor Lucien Laviscount and US actor Richard Gere, among others. Shivani Pandya, managing director of the Red Sea Film Festival and Saudi producer and former CEO of the Red Sea Film Foundation Mohammed Al-Turki were also spotted on the red carpet ahead of the gala. Jomana Al-Rashid, chairwoman of the Red Sea Film Foundation, chaired the event. Al-Turki was honored with the amfAR Philanthropic Leadership Award during the gala, with amfAR taking to social media to describe his “extraordinary dedication to supporting HIV research and his unwavering commitment to advancing the fight against AIDS.” Meanwhile, four Red Sea Fund-supported productions have been selected for screening at the storied film festival. The RSFF-backed films “Aïcha” and “Seeking Haven for Mr. Rambo” will screen in the Orizzonti and Orizzonti Extra selections respectively. This is alongside two titles in the Venice Production Bridge’s Final Cut initiative supported by the Red Sea Fund: “Aisha Can’t Fly Away Anymore” and “In This Darkness I See You.” Also screening in Venice’s Giornate degli Autori sidebar are two films supported by the Red Sea Fund: Hind Meddeb’s documentary “Sudan, Remember Us,” and from Northeast Asia “To Kill a Mongolian Horse” by Chinese director Xiaoxuan Jiang. “This year in Venice, the Foundation is supporting four films that demonstrate the importance and power of Arab, Asian and African cinema and encapsulate the pillars of the Foundation — creativity, diversity and cultural exchange,” Al-Rashid said in a released statement. “At this year’s festival we are also notably underscoring our expansion to Asia with our support of Chinese director Xiaoxuan Jiang, which marks our first project from the country,” she added.