Waleed Alqahtani (Saudi Arabia)

Waleed Alqahtani is a Saudi Arabian screenwriter, director and producer. His work has screened at festivals across the United States, such as Palm Springs, Hamptons, New Orleans and Seattle, among others. Waleed has been supported by the Indian Paintbrush Grant, the Maine Media Workshops, and twice by the Berklee School of Music’s Film Scoring Practicum. His feature film Amal was a finalist for the 2019 SFFILM Rainin grant. His previous work stints include Film at Lincoln Center, Cinetic Media, Image Nation Abu Dhabi, and as a research/editing assistant to writer-director Debra Granik. Waleed holds an M.F.A. in Film from Columbia University in New York City and a B.S. in Marketing from Bentley University.

Amal — Spitfire Amal returns to the family home in Saudi Arabia and finds out that her divorced mother, combative sister, and frail brother are in difficult financial straits. She tracks down her father to insist he help the family he left behind.