Fatima Al-Banawi is a Saudi actress, filmmaker, and social researcher and is the founder of Alf Wad Production House. She’s best known for portraying a wide spectrum of roles, from a naive newlywed in the short film GOIN’ SOUTH to a Parisian aspiring actress from the 70s in the feature film ROLL ‘EM, a selfish theater superstar in the series BASHAR, all the way to a superhero who flips cars with fire-extinguishers.

Al-Banawi first came into the spotlight in 2016 when she received international acclaim for her leading role in BARAKAH MEETS BARAKAH, the country’s official submission to the Oscars for Best Foreign Film and the first Saudi feature to compete at the Berlin International Film Festival.

She was selected by Time Magazine to be part of its Young Generation Leaders List in 2018 for her storytelling ventures that highlight the intimate tales of life in Saudi with her groundbreaking public space mover-and-shaker project, THE OTHER STORY, now turned into a book.

She’s worked on several other projects that put her in a different light each time, from Shahid’s Egyptian psychological drama series 60 MINUTES, Netflix’s road-trip thriller ROUTE 10, Shahid’s family drama CHAMPIONS by award-winning Spanish filmmaker Manuel Calvo, and Saudi cinema’s first 18+ film AL HAMOUR H. A.

Al-Banawi recently concluded shooting the films AHLAM AL-ASR and BASMA — the latter of which is her debut as a feature film director and is currently enjoying the success of her debut role in Egyptian cinema with EL AMEEL SEFR.

Fatima was also featured on the digital cover for Marie Claire Arabia’s September 2023 issue.

In 2020, Al-Banawi guest-starred in the first Egyptian Netflix original series PARANORMAL as her first Egyptian role, along with co-writing, co-directing, and starring in her very own Shahid Original, Saudi psychological thriller AL-SHAK.

Earlier the same year, the Red Sea International Film Festival selected her feature film screenplay BASMA for a script-development joint program with Torino Film Lab. The festival also supported her short film UNTIL WE SEE LIGHT as part of the collective omnibus feature BECOMING, which brings together films by five Saudi women directors in one feature film. The film opened the Horizons of Arab Cinema Competition at the 43rd Cairo International Film Festival along with premiering at the first edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival.

From the Institut du Monde Arabe’s very own Festival Des Cinemas Arabes in 2018 to the 5th edition of the Saudi Film Festival in 2019, the 11th Malmo Arab Film Festival, to the 43rd Cairo International Film Festival, her role as a jury member in renowned film festivals solidified her as multi-talented creative and helped her hone her screenwriting skills and infuse her films with intimacy and originality.

When Al-Banawi is not working on her latest film or creative project, she serves as world-renowned luxury manufacturer Cartier’s brand ambassador in the Middle East, polishing her social memoir, THE OTHER STORY, now a book available in bookstores, and serving as a member of Saudi Arabia’s Association for Theatre and Performing Arts.