Profile

Mary Ann Sieghart profiles Haifaa Al-Mansour, Saudi Arabia's first female film director.Haifaa Al-Mansour directed the recently-released Wadjda, the first film entirely shot in Saudi Arabia. The film follows the dreams of an 11-year-old girl who is desperate to own a bike, and was partly inspired by Al-Mansour's early years, growing up in a small town near Riyadh.After working for an oil company, Haifaa al-Mansour decided to become a film-maker, using some of her 11 willing siblings to help her with her first short films. Her very first short film, 'Who', was about a serial killer disguised as a woman in a burka.She says she doesn't think women can change things in Saudi Arabia if they are "aggressive", but it's better to "have a career and pursue a dream."Producer: Helena Merriman.