Jordan is no longer the content that serves as a robust backdrop for Hollywood epics. With up to 45% new cash rebates, the launch of Olive Wood Studios, the first full-fledged studio complex and steady political support from the royal family, the kingdom positions it as both a regional and international production hub. The Royal Film Commission spoke to the diversity of the content and film market at the Busan International Film Festival, which hopes to bring Ahmad Katib, communications and culture manager of the Royal Film Commission, to trial against Ahmad Katib of the Royal Film Commission, declared, “We want to be South Korea in the Middle East,” pointing to the fusion of global exports and tramping and local industries.
Strategies go beyond seducing foreign filming. Jordan aims to strengthen his own creative sector, making locally-made films and series resonating with Arab audiences across shared languages and cultures, while also internationally fascinating. As RFC’s Tala Zumot points out, Jordan’s pitch rests not only on rebates and infrastructure, but also on safety, stability and an increasingly skilled talent pool. It’s as long-term play as it is to export stories and services.
The combination of global ambitions and regional foundations is reflected in the next slate of Jordanian titles, from the drama that continues the festival to bold projects under development. Together, they show their own cinemas. Here are 10.
“Sink” (“gharaq” (2025)
(Zain Duraie, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, France; produced by AlaaAlasad and Hind Anabtawi)
“Sink” tackles the implicit sacrifice of mental illness within Arab households. The TIFF and BFI choice drama produced by Jordan’s TABI360 with a robust region and European co-production network tracks negative mothers as their teenage son’s mental state unleashes. The film, pinned to Clara Khoury, is supported by the Jordan Film Fund, Red Sea Fund and the Doha Film Institute. Duray says the film “hopes to promote urgent conversations about mental health, emotional oppression and survival that are universally behind closed doors, not just the Arab world.
sink
Provided by Alaa Alasad
“From temporary to half-major” (under development)
(Bayan Abutaema, Jordan, Palestine)
Bayan Abutama, the winner of three awards at the Amman Film Festival in 2025, directorial debut Maps Jordan’s life in the Palestinian refugee camp. Constructed around five stages of grief, each represented by a different camp, the project explores how “temporary” shelters have evolved into layered semi-major homes. Self-produced, but supported by in-kind support from Jordan’s French Institute and international industry leaders, the project reflects Abutama’s own evacuation. “This film is an act of witness,” says the Palestinian director. He wants to amplify voices that are too often reduced to statistics.
From temporary to half-many
Provided by Bayan Abutaema
“Asphalt” (under development)
(Hamza Hamide, Jordan; produced by Mahmoud al-Massad)
“Asphalt” by Hamza Hamideh, the winner of the IEFTA Award at the Cannes Document 2025, depicts a portrait of a live life in a Baqaa refugee camp in Jordan. The documentary follows 20-year-old Debs, a goat helder whose dream of marriage derailed on October 7th, followed by a cycle of mourning rituals and a despair that comes with war. Produced by veteran Mahmoud Al Massad’s Amman-based costume Jo Image, the film weaves intimate observations with the wider reality of exile, protest and generational trauma. For Hamide, whose relatives called camp home, the project is very personal and rooted in her resolve to maintain the Bakaa story.
asphalt
“asphalt”
“Inshallah a Boy” (Inshallah Wahad” (2023)
(Produced by Amjad al Rasheed, Jordan, France, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Rula Nasser, Aseel Abu Ayyash, Nicolas Leprêtre, and Yousef abd al-nabi)
Insyrah a Boy, the first Jordanian feature “Amjad al-Rashid” in the week of Cannes “Critics,” traveled to over 140 festivals and won around 40 awards. Produced by Imagianarium Films, using Georges Films and Bayt Al Shawareb, the drama stars Mouna Hawaii as a widow who fights mountain climbing techniques. Supported by the Jordanian Film Fund, France’s CNC, the Red Sea Fund and the Doha Film Institute, the film has secured global distribution in Europe, North America, Asia and Mena. Al Rashid said he would ask, “What if a woman said no?” For him, “films need to hold a mirror in society, even when it’s difficult to see images.”
“The Last Mayor of Jerusalem” (in development)
(Produced by Kinda Kurdi, Jordan, and Brian Hill from the UK)
Combining archive memoirs and dramatic effects, “The Last Mayor of Jerusalem” explores the story of the city’s last Palestinian mayor in 1948. The project was awarded at the FIPA Doc and the 2025 Amman Film Festival, along with executive produced by Brian Hill, directed and produced for K²’s visual media along with first-century films. With a cast including Sofia Asir and Mohammad Bakri, the film aims to shed new light on political decisions that still resonate with the core of the Palestinian-Israel conflict, which is raging to this day. Kurdi calls the project “a moving story of resistance, resurrection and hope.”
The last mayor of Jerusalem
“The Last Mayor of Jerusalem” (just courtesy of Kurdi)
“Six 2 One” (under development)
(Tamil Naber, Jordan; produced by Ghassan Salti and Johnnie Dabeet)
Tamir Naber’s feature debut mark, “Six 2 One,” revisits the roots of the first Palestinian intifada. Produced by FilmCrew, Moonstone and Fluid Productions, the drama follows four Arab fighters on a one-way glider mission. The Jordan Film Fund’s 2024 grant and the 2025 AIFF AWAL Film Award winner, the film focuses on filming in the second half of 2026. “It’s not about the history of the perfect hero or dry,” says Navar. “It’s about flaws and real people who choose beliefs over fear.”
“Orange Glove” (under development)
(Murad Abu Eishe, Canada, Jordan; produced by RolaNasser, Veronika Molnar and Roger Frapper)
An adaptation of Larry Tremblay’s acclaimed novel, The Orange Grove, was the first co-produced official Jordanian film treaty produced by Jordan’s The Imaginarium Films and Max Films. Set in part in a war-torn grove, Murad Abu Eisheh follows his twin brother torn by fate before moving to Toronto, pursuing a life as an actor. The project is currently being developed for the 2026 filming and is supported by Marrakech’s Atlas workshop and Doha’s script lab. We took home a big prize at this year’s AIFF, including the Royal Film Committee Development Award. Producer Veronika Molnar calls it “a story as intimate as it is universal.”
Orange Gloves
Courtesy of Murad Abu Eisheh
“My Sweet Land” (2024)
(Salene Harebedien, Jordan, France, Ireland, USA; produced by Harebedi and Aza Harani)
Armenian and Jordanian filmmaker Saleen Harebedien brings a deep personal lens to “My Sweet Land,” an adult documentary about an 11-year-old vrej who grew up amidst the trauma of the war in Artzhu (Nagorno-Karabakh). Rooted in the history of the refuge of Harebedien’s own family, the film explores how children inherit both the dreams and the burden of militarized land. The project, led by producer Azza Hourani, is a collaborative project with support from IVTS, Arte France, World of HA Productions, and the Jordan Film Fund. After the world premiere at Sheffield Docfest 2024, “My Sweet Land” was screened at Doc NYC, Palm Springs and Carthage, and was released in Los Angeles in 2024.
My sweet land
Courtesy of Hai Creative/Sister Prods./Soilsiu Films
“Alrawabi School for Girls” (2021, 2024)
(Tima Shomali, Jordan; Shomali, Shirin Kamal, Islamic Alshomali, Nadine Tukan (season 1), Isamu Huseni (season 2)
Netflix’s first Yordanian original, “Alrawabi School for Girls,” marks the Kingdom’s screen industry breakthrough and ranks among the top 10 most viewed series of streamers in over 45 countries. Created by director and showrunner Tima Shomali and produced by Filmizion Productions, the young adult drama blends with revenge-fueled storytelling and keen social criticism, bullying, patriarchy and two seasons of social media pressure. Supported by Jordan’s robust rebate program, the series has received praise and awards, including the Best Levant series at the 2024 Joy Awards. “The world is now like a global village, especially with streaming platforms. Now is the time for our stories to travel,” says Shomali.
“Simsim” (2025)
(Jordan, Sondus Smeratt; produced by Kais Noamani and Khaled Haddad)
“Simsim,” marking the feature debut of Jordanian filmmaker Sondos Al-Smerat, was developed through the first feature workshop of the Royal Film Committee, co-produced by Noah Maniart Productions and Slate Film Services. The drama follows his wife Sim Sim, who seeks divorce after her father’s death, but is looking for a marriage, facing resistance from her husband. The film, starring newcomer Saja Kilani, won two special mentions at the 2025 Amman International Film Festival. Al Sumerat frames the story as both a social critique and a symbolic quest for women’s struggle against patriarchy.
Simsim
