Saudi director Anas Ba Tahaf’s romantic black comedy “A Matter of Life and Death” has been selected as Saudi Arabia’s candidate for the Oscars international feature film category. The quirky movie marks the directorial debut of Tahaf, who previously worked as co-producer, editor and first assistant director on Mahmoud Sabbagh’s groundbreaking rom-com “Barakah Meets Barakah,” which represented Saudi Arabia at 89th Academy Awards a decade ago. The film’s plot involves a superstitious young woman named Hayat who is convinced she’s cursed and wants to end her life.
She intersects with Yousef, an introverted heart surgeon who suffers from slower than average heartbeats that seem to quicken when he comes close to death or to killing. Then, inconveniently, they fall in love,” says the synopsis. The indie film later received a jury special mention at the Saudi Film Festival, where Taibah won an acting award for her performance as Hayat.
Front Row Filmed Entertainment is handling international sales. The shortlist for the 2027 Oscar nominations will be announced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Dec. 15, with the final selection revealed on Jan. 21. The 99th Academy Awards ceremony is scheduled to take place on March 14 in Los Angeles.
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