| Shahad AmeenArabic: شهد أمين | |
| Birth Place: | Jeddah, Saudi Arabia |
| Occupation: | Film director, screenwriter |
| Education: | University of West London |
Shahad Ameen (Arabic: شهد أمين) is a Saudi filmmaker best known for directing the 2019 film Scales.[1]
Ameen was born and raised in Jeddah. She attended the University of West London and graduated with a bachelor's degree in Video Production and Film Studies.[2] In 2012, she participated in the screenwriting conservatory at the New York Film Academy.[3]
Ameen's first short film, Our Own Musical, was released in 2009. Leila's Window, her 2011 short film about a young girl's alienation from her family, screened at the Gulf Film Festival and the Saudi Film festival.[4]
In 2013, Ameen's short film Eye & Mermaid debuted at the Dubai International Film Festival. Telling the story of a girl who learns the pearls her father brings their family have been taken from mermaids, the short also screened at the Toronto International Film Festival and was recognized with the Best Cinematography award at the Abu Dhabi Film Festival.
After completing the script for Eye & Mermaid, Ameen began work on her first feature-length project, also about mermaids. The resulting film, Scales, premiered at the International Critic's Week portion of the 76th Venice International Film Festival in 2019.
In May 2024, Variety reported that Ameen's second feature film, Hijra, was in production after years of development.[5]
| Year | Title | Notes | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Our Own Musical | Short film | ||
| 2011 | Leila's Window | Short film | ||
| 2013 | Eye & Mermaid | Short film | ||
| 2019 | Scales | |||
| TBA |
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Abu Dhabi Film Festival | Best Cinematography | Eye & Mermaid | ||
| Emirates Film Competition | Short Narrative Competition | [6] | |||
| 2019 | Venice Film Festival | International Critics' Week | Scales | ||
| Verona Film Club Award | |||||
| BFI London Film Festival | Best First Feature | ||||
| Carthage Film Festival | Official Competition Narrative Feature Film | [7] | |||
| Singapore International Film Festival | Best Asian Feature Film | [8] | |||
| 2020 | Taipei Film Festival | International New Talent Competition | [9] | ||
| Sydney Science Fiction Film Festival | Best Feature Film | [10] |