Wadjda
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| Directed by | Haifaa al-Mansour |
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| Written by | Haifaa al-Mansour |
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| Music by | Max Richter |
| Cinematography | Lutz Reitemeier |
| Edited by | Andreas Wodraschke |
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| Distributed by | Koch Media (Germany, all media) |
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Running time
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98 minutes |
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| Language | Arabic |
| Box office | $14.5 million |
Wadjda (Arabic: وجدة) is a 2012 Saudi Arabian drama film, written and directed by Haifaa al-Mansour. It was the first feature film shot entirely in Saudi Arabia and the first feature-length film made by a female Saudi director. It won numerous awards at film festivals around the world. The film was selected as the Saudi Arabian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards (the first time the country made a submission for the Oscars), but it was not nominated. It successfully earned a nomination for Best Foreign Film at the 2014 BAFTA Awards.
Based in the 2000s, Wadjda, an 11-year-old Saudi girl living in the capital Riyadh, dreams of owning a green bicycle that she passes in a store every day on her way to school. She wants to race against her friend Abdullah, a boy from the neighborhood, but riding bikes is frowned upon for girls and Wadjda's mother refuses to buy one for her daughter. Wadjda tries to find the money herself by selling mixtapes, hand-braiding bracelets for classmates and acting as a go-between for an older student, activities which run her afoul of the strict headmistress. Her mother, meanwhile, is dealing with a job with a terrible commute and a husband who is considering taking on a second wife, because Wadjda's mother can no longer have children.
Wadjda decides to participate in a Quran recital competition featuring a SR1,000 cash prize (equivalent of about US$270) which would allow her to pay for the SR800 bike. Her efforts at memorizing the verses impress her teacher, but when Wadjda wins the competition, she shocks the staff by announcing her intention to buy a bicycle with the prize money. She is told that the money will instead be donated to Palestine on her behalf.
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