To bring the Complex MENA content pillars to life, we gave Saudi creatives the chance to create a short film to their liking. The result? A one-shot look through Al Futah Park, one of the first public parks in Riyadh. Known as a hub for culture in all of its manifestations, Al Futah has long hosted rap battles, skaters, and dance circles, marking its place as one of Saudi Arabia’s most vibrant locations.
Featuring a lineup of hip hop artists and culture makers alike, producer Raed Mohammed and director Abdullah Okasha recreated the environment organically with over 20 names of Saudi Arabia’s finest, including rising rapper Dahmz, Biker Khalid Taj, and DJ Ush.
The film is part-nostalgia, part-documentation of Saudi Arabia’s creative scenes, and the responses can attest. From reminiscent comments to compliments regarding the smooth and advanced one-shot, Mohammad and Okasha’s short is a celebration of Saudi’s talent, both street savvy and technical.
Like gliding through on a skateboard, the Complex MENA audience got to experience Al Futah Park like they were there themselves.
Hey, by the way, does anyone want fries?
Complex MENA: Al Futah Park seems to hold years of youth memories. When you chose it as your setting, what about its energy felt right for translating the Complex MENA pillars, and what feeling were you hoping to leave behind?
Read More
RM: Al Futah Park carries an authentic, unfiltered energy that reflects real youth culture as it exists on the ground. It’s a space driven by movement, interaction, creativity, and community, which strongly aligns with the core pillars of Complex MENA. Rather than building a constructed environment, we wanted to work within a place that already holds cultural memory and lived experience.
Our goal was to leave the audience with a sense of recognition and pride, feeling connected to the stories, people, and environments that shape youth culture in the region. We wanted the space to feel alive, honest, and emotionally familiar.
AO: Al Futah Park is personal to me. It holds a lot of childhood memories. I used to go there to watch rap challenges, dance circles, and scenes that felt completely different from my normal day-to-day life, and I’d honestly wait for Thursdays just to see what would happen. This was before social media, so the park felt like a real-life platform where culture happened in front of you. That’s why it felt perfect for translating the Complex MENA pillars, because those pillars already existed there naturally. With this film, I wanted to bring back a small piece of that timeline and shine a light on a different, less-seen side of Riyadh.
Complex MENA: Between rap battles, dance circles, football games, and cycling crews, the park naturally hosts multiple worlds at once. Tell us about some of the cast members we see making cameos?
RM: One of the most important creative decisions was to involve real members of these subcultures rather than actors. The DJs, rappers, dancers, football players, and cyclists featured are active contributors to their respective scenes and communities.
Many of the cameos represent local talent and emerging creatives who bring authenticity, spontaneity, and real energy to the film. They’re not portraying characters; they’re showing up as themselves, which gives the project credibility and cultural depth.
AO: Al Futah has always brought different worlds together in one place. When I started choosing people for the project, I thought about the current new generation, and how the film could give them exposure for talents that connect with the Complex pillars and also carry the park’s spirit today, as a natural continuation of what Al Futah was back then. That includes Rakan Al-Ghaith, a Saudi skateboarding champion, and the rapper Dahmz, one of the most exciting new and standout voices in the Saudi rap scene.
Complex MENA: The period between 2008 and 2016 was a defining moment for Al Futah as a meeting point for young people. How did that sense of shared history and community influence the way you approached the film and brought these scenes to life?
RM: That period shaped a generation’s relationship with the park as a place of discovery, connection, creativity, and identity. We approached the film with respect for that collective memory, aiming to capture the spirit of that time rather than simply recreate its visuals.
We focused on energy, interaction, and emotional authenticity, making sure the scenes felt organic, alive, and rooted in real experience. It was important that those who lived that era recognize its truth, while new audiences understand its cultural impact.
AO: Al Futah is also one of the first public parks in Riyadh, so it carries real history, especially with the old buildings and blocks surrounding it. The place feels soaked in the city’s past. I wanted to show it in a raw, honest way, exactly how I remember it from that era. In the same moment, you could find dancers in one corner, rap challenges in another, a football pitch full of energy, and cycling crews doing tricks through the pathways. I approached the film as if the camera was my point of view from that time, and that’s why the one-take idea made sense. It feels like you’re inside the park, catching real moments as they happen.
Complex MENA: What excites you most about Complex launching in the region?
RM: What excites me most is the opportunity to amplify local voices and present regional stories through an authentic lens. Complex has the ability to bridge global culture with local narratives, creating meaningful visibility for creatives, communities, and emerging movements.
Launching in the region represents a powerful platform for cultural exchange, creative growth, and long-term ecosystem building, allowing regional talent to reach wider audiences while staying true to their identity.
AO: Complex was one of the first global platforms I discovered. It was my window into Western pop culture, fashion, celebrity news, and what was trending. Now that it’s here in our region, it’s exciting because the same global platform is shifting its lens toward the Middle East, telling our stories with global reach and bringing our scene closer to the world.
SIDE QUEST in Saudi Arabia was directed by Abdullah Okasha, and produced by Raed Mohammed.
– Raed Mohammed is a Saudi creative producer and content creator. Inspired by street culture, he creates bold, youth-driven visual stories that blend raw creativity with strong artistic vision. His work focuses on turning ideas into expressive, high-impact content that connects with real people and modern culture.
– Abdullah Okasha is a Sudanese filmmaker and cultural observer based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where he was born and raised. His work explores identity, street culture, and everyday life through intimate visual storytelling, shaped by living between Saudi and Sudanese cultures. He is a co-founder of Sandlifers, an independent skate collective blending skateboarding culture with local visual expression in Riyadh, and a member of Gharem Studio.
Read more about the other Side Quests in Cairo and Marrakech.
Pop Culture Editor-At-Large at Complex MENA.
