Drama.. Mirrors of Societies – Taghreed Ibrahim Al-Tasan
Tweet by Ibrahim Al-Tasan
In our modern era, drama is no longer just a space for entertainment or filling hours of viewing. Rather, it has become one of the most influential tools in shaping the mental image of societies in front of the world.
Many people judge countries and peoples by what they see on the screen before they set foot on its land, and before they have the experience of living in it or dealing directly with its people. Therefore, drama is no longer an isolated art, but rather has become a cultural window, a social lens, and sometimes an unwritten document through which others read the features of nations.
When the world watches dramas about a society, it picks up cues from them that go beyond the story and characters; He reads values, monitors the nature of relationships, understands the form of the family, the boundaries of society, the position of women, the ambition of young people, and even the method of managing crises.
Through drama, an image may be formed of a violent society, an environment dominated by corruption, or a reality dominated by drugs and crime. In contrast, it may reflect a society that is productive, cohesive, ethical, and charged with the values of work and belonging.
From here, the most urgent question becomes: What image do we want to convey to the world about our Saudi society?
Today, the name of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is at the forefront of global research, interest, and curiosity, not only because of its political and economic weight, but also because of the profound developmental transformations it is witnessing that have made it the focus of the world’s attention. When a country’s international presence increases, its responsibility to present its cultural image becomes more important, and drama becomes one of the most important tools of this responsibility.
I believe that Saudi drama must be a powerful and honest tool in conveying the reality of society and its culture, and not be merely a reproduction of dramatic styles imported from societies that do not resemble ours. The problem does not lie in the artistic influence of different schools, as this is natural and required, but the danger lies in losing our special features, dressing our society in a garment that does not belong to it, or imbuing it with characteristics that do not express it.
We must believe that honesty is the essence of successful drama. Honesty here does not mean beautifying the image or just showing the positives. Quite the contrary, a real society is one that appears in black and white, with its achievements and challenges, with its success stories and its shortcomings.
No one demands an ideal drama that glosses over reality and hides its flaws, but at the same time we do not want a drama that exaggerates the negatives until it turns into a distorted image of a society that is beautiful in its essence.
There is a space between beautification and distortion called truth, which is what we need. Our Saudi society is a society rich in profound human stories. Stories of family, social transformation, women’s empowerment, youth aspirations, economic transformations, cultural changes, and the psychological and social challenges that accompany every transitional stage.
These stories, if presented consciously and professionally, are capable of creating drama that competes Arab and international. At the same time, it is a very important soft power in conveying the image and forming the impression… and gaining the respect, admiration and appreciation of other societies.
We, without a doubt, have the human resources capable of doing this. From writers, actors, directors, technicians, and creators with a high sense of responsibility and talent. What is lacking in some works is not human capabilities, but rather the prioritization of the material over the message, and sometimes preoccupation with the factors of apparent production at the expense of the quality of the content and the depth of the idea.
We have seen how the Al-Asouf series was able to present an honest and strong dramatic model that succeeded in touching on social memory and conveying part of the transformations that Saudi society has undergone with boldness and realism. It was a work that carried the spirit of the place and time, and therefore it reached people and left its mark. To this day, we are still waiting for a work that matches its strength and honesty, but unfortunately nothing that rivals it with the same depth has yet to come.
Drama is not a luxury. It is part of the soft power of countries, and an aspect of cultural sovereignty that is no less important than political and economic presence. The image that reaches the world about the nation is not only created through numbers and indicators, but also through the story that we tell about ourselves, and the message that we send through our art.
And when Saudi Arabia today is a success story and a global inspiration for development, ambition, and transformation, it has the right to have a drama worthy of it, that conveys its truth honestly, preserves its features, and introduces the world to the beauty of its society, not as it is intended to be seen, but as it is in its essence: an authentic, conscious, and productive society, moving confidently toward the future.
Drama is not just a scene that is shown, but a nation that is narrated.
