For Mashael Alqahtani, life has been something like a crisp blank page in a treasured journal.
The young Saudi Arabian screenwriter, part of a new wave of global talent from the Middle East, was actually an introvert in her youth, but found herself through the art of writing. Each page she scribbled with her ideas, feelings, and fantasies only led to the next promising one.
Her life has been just like that, a series of pages being filled. Sometimes they are comedic. Sometimes they are terrifying. But each page reveals something new and surprising to Mashael.
Each page also reminds her of why she decided to become a screenwriter.
She got into the writing world young as a self-described shy kid growing up in Saudi Arabia. To hide away from the noisy outside world, she began to uncover a world within, one that was worthy of exploration. “My journal was like my life raft,” Mashael recalls. “At first, I didn’t know what suited being written about, but pretty quickly I started to pour my anxieties into the pages.”
The allure of writing provided both emotional ballast as well as a kind of fun addiction. “I would write constantly,” says Mashael. “The stories became more fictionalized, scary, fun, and comedic.” She seasoned her journaling with a love of American films and TV shows, which only made her writing better. “I was able to imagine more stories,” she says. This led her to pursue a screenwriting career. “As soon as I learned how to write screenplays, my world was wide open.”
Bridging Cultures
As a young Saudi-Arabian writer, Mashael says she tries to bridge both identities, creating something new that can help express her cultural background to a global audience in bold colors. Her recent horror project Sila, is based on an Arab legend about a sheltered Muslim teen girl who inherits a mysterious, demonic hunger for human flesh and must team up with a loner to hide her secret from her devout mother before she consumes those she loves the most.
The project was so unique that Mashael was named as a fellow for Blumhouse and K Period Media’s competitive “screamwriting” program. This horror-focused, screenwriting fellowship is also supported by the Sundance Institute and selects nine participants each September, with the goal of cultivating a new generation of screenwriters dedicated to the genre.
Later this year, Alqahtani will get to work with horror screenwriters and filmmakers like Ryan Murphy (Monster) and Christopher Landon (Drop, Paranormal Activity) as part of the program. Mashael attributes her success in screenwriting to her Saudi background and knack for story.
“I’m incredibly passionate about telling uniquely specific stories that are endlessly universal,” she says. “Authenticity is everything to me, especially to the characters in my stories,” she adds.
A Good Laugh Too
It’s worth noting that Mashael is a versatile screenwriter, who has excelled in the comedy world as well as in the horror genre. Last year, she won the 2024 First Look Deal Award from Script Pipeline for Tafheet, her action comedy feature. “Tafheet” is the word for illegal car racing that is popular in Saudi Arabia. Script Pipeline also recognized Mashael in its 2020 Screenwriting Contest for her film The Wedding. And her script for the comedy Banat was a quarterfinalist in the 2019 Austin Film Festival.
“I see myself above all as an entertainer,” says Mashael. “Whatever the genre is, I like a lot of comedy in my work.” Again, her Saudi identity comes into play, as she likes to poke fun at herself through storytelling. “I try to do this in a way that connects me to my audience, while telling universal stories about women confronting their youth, desires, family, and adulthood.”
The depth and richness of her writing has allowed her to place in other screenwriting competitions, including Screencraft, BlueCat, and WeScreenplay. Mashael has also interned and worked for the Cannes Film Festival, which has also informed her work. She’s also held positions at Film Independent, Grandview MGMT – now Untitled, FilmNation, Sight Unseen, and Borderless Pictures.
“These experiences have only built upon my love for my field, and my goals of building upon my professional voice,” she says.
And she moves fluidly between genres. Mashael cites Noel Carroll’s book The Philosophy of Horror as a particular inspiration. “This has helped me flesh out my own horror and genre projects, and even some comedic projects too,” she says.
A Reader and a Writer
Mashael has not been winging it. She obtained a BA in Film Production from Emerson College in Boston, which provided her with a foundation in the craft, then went on to get Master of Fine Arts in Screenwriting at the University of Southern California and the American Film Institute. “These are prestigious programs that select only top global talent,” she says. “My academic background has allowed me to strengthen my abilities as a writer and collaborator.”
In addition to the aforementioned success stories, she’s also notched recognition at other major festivals, including the Red Sea Film Festival, NewFilmmakers LA, and the Montreal Women’s Film Festival, where Witch Pricker & The Hare (2025) and Two Sisters (2024) were shown.
Mashael has also worked for Austin Film Festival and Rideback as a freelance script reader, where she offers analytical expertise and helps other writers out. At Rideback as a reader, she assisted in the selection of the next class of fellows for Rideback’s RISE program for mid-level TV and feature writers.
“My experience working in these roles has allowed me to strengthen and develop my voice as a writer,” she says. “I’m able to understand more where the feedback stems from, and how to pinpoint challenges in order to move forward.”
Her long-term goal, she says, is to continue making waves with her success and career as a Saudi-Arabian screenwriter, both in the U.S. and worldwide. “Given my skillset, professional network, and tireless, consistent work ethic, I know I will continue to achieve more of my dreams,” she says.
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