Arab News, Dubai

Saudi-directed film “Scales” was named the best film in the Asian feature section at the 30th Singapore International Film Festival.

“Sayidat Al-Bahr,” or “Scales” in English, was created by Image Nation Abu Dhabi and directed by Saudi filmmaker Shahad Ameen.

“It took me six years to make this film, the way I wanted, as feminist as I wanted,” Ameen said on stage.

The fantasy film, made in the UAE, tells the story of Hayat, a young girl living in a village with a tradition of sacrificing female children to mysterious sea-dwelling creatures in the. When her time comes, she decides to break with tradition and forge her own path.

Ameen — known for her short film “Eye & Mermaid,” which premiered at the Dubai Film Festival in 2013 — said that the film is an artistic comment on patriarchal societies.

“’Scales’ tells a visceral story about growing up as a woman in a patriarchal society, offering an allegorical take on a universal theme that will resonate with audiences around the world,” Ameen said in a released statement.