Movie

Khamsa - The Well of Oblivion

2022

Insufficient evidence

We did not find enough credible, independent evidence to publish a numeric cash-grab score. Unrated is more honest than a guess.

What counts as a cash grab?

Commercial extraction prioritized over meaningful consumer or creative value. Profit, popularity, adaptations, sequels, remakes, high budgets, and normal marketing do not count by themselves.

Why?

Khamsa - The Well of Oblivion is a 2022 Algerian animated feature that played the festival circuit including Annecy 2022 and Ottawa 2022, and received critical festival coverage and at least one festival award. I found festival programs, press listings, and reviews documenting artistic selection and reception, and I found release listings that record festival screenings but no evidence of a wide theatrical rollout, premium commercial packaging, or predatory monetization tied to the title. Available sources point toward a festival-driven artistic release rather than a commercial cash grab.

Selected for major animation festivals including Annecy 2022 and Ottawa 2022, indicating artistic intent and festival positioning.
Multiple festival reviews and program notes describe the film as a substantive, visually driven Algerian animated feature.
Sources describe the film as Algeria's first animated feature, supporting original production effort rather than low-effort reuse.

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Score factors

Direction	Factor	Evidence	Impact
Against	Festival selection	Khamsa was included in Annecy 2022 official programming and featured in festival feature lineups such as Ottawa and Future Film Festival 2022.[2][1][4]	-18
Against	Critical response praising craft	Contemporary festival reviews and writeups describe the film as a striking, substantive animated work and discuss its visual and narrative qualities.[6][7]	-14
Against	National first-feature significance	Multiple sources identify Khamsa as Algeria's first animated feature, implying substantial original production effort and cultural importance.[3][5]	-15
Against	Festival-focused release, limited commercial evidence	Release listings and festival programs record festival dates in 2022 and 2023 but do not document a subsequent wide theatrical or major VOD/streaming commercial release.[8][2][1]	-8
Against	Festival award recognition	Sources report Khamsa received festival award recognition, including the Kabuku Award at the Niigata International Animation Film Festival in 2023.[3]	-4

Confidence: Low · No source-backed commercial-extraction signal was found. · Researched 2026-09-06

Sources reviewed

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