$680k movie on expat life in Dubai planned

Thursday, 21 August 2008 4:34 PM

A 2.5 million-dirham ($680,600) movie about expatriate life in Dubai is set to hit theatres by the end of this year, according to the film’s producer.

Dubai-based Craig Johnson said the film, aptly titled “Expats”, will chronicle the lives of foreigners living in the city, with three of the lead characters being a European man and an Indian man and woman.

He said the film will explore the myth behind the Dubai dream and the different realities that expatriates in the city face through the intertwined story of three immigrant families, the Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) reported on Wednesday.

"The Arabian empire is definitely on the rise with Dubai at the heart of it, and `Expats' is the story of some of those people who leave their native countries and everything they know to come and try to take advantage of the opportunities that a growing empire brings," Johnson, a New Zealander who has lived in Dubai since mid-2003, said in a statement.

The film is being touted as Dubai’s first home-grown full-length English-language production.

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Posted by: Aadil Saturday, 23 August 2008 7:08 PM[UAE] - South Africa

I'm sure the movie will be deemed "not fitting with the customs and traditions of an islamic country". Which of course, is a lie to hide the exploitation suffered by asian expats in Dubai.

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Posted by: Viky Saturday, 23 August 2008 10:30 AM[UAE]

A movie about the life of the expats in Dubai is a very good idea. Though some countries have done it already, I guess, including my country in which that movie did not really depict the true life of our countrymen's life here in this country. I hope that this movie will be able to show the true living condition in this country, not just for some Europeans but also other nationalities (Asians, Africans and even Arabs). I hope it will be able to show, not just the triumph and the glitters of living in this city, but also (and most especially) the struggles or hardships of living here, away from one's family and dealing with the high cost of living.

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Posted by: Graham Plater Friday, 22 August 2008 1:11 PM[UAE] - Germany

Yes, if the film indeed tries to capture reality I guess there won't be much left to see by the time the authorities "clean it up"... or they'll use it as an excuse for tightening things up.

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Posted by: khalid Friday, 22 August 2008 8:41 AM[UAE] - uae

the idea seems to have been taken from the original movie in the indian language - malayalam made on these lines. let's see from what perspective this one portrays life in this part of the world.

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Posted by: Farooq Friday, 22 August 2008 6:28 AM[UAE] - Pakistan

If the movie is intended to capture the true colours of the Expats' life then I guess there will be a lot of pressure on the Censor Board.

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