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Investment Director - Energy Fund
Industry: Finance
Location: Dubai, UAE
Money spinning Marvels
by Tamara Walid on Sunday, 01 April 2007
Captain Marvel: David Maisel, chairman of Marvel Entertainment.
It never gets old to see people get excited talking about Spider-Man or X-Men or The Hulk," says David Maisel, chairman of Marvel Entertainment. "I think the smile on people's faces is the best part."
In Dubai to launch a billion-dollar theme park project in partnership with Dubai-based Al Ahli Group (AAG), Maisel himself has every reason to smile.
We're sitting in a plush meeting room in the conference centre at The Gate, a striking monument that itself wouldn't look out of place in a comic book. Maisel, who heads one of the world's top intellectual property (IP) companies, is more than at home in Dubai, talking in a quickfire American accent. "The success of Dubai is very evident for everybody, so it's clear that Dubai should be a priority for Marvel," he grins.
The theme park, which is being developed by AAG and set for completion in 2011, will feature the full library of Marvel's superheroes, including Spider-Man, Iron Man, The X-Men, The Incredible Hulk, The Fantastic Four and The Silver Surfer. It will also be the first of its kind in the region, promising to bring families a "fun as well as an educational" experience.
"I think everyone is aching to have such destinations in our part of the world, and we don't have them," says Mohammed Al Khammas, CEO of AAG.
"People are tired of going to the malls and the same places all the time. It's about time that we gave them something new," he continues. "If you think of the biggest parks in the world, this will be one of the top parks and the newest with the latest technology, which gives us a huge advantage."
After over two years of talks, the two parties agreed to partner in a long-term relationship with direct investment in the park worth US$1bn. The creative team, that will build the four-year project, will be based in Hollywood, Orlando and Dubai, and will aim to deliver a "new standard for theme parks around the world," says Al Khammas.
Marvel, that has only recently launched its own studio to handle the production aspects of its movies from start to finish - earlier on all production aspects were handled by other companies - not only plans to bring its best characters to Dubai, but also to create new ones based on stories adapted from the region.
"Marvel is really the house of ideas so we can come up with new characters that can be exciting for pan-Arabia," suggests Maisel.
Al Khammas, who is a passionate fan of Marvel's characters and who has been eager to bring such an initiative to the region for some time, promises there will be other surprises.
"We have other intellectual properties that we will be bringing into the market, which will be equally significant as Marvel and I think everybody will fall in love with them. This is going to be ultimately the biggest and most advanced family destination in the world, with the best mix of IPs."
He believes that investing in such a project offers an unparalleled opportunity, describing it as a "good tool" to show that the group does care about the families, and providing them with some of the best entertainment in the world. As Maisel says, "not everything is about financial rewards".
Maisel is convinced that Marvel's characters and its movies relate to everybody, and that they would be successful wherever they went.
"They're really about individuals who have great human stories, good and bad that we all experience. We like to say that our movies are as much about the human being as they are about the superhero, so they are as much Peter Parker as they are about Spider-Man," he says, adding: "These stories are really universal. They've worked in every country we've taken them to, and we fully expect that to continue."
Maisel, however, believes that the right business partner in any new market is a significant factor to help understand the country's culture and how to go about doing business there.
Although Maisel declines to comment on how much revenue Marvel expects to make from the theme park project and other possible initiatives in Dubai with AAG he says: "We are very optimistic. There hasn't been a business in which we've entered these characters that hasn't done very well. They have been at the top of their class and our characters have already been approved at theme parks as a universal partner in Orlando, for example. We have a lot to build on in movies and advertising, we have a lot at our disposal, and we are very fortunate."
Maisel is hopeful for Dubai's production scene, and believes the possibilities are endless.
Asked whether the development of the industry in the UAE will accelerate, Maisel laughs: "I don't think anything is slow in Dubai except the traffic."
So would Marvel consider having a studio in Dubai Studio City, Dubai Holding's production facility, when it is fully operational?
"We look at and consider everything, but we are focusing on the theme park now, and we will continue to focus on making that a success," he replies diplomatically. "We will also evaluate other ways to bring Marvel activities to the region, and what's the best way to be smart about that."
Smart indeed. Marvel's profile so far is filled with success stories as the company has made its way to the top of the world of character-based entertainment. While its library is brimming with over 5000 characters, its operations are based on utilising these character franchises in licensing, entertainment, publishing and toys. Highlights include feature films, DVD and home video and consumer products, video games, action figures and role-playing toys, television and character promotions. Marvel, an American entertainment company, was founded in 1939 as Timely Comics then becoming known as Atlas Comics in the 1950s. Later, however, it changed its name to Marvel Entertainment Inc. Today the company's divisions include Marvel Characters, publisher of Marvel Comics; Marvel Studios, a film and television production company; and Toy Biz, a toy company. Marvel's biggest break, however, was in the 1960s when it launched The Fantastic Four, and other superhero titles created from the minds of classic comic book artists Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko.
Since then Marvel has become one of the two biggest American comics companies. After over 60 years of comic book publishing, Marvel's strategy is to leverage its character franchises in a growing array of opportunities around the world.
Maisel, who was only appointed chairman in February of this year, has been in the entertainment business for over 20 years. His work included leveraging brands, intellectual property, movies, music, TV shows and video games. His CV is overflowing with a variety of talent agencies in the United States and big names like Walt Disney, but Maisel says he found the "right home" in Marvel when he realised how "unique" the company was with its huge set of characters. Now Maisel, who says he is involved in "every aspect of the business" and "wears two hats" - that of the chairman of the studio and executive VP - plans on taking the company to new heights.
Although Marvel has seen great success bringing its characters to the world's audiences through blockbuster movies, Maisel says "this is only the beginning for Marvel, after the company launched its own movie studio, where it will finish and produce our movies completely on its own, as opposed to always working with partners. "That's been a major step for us as a company and we'll continue growing with our own movie studio going forwards," says Maisel, adding: "The second and third priorities for the company relate to international growth; bringing our characters to the key regions around the world with the right partners like we've done today."
Marvel would "absolutely" consider taking its characters anywhere else in the region, according to Maisel, however, only after talking with local partners first on how to approach the Arab region with the "best" strategy.
In three years' time Maisel predicts, in addition to the excitement of being 12 months away from the opening of the theme park, that Marvel will have a more active role in the region.
"I wouldn't be surprised if there were other activities that we would've done between the years now and then to bring Marvel and Marvel's entertainment to the region," he says.
Maisel is very excited about Marvel's first two movies from the new studio. Iron Man, who is to be introduced for the first time, features an all-star cast including Hollywood heavyweights Robert Downey Jr, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges and Terrance Howard.
The movie will be released in May next year, and The Incredible Hulk - a sequel to the 2003 hit - a month later.
Maisel talks about Marvel's characters as though they are part of a family. When asked if he has a favourite, he is simply unable to decide. "They are all children, so it's like asking ‘do you have a favorite child?'" he laughs.
The CEO's enthusiasm is infectious, and he has a fan's appreciation of the characters, as well as the fascinating worlds they inhabit. He will be smiling for a good while yet.
Mohammed Al Khammas
How is this theme park going to be different to others around the world?
It’s going to be new in terms of the technology — it has never been done before. Also, in terms of the right experience, because a theme park is different than if you go to a usual park. In a theme park every ride you go on is themed, so there’s a movie or a story that you interact with. You live the ride, and it’s not just a 20-second ride, it’s a seven-minute ride. You see a movie through it, and you live through the experience.
You’ve been trying to bring Disney’s ‘Imagineering’ concept here for a while. Is this going to happen?
Disney’s ‘Imagineering’ is a mechanism to be creative, so what we are doing now is creating our own version; we don't need to copy. I think Disney’s been doing well but I think there’s a lot of talent in the region. If you take people from India, Africa, the Middle East and the Far East and combine collectively their efforts in a nucleus here in Dubai, I think we’ll get more creativity than anybody has ever done. There are so many myths and stories in Africa that we are exploring right now which is an amazing list of ideas. We want to be able to animate them and show them to the world as storylines, animation and others. This is something that hasn’t been done by an outsider entertainment company before, and this is what we are going to be doing as well.
Do you see other companies doing the same here?
Well, you can do smaller parks around the city, they are supporting infrastructure, but inevitably the more the better. We are just one; if they become two or three tomorrow I would support them 100%. The only thing we need to do is synergise our efforts so we don’t clash, so we become another Orlando. We are very much on our way to becoming even bigger and better than that.
What are the most significant barriers to business here in the region?
I don’t think it’s about barriers but knowledge. I think a lot of people don’t know that Marvel represents all these characters. Maybe they knew Spider-Man, maybe The Hulk, but they didn’t know that these IPs are part of Marvel. There’s a steep learning curve but aside from that there are no obstacles.
How is this theme park going to be different to others around the world?
It’s going to be new in terms of the technology — it has never been done before. Also, in terms of the right experience, because a theme park is different than if you go to a usual park. In a theme park every ride you go on is themed, so there’s a movie or a story that you interact with. You live the ride, and it’s not just a 20-second ride, it’s a seven-minute ride. You see a movie through it, and you live through the experience.
You’ve been trying to bring Disney’s ‘Imagineering’ concept here for a while. Is this going to happen?
Disney’s ‘Imagineering’ is a mechanism to be creative, so what we are doing now is creating our own version; we don't need to copy. I think Disney’s been doing well but I think there’s a lot of talent in the region. If you take people from India, Africa, the Middle East and the Far East and combine collectively their efforts in a nucleus here in Dubai, I think we’ll get more creativity than anybody has ever done. There are so many myths and stories in Africa that we are exploring right now which is an amazing list of ideas. We want to be able to animate them and show them to the world as storylines, animation and others. This is something that hasn’t been done by an outsider entertainment company before, and this is what we are going to be doing as well.
Do you see other companies doing the same here?
Well, you can do smaller parks around the city, they are supporting infrastructure, but inevitably the more the better. We are just one; if they become two or three tomorrow I would support them 100%. The only thing we need to do is synergise our efforts so we don’t clash, so we become another Orlando. We are very much on our way to becoming even bigger and better than that.
What are the most significant barriers to business here in the region?
I don’t think it’s about barriers but knowledge. I think a lot of people don’t know that Marvel represents all these characters. Maybe they knew Spider-Man, maybe The Hulk, but they didn’t know that these IPs are part of Marvel. There’s a steep learning curve but aside from that there are no obstacles.
Enjoy the ride
One of the characters that will be introduced for the first time in the forthcoming movie, Fantastic Four 2, and later in Dubai’s theme park, is The Silver Surfer.
“The character shows the potential of people of our universe, as he is a very exciting and unique individual who is from outer space, and who surfs throughout the whole universe and has great adventures.
“At the same time however he’s very reflective and understands, because he is so powerful, that the individual differences that can divide so many people when you step back from them are normally very minor compared to the bigger issues that unite people,” Maisel adds.
In the theme park, the character will be transformed into a themed Silver Surfer Ride, which hopes to bring a message to people, specifically children, in an entertaining but also educational way. According to Maisel, The Silver Surfer Ride will inform children about the different cultures of the world, and the geography of the earth.
One of the characters that will be introduced for the first time in the forthcoming movie, Fantastic Four 2, and later in Dubai’s theme park, is The Silver Surfer.
“The character shows the potential of people of our universe, as he is a very exciting and unique individual who is from outer space, and who surfs throughout the whole universe and has great adventures.
“At the same time however he’s very reflective and understands, because he is so powerful, that the individual differences that can divide so many people when you step back from them are normally very minor compared to the bigger issues that unite people,” Maisel adds.
In the theme park, the character will be transformed into a themed Silver Surfer Ride, which hopes to bring a message to people, specifically children, in an entertaining but also educational way. According to Maisel, The Silver Surfer Ride will inform children about the different cultures of the world, and the geography of the earth.
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