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Dubai Studio City (DSC) is looking to emulate the success of its sister project, Dubai Media City, by becoming the biggest film and television production precinct in the Middle East.

DSC director Jamal Al Sharif spoke to Digital Broadcast about his ambition for the production hub and its potential impact on the region's broadcast industry as a whole.

One mantra popular with DSC is the concept of a "one-stop-shop for the local production industry". This could perhaps be selling the project short.

To date, several international companies from India and the Far East as well as Europe and the US have either signed up or moved in to their DSC premises, with the promise of more to come.

"In the past few weeks we have registered several international companies like Endemol, Frame 25 and Blink Studios. These companies boast extensive support infrastructure and some have already begun collaborating with and providing services for other companies coming into Studio City.

These are services that the local industry would usually have had to look for internationally," says Al Sharif.

"These companies are taking advantage of Dubai as a destination, as a bridge between the East, West, North and South.

"Dubai has always been a trading post between the East and West. India has been trading here extensively for forty years, that makes communicating easier and we have been negotiating with several Indian companies such as post production house Prime Focus and film processor Adlabs.

"One of the biggest animation houses in India is also considering establishing operations in DSC. We are really looking forward to growing the production sector in the Indian market as well as the Western market.

Al Sharif expects DSC to capitalise on the demand for production services from key territories such as the US and Europe, which are grappling with rising costs domestically. He does concede that other emerging markets will also be looking for a slice of this pie.

"People say India is cheaper than Dubai but that is a little misleading," says Al Sharif. "You have to take into account the fact that Dubai has better infrastructure, and there are few if any logistical issues to contend with, such as language barriers or visa restrictions.

Despite the fact that 60 percent of all commissioned production work arriving at DSC is from international clients, the free zone is keen to ensure that as much of the workforce on any given project are hired locally.

"Traditionally we have faced a major challenge in sourcing local talent, but the situation is improving slowly," claims Al Sharif. "When Warner Brothers shot Syriana in the UAE in 2005, 80 percent of the crew were flown in from the US.

However, just two years later when The Kingdom was shot in Abu Dhabi, 50 percent of the crew were employed locally. Our goal is to ensure foreign producers have the option of sourcing crew entirely from the local market.

"We are eager to organise a local industry, with the Manhattan Film Academy and a local film talent pool. Our goal is to provide a forum for aspiring filmmakers, producers and technicians to communicate and collaborate.

In terms of television channel distribution services, Al Sharif says Studio City provides an ideal base for pan-Arab broadcasters looking to establish regional operations based in Dubai.

"The broadcast clients we are dealing with do not simply cater to the UAE market," says Al Sharif. "Most transmit services via Arabsat, Nilesat or Hotbird and are looking at international markets, including those in Europe and South Asia.

The sudden availability of additional space and facilities within the free zone has also encouraged many to invest in new infrastructure. Technology companies dealing with many of the fledgling broadcast technologies are also looking to explore the Middle East market via the new free zone.

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