The big picture

His was the first Western movie that had gained permission to film in the emirate — despite dealing with difficult issues such as the inner workings of the oil industry and terrorism. The challenges Gaghan faced included shooting scenes during the holy month of Ramadan, getting clearance to film in different locations, as well as the heat. At one point, his team also reportedly strayed into Omani territory, prompting a visit from the military to check what they were up to and to tell them to turn back.

But the making of Syriana was not just an eye-opener for Gaghan’s crew — it is also likely to have been one for Dubai’s government. The millions of dollars spent on the film will have highlighted not only the money the emirate could make from hosting big Hollywood productions, but also the challenges it will face in developing a movie industry of its own.

The emirate is hoping that Syriana was the first in a long line of Hollywood films to choose Dubai as a location, boosting its foreign exchange earnings and helping it develop a regional media hub. “Big movie producers need a lot of components,” says Dr. Amina Al Rustamani, executive director of media at Tecom, the government body that oversees initiatives such as Dubai Media City and the emirate’s upcoming Studio City. “Over the medium term, we are looking to cater for production companies on a big scale and we want to make them aware that all their requirements have been thought of, and that we are ready to host big productions,” she adds.

If Dr. Al Rustamani’s efforts succeed, the rewards could be huge. Thanks to its aesthetic appeal, Dubai has already proved a popular location for the Middle Eastern and Indian movie industries, but Hollywood films are still where the really big bucks are spent.

According to the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), US studios shelled out more than US$60 billion on production in 2004, and countries from Europe to the Far East are looking to get a bigger slice of the action. As was the case with Syriana, Dubai also has the opportunity to rival sites in the Middle East that have traditionally been favoured by Western filmmakers, such as Morocco and Tunisia.
As well as the opportunity to showcase the city for tourists, there is also the multiplier effect of money being ploughed into the economy by one-off productions. “Every dollar spent from movies’ budgets normally translates into two or three dollars for the local economy, because of additional spending,” says Tim Smythe, co-founder of Filmworks, the media company that helped facilitate the shooting of Syriana in Dubai.

Dubai is therefore laying out hundreds of millions of dollars on infrastructure and services that it hopes will attract big studio companies to the emirate, particularly the ‘footloose’ productions that can be filmed anywhere but tend to go where costs are lower and decent sound-stage facilities are available.

The emirate’s US$100 million Studio City, for example, will start offering services and space to production companies later this year, with the long-term goal of encouraging regional and international TV and movie firms to move to the free zone.

According to Dr. Al Rustamani, 12 TV and production firms have so far agreed to set up in the zone, and interest has already been received from international players.

US-based Doc Hollywood Studios, for example, is in the process of creating a joint venture to represent writers, directors and actors in the region from a base in Studio City. Also, although Dr. Al Rustamani is keeping schtum on the talks, the Walt Disney Company is believed to be considering a move to Dubai.

Her hope is that Studio City puts the emirate on the map as a place to film, as well as a location for studio work. “For Hollywood, we have had strong interest from two major film producers,” she says. “We’ve also seen interest from Bollywood — they always use Dubai to film songs in their movies. Now is the right time to address that demand in a structured way, and that’s the idea behind Studio City.”

More important in attracting one-off productions, however, is likely to be what Dr. Al Rustamani calls the ‘soft-services’ side of the scheme, including areas such as financing and recruitment. Tecom is considering the creation of its own movie-making company and investing in production firms that set up in the emirate. Also being discussed is a financing initiative, similar to the European film fund, which would provide grants to productions made locally.

“It’s all about the bottom line,” Smythe says. “There are thousands of films being made at any point in time but nearly every one has a budget problem. A film fund is being looked at [in the region] and is being investigated but it is not something that will happen overnight. Once the industry’s spin-offs and advantages become more tangible, the film fund will get more support from the region’s governments.”

Easing the approval process for shooting in different locations — an issue experienced by the makers of Syriana — is another area being looked at, Dr. Al Rustamani says. Studio City’s management recently created a department which will oversee discussions with the emirate’s local authorities and police force — a move that, she says, will cut the approval process for big projects down to “two or three weeks”.

A Film Commission, to be established later this year, will also provide financial incentives to Hollywood and Bollywood producers if they use Dubai as a base for their films, as well as helping them to search for suitable sites. “The Film Commission will make sure the city is ready for filmmakers to come and shoot here,” says Dr. Al Rustamani. “We have also established a department which will take care of location approvals with the Ministry of Information and Dubai Municipality, as well as Dubai Police.”

Smythe sees the Film Commission’s creation as a key element in Dubai’s plans. “I’ve been filming in this country for over a decade so I know all the approval procedures, and nearly all of the government departments have been very helpful. However, as there is obviously not a large film industry, there is no centralisd approval system and therefore the film commission will become extremely important.”

He continues: “It takes a lot of man hours to get approvals so it will begin streamlining things. It will also provide a centralised point to deal with other emirates and neighbouring countries.”

But with Hollywood studios facing the increasing challenges of piracy and international competition, Dubai will have to demonstrate that it can cut producers’ costs, as well as offering a full range of services.

One issue at the moment, Smythe says, is the high relative cost of hotel rooms in the emirate — a result of high occupancy rates which should come down as more hotels and resorts are launched in Dubai over the next couple of years.

Many other countries around the world also offer financial rebates to producers in an effort to attract business — something Dr. Al Rustamani says is being considered by the Film Commission. In 2001, for example, the Australian government announced a 12.5% offset on big budget movies’ spending, with New Zealand following suit the next year. The British government also recently increased its tax rebates, offering 16% cuts for films with budgets exceeding US$46 million, as well as allowing investors to get immediate 100% tax relief on money invested in UK films.

Dubai is also by no means the only country to have latched onto the idea of attracting the big names of Hollywood. Eastern Europe, for one, has already fashioned itself into a filmmaking hotspot — particularly the Czech Republic, the setting for some of Walt Disney Company’s The Chronicles of Narnia. And there’s Bulgaria, where the government claims producers can benefit from saving 50% to 60% on the costs spent in the US.

Hungary’s government is also aiming to bring in over US$200 million in the next three years from its film industry, while Eastern Europe as a whole expects film production revenue to reach US$340 million this year. Although this has affected more established players such as the UK’s film industry, it still earned an estimated US$930 million from movie production last year.

Ultimately, Smythe says, Dubai will need to attract “three or four” big productions a year to realise its aims. “Dubai’s industry is still young — its staple is still production of commercials and TV — but once it can sustain longer film work it will become continuous and attract a lot more people. That will be a key ingredient to get the ball rolling.

“Dubai has a lot of positives going for it with regard to locations and its professional infrastructure, but we need to generate continuous work so we can have more of a talent pool to pull from.”

And although opening up to Hollywood might ruffle a few local feathers, Smythe says the region will ultimately benefit. “As things grow, the number and quality of Arabic film features will increase and the Arabic market will only improve.”||**||