Netflix has previewed a selection of upcoming films and shows aimed at the Arab world and hailing from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Egypt, and Jordan.
The global platform has been steadily making inroads into the Middle East and North Africa since 2015, in the face of fierce competition from local players such as Mbc’s Shahid VIP and Starzplay.
The new productions, mainly due to launch in 2023, include Saudi Arabian feature Alkhallat+, a satirical suspense film based on the hit online show Alkhallat, which was first released in 2017 and received more than 1.5 billion views across YouTube and social media.
The feature is one of the first productions to come down the pipeline under an eight-picture deal with burgeoning Saudi Arabian studio Telfaz11, signed in November 2020.
“The film will feature four exciting comeback stories of social deception and trickery in four unlikely places, bringing the best of this beloved Saudi show to life,...
The global platform has been steadily making inroads into the Middle East and North Africa since 2015, in the face of fierce competition from local players such as Mbc’s Shahid VIP and Starzplay.
The new productions, mainly due to launch in 2023, include Saudi Arabian feature Alkhallat+, a satirical suspense film based on the hit online show Alkhallat, which was first released in 2017 and received more than 1.5 billion views across YouTube and social media.
The feature is one of the first productions to come down the pipeline under an eight-picture deal with burgeoning Saudi Arabian studio Telfaz11, signed in November 2020.
“The film will feature four exciting comeback stories of social deception and trickery in four unlikely places, bringing the best of this beloved Saudi show to life,...
- 10/6/2022
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
BBC Studios and Dubai-based Mbc Studios have teamed on the first Arabic-language adaptation of “The Office.”
Titled “Al Maktab,” the Arabic redo of the groundbreaking BAFTA and Golden Globe award-winning British comedy series will be set in Saudi Arabia.
Egypt’s Hisham Fathi (“Ending So Gently”) will direct with Italy’s Alessandro Martella serving a director of photography and Ryad-based Aflam Productions’ Shadi Mcdad handling line producer duties.
Cameras are set to roll in June on this Mbc Studios original on which the BBC Studios international production team, who have licensed the format, will also have input.
The plan is for the twenty-episode show to air on Mbc’s linear TV channels, and stream on its Shahid VIP streaming platform later this year.
In the Saudi adaptation, “Al Maktab” is set in a courier services company, with the main character played by Saleh Abuamrh (“The Fates Hotel”) who plays Malik Al-Tuwaifi,...
Titled “Al Maktab,” the Arabic redo of the groundbreaking BAFTA and Golden Globe award-winning British comedy series will be set in Saudi Arabia.
Egypt’s Hisham Fathi (“Ending So Gently”) will direct with Italy’s Alessandro Martella serving a director of photography and Ryad-based Aflam Productions’ Shadi Mcdad handling line producer duties.
Cameras are set to roll in June on this Mbc Studios original on which the BBC Studios international production team, who have licensed the format, will also have input.
The plan is for the twenty-episode show to air on Mbc’s linear TV channels, and stream on its Shahid VIP streaming platform later this year.
In the Saudi adaptation, “Al Maktab” is set in a courier services company, with the main character played by Saleh Abuamrh (“The Fates Hotel”) who plays Malik Al-Tuwaifi,...
- 5/31/2022
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
When Saudi Arabia first revealed it was lifting a 35-year ban on cinemas back in December 2017, the news sparked a wave of excitement both from inside the strict Islamic kingdom and around the world.
International cinema chains clambered to announce their investment plans (AMC doing so the very same day), while local talent saw an opportunity to finally be part of a nascent film industry they could call their own.
One of those who many saw as a name who could help fly a flag for Saudi creativity was Fahad Albutairi, a young local standup, once dubbed the "Jerry ...
International cinema chains clambered to announce their investment plans (AMC doing so the very same day), while local talent saw an opportunity to finally be part of a nascent film industry they could call their own.
One of those who many saw as a name who could help fly a flag for Saudi creativity was Fahad Albutairi, a young local standup, once dubbed the "Jerry ...
- 1/18/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
When Saudi Arabia first revealed it was lifting a 35-year ban on cinemas back in December 2017, the news sparked a wave of excitement both from inside the strict Islamic kingdom and around the world.
International cinema chains clambered to announce their investment plans (AMC doing so the very same day), while local talent saw an opportunity to finally be part of a nascent film industry they could call their own.
One of those who many saw as a name who could help fly a flag for Saudi creativity was Fahad Albutairi, a young local standup, once dubbed the "Jerry ...
International cinema chains clambered to announce their investment plans (AMC doing so the very same day), while local talent saw an opportunity to finally be part of a nascent film industry they could call their own.
One of those who many saw as a name who could help fly a flag for Saudi creativity was Fahad Albutairi, a young local standup, once dubbed the "Jerry ...
- 1/18/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
O3 Productions, the drama and film production arm of pan-Arab Saudi broadcast giant Mbc Group, has announced a partnership with UAE production house Image Nation Abu Dhabi to co-finance and co-produce a slate of four Saudi films.
The news lands during Saudi Arabia’s historic first ever visit to the Cannes Film Festival, where it unveiled a major incentives package aimed at attracting foreign productions, alongside a grant and education program for Saudi filmmakers.
Within the new slate is comedy Love Above the Law, being written by Saudi YouTube star, comedian and actor Fahad Al Butairi (From A to B). The...
The news lands during Saudi Arabia’s historic first ever visit to the Cannes Film Festival, where it unveiled a major incentives package aimed at attracting foreign productions, alongside a grant and education program for Saudi filmmakers.
Within the new slate is comedy Love Above the Law, being written by Saudi YouTube star, comedian and actor Fahad Al Butairi (From A to B). The...
- 5/13/2018
- by Alex Ritman
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Young Saudi comedian Hisham Fageeh in 2013 posted a satirical video on YouTube titled “No Woman, No Drive,” set to Bob Marley’s iconic song “No Woman, No Cry.” Within days, it got 13 million hits, becoming the country’s most popular YouTube video and perhaps helped the movement to strike down Saudi’s ban on female motorists in late 2017.
There is a thriving stand-up comedy scene across the Arab world. It’s being driven by YouTube, Twitter and Western formats including “Saturday Night Live” and also channels such as Viacom’s Comedy Central, which is going strong. Netflix’s first non-scripted original, now streaming, is a special on Lebanese comedian and actor Adel Karam, live from Beirut’s Casino du Libyan spouting on issues ranging from social norms and food to colonoscopies and porn.
In the special, Karam, who stars in Lebanon’s Oscar-nommed drama “The Insult,” managed to steer clear...
There is a thriving stand-up comedy scene across the Arab world. It’s being driven by YouTube, Twitter and Western formats including “Saturday Night Live” and also channels such as Viacom’s Comedy Central, which is going strong. Netflix’s first non-scripted original, now streaming, is a special on Lebanese comedian and actor Adel Karam, live from Beirut’s Casino du Libyan spouting on issues ranging from social norms and food to colonoscopies and porn.
In the special, Karam, who stars in Lebanon’s Oscar-nommed drama “The Insult,” managed to steer clear...
- 4/9/2018
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Highland Film Group has taken on international sales of Emirati filmmaker Ali Mostafa’s pan-Arab road movie From A To B.
The film follows three former international high school pals – hailing from the UAE, Egypt and Syria – on an eventful trip from Abu Dhabi to Beirut to visit the grave of a dead friend.
It is due to go on general release across the Middle East on January 6 after successful festival screenings at Abu Dhabi and Cairo. It is also screening at the Dubai International Film Festival (Diff) in the Arabian Nights section on December 11.
“We’ll introduce the film to the market place at the 2015 Berlinale after the domestic release,” said Highland CEO Arianne Fraser.
Featuring popular Saudi YouTube star Fahad Albutairi alongside relative newcomers, Emirati actor Fadi Rifaai and Egyptian newcomer Shadi Alfons, the film drew an enthusiastic audience when it premiered at the Abu Dhabi Film Festival in October and also proved a crowd...
The film follows three former international high school pals – hailing from the UAE, Egypt and Syria – on an eventful trip from Abu Dhabi to Beirut to visit the grave of a dead friend.
It is due to go on general release across the Middle East on January 6 after successful festival screenings at Abu Dhabi and Cairo. It is also screening at the Dubai International Film Festival (Diff) in the Arabian Nights section on December 11.
“We’ll introduce the film to the market place at the 2015 Berlinale after the domestic release,” said Highland CEO Arianne Fraser.
Featuring popular Saudi YouTube star Fahad Albutairi alongside relative newcomers, Emirati actor Fadi Rifaai and Egyptian newcomer Shadi Alfons, the film drew an enthusiastic audience when it premiered at the Abu Dhabi Film Festival in October and also proved a crowd...
- 12/10/2014
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Egyptian comedian Shadi Alfons will join Saudi stand-up comic Fahad Albutairi in the cast of Emirati filmmaker Ali F Mostafa’s road film A To B, which starts shooting in February.
Alfons is best known for Egyptian comic Bassem Youssef’s satirical TV show The Program (El Bernameg), while Albutairi has become a huge star through a show on Youtube, Le Yekthar, which draws in millions of viewers.
A To B follows three friends on a road trip from Abu Dhabi to Beirut in memory of their long-lost friend. Born and raised in Abu Dhabi; the protagonists are of Saudi, Egyptian and Syrian origin. The third lead role in the film is currently being cast.
The film is the first major pan-Arab co-production – bringing together talent and producers from around the region. Mostafa’s Afm Films is producing with Egyptian producer Mohamed Hefzy, Lebanese producer Paul Baboudjian and Saudi producer Mohammed Al Turki. Abu Dhabi’s...
Alfons is best known for Egyptian comic Bassem Youssef’s satirical TV show The Program (El Bernameg), while Albutairi has become a huge star through a show on Youtube, Le Yekthar, which draws in millions of viewers.
A To B follows three friends on a road trip from Abu Dhabi to Beirut in memory of their long-lost friend. Born and raised in Abu Dhabi; the protagonists are of Saudi, Egyptian and Syrian origin. The third lead role in the film is currently being cast.
The film is the first major pan-Arab co-production – bringing together talent and producers from around the region. Mostafa’s Afm Films is producing with Egyptian producer Mohamed Hefzy, Lebanese producer Paul Baboudjian and Saudi producer Mohammed Al Turki. Abu Dhabi’s...
- 12/11/2013
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Egyptian comedian Shadi Alfons will join Saudi stand-up comic Fahad Albutairi in the cast of Emirati filmmaker Ali F Mostafa’s road film A To B, which starts shooting in February.
Alfons is best known for Egyptian comic Bassem Youssef’s satirical TV show The Program (El Bernameg), while Albutairi has become a huge star through a show on Youtube, Le Yekthar, which draws in millions of viewers.
A To B follows three friends on a road trip from Abu Dhabi to Beirut in memory of their long-lost friend. Born and raised in Abu Dhabi; the protagonists are of Saudi, Egyptian and Syrian origin. The third lead role in the film is currently being cast.
The film is the first major pan-Arab co-production – bringing together talent and producers from around the region. Mostafa’s Afm Films is producing with Egyptian producer Mohamed Hefzy, Lebanese producer Paul Baboudjian and Saudi producer Mohammed Al Turki. Abu Dhabi’s...
Alfons is best known for Egyptian comic Bassem Youssef’s satirical TV show The Program (El Bernameg), while Albutairi has become a huge star through a show on Youtube, Le Yekthar, which draws in millions of viewers.
A To B follows three friends on a road trip from Abu Dhabi to Beirut in memory of their long-lost friend. Born and raised in Abu Dhabi; the protagonists are of Saudi, Egyptian and Syrian origin. The third lead role in the film is currently being cast.
The film is the first major pan-Arab co-production – bringing together talent and producers from around the region. Mostafa’s Afm Films is producing with Egyptian producer Mohamed Hefzy, Lebanese producer Paul Baboudjian and Saudi producer Mohammed Al Turki. Abu Dhabi’s...
- 12/11/2013
- ScreenDaily
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