Hollywood production company Stampede Ventures has signed a deal to shoot 10 movies at Film AlUla’s recently opened state-of-the-art studio complex.
In a major boost for Saudi Arabia's filmmaking initiatives, the deal is designed to develop its flourishing production industry – training up local talent in the process – while utilising the expertise of Greg Silverman, a producer behind some of Hollywood's biggest films including Christoper Nolan's Batman trilogy and the Harry Potter franchise.
Silverman, now the founder and chief executive of Stampede Ventures, and his company will team up with Film AlUla for the three-year project.
Announcing the deal at the Red Sea International Film Festival, Charlene Deleon-Jones, executive director of Film AlUla, said: “We've been very busy at Film AlUla, not just on the domestic side with supporting [local] talent and projects, but also with this groundbreaking collaboration with Stampede Ventures, where we’re looking at how to work together."
Silverman added: “As a company, we've done this a few times. We always become a hub for helping local writers, directors and actors. But our programme is specifically to bring Hollywood studio films to AlUla over a three-year period, to train the crew and, at a minimum, with one Saudi in each department.”
The initiative will begin with two films scheduled to start production early next year. These include Fourth Wall, which centres on a former child star who is kidnapped. The film’s cast and director have yet to be announced. However, Silverman hinted that American Horror Story star Emma Roberts is in talks for the lead role.
Chasing Red, meanwhile, will be an adaptation of the romance novel by Isabelle Ronin that features an overachieving student and a carefree rich playboy. Jessika Borsiczky, who has directed hit shows including Lucifer and House of Lives, will lead the film.
“The book is such a huge resonant property with literally hundreds of millions of readers,” Borsiczky said. “[Stampede Ventures] pursued it and developed it. For me, romance is so universal, especially first love, and especially stories about women finding who they are, and then finding who they are in relation to the world.
"This book, and now the script, speak to all of those things in a way that excited me so much. Also, the two main roles in the project are incredible opportunities for young actors.”
The initiative, Deleon-Jones said, is designed to boost Film AlUla’s mission of training local talent. While comparable programmes are prevalent throughout the world, Deleon-Jones said they usually involve people exclusively working on local productions.
“There’s a clear separation,” she added. “When international films come in, they still bring more of their own people.”
Training at Film AlUla, meanwhile, is designed so that local practitioners will be able to work on the international projects that come to film in Saudi Arabia.
“The training and development element of this is immense because it gives us an opportunity to really develop below-the-line crew in somewhere like AlUla, where traditionally the main careers open would have been in agriculture,” Deleon-Jones said. “Lots of people still want to do agriculture, but lots of people want to do other things. And this is one of the options that is available.
"We have a young working population who are vibrant, who are digitally engaged, who watch lots of films, listen constantly to music, and you have this whole new exciting career path and trajectory that you can go on.”
Partnerships such as the one with Stampede Ventures, Deleon-Jones added, will ensure that there are year-round projects that local talents can work on, making the film industry a viable career path.
“Of course, there's a number of things we do to develop talent on the on the other side of things, above-the-line, with creatives, writers and directors,” she said. “We are one of the Red Sea International Film Festival’s partners, and we have eight or nine projects that we are co-funding this year from not just Saudi Arabia, but the Middle East and Africa as well. We have our programmes specifically for female creatives and filmmakers.”
The slate of films planned with Stampede Ventures is designed to ensure momentum within the industry over the next few years.
Silverman’s track record in Hollywood is an illustrious one. In his previous role as production head at Warner Bros he worked on more than 125 films, including all eight Harry Potter films and Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy, as well as Todd Phillips’s Hangover trilogy and Joker.
With the partnership between Film AlUla and Stampede Ventures, he is now looking to bring his expertise to Saudi Arabia.
While Chasing Red and Fourth Wall are the first tw
o titles as part of the initiative, it is not the first to come about as a result of the partnership between the groups.
K-Pops!, the directorial debut of Anderson. Paak, the Grammy Award-winning musician behind hits such as Come Down and Cheers, has already been co-created by the two.
The film, which is being partly shot in AlUla, tells the story of a musician in Los Angeles who tries to resuscitate his career through his estranged son’s burst into K-Pop stardom.
“That's almost film zero,” Deleon-Jones said. “That is how this whole relationship started. We were looking at K-Pops! and then that blossomed into an opportunity to do more films.”
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Stage result
1. Pascal Ackermann (GER) Bora-Hansgrohe, in 3:29.09
2. Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto-Soudal
3. Rudy Barbier (FRA) Israel Start-Up Nation
4. Dylan Groenewegen (NED) Jumbo-Visma
5. Luka Mezgec (SLO) Mitchelton-Scott
6. Alberto Dainese (ITA) Sunweb
7. Jakub Mareczko (ITA) CCC
8. Max Walscheid (GER) NTT
9. José Rojas (ESP) Movistar
10. Andrea Vendrame (ITA) Ag2r La Mondiale, all at same time
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At a glance
- 20,000 new jobs for Emiratis over three years
- Dh300 million set aside to train 18,000 jobseekers in new skills
- Managerial jobs in government restricted to Emiratis
- Emiratis to get priority for 160 types of job in private sector
- Portion of VAT revenues will fund more graduate programmes
- 8,000 Emirati graduates to do 6-12 month replacements in public or private sector on a Dh10,000 monthly wage - 40 per cent of which will be paid by government
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre, twin-turbo V8
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 582bhp
Torque: 730Nm
Price: Dh649,000
On sale: now
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, last-16. first leg
Atletico Madrid v Juventus, midnight (Thursday), BeIN Sports
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
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From Europe to the Middle East, economic success brings wealth - and lifestyle diseases
A rise in obesity figures and the need for more public spending is a familiar trend in the developing world as western lifestyles are adopted.
One in five deaths around the world is now caused by bad diet, with obesity the fastest growing global risk. A high body mass index is also the top cause of metabolic diseases relating to death and disability in Kuwait, Qatar and Oman – and second on the list in Bahrain.
In Britain, heart disease, lung cancer and Alzheimer’s remain among the leading causes of death, and people there are spending more time suffering from health problems.
The UK is expected to spend $421.4 billion on healthcare by 2040, up from $239.3 billion in 2014.
And development assistance for health is talking about the financial aid given to governments to support social, environmental development of developing countries.
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
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Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
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THE SPECS
Engine: 3.6-litre V6
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 310hp
Torque: 366Nm
Price: Dh200,000
RESULTS
4pm: Al Bastakiya Listed US$250,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
Winner: Yulong Warrior, Richard Mullen (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer)
4.35pm: Mahab Al Shimaal Group 3 $200,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Jordan Sport, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass
5.10pm: Nad Al Sheba Conditions $200,000 (Turf) 1,200m
Winner: Jungle Cat, William Buick, Charlie Appleby
5.45pm: Burj Nahaar Group 3 $200,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Kimbear, Patrick Dobbs, Doug Watson
6.20pm: Jebel Hatta Group 1 $300,000 (T) 1,800m
Winner: Blair House, James Doyle, Charlie Appleby
6.55pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-3 Group 1 $400,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: North America, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar
7.30pm: Dubai City of Gold Group 2 $250,000 (T) 2,410m
Winner: Hawkbill, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
SPEC%20SHEET
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Read more about the coronavirus
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Green ambitions
- Trees: 1,500 to be planted, replacing 300 felled ones, with veteran oaks protected
- Lake: Brown's centrepiece to be cleaned of silt that makes it as shallow as 2.5cm
- Biodiversity: Bat cave to be added and habitats designed for kingfishers and little grebes
- Flood risk: Longer grass, deeper lake, restored ponds and absorbent paths all meant to siphon off water
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
THE DETAILS
Solo: A Star Wars Story
Dir: Ron Howard
Starring: Alden Ehrenreich, Emilia Clarke, Woody Harrelson
3/5
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
