Movies and television shows shot in Abu Dhabi will soon qualify for a 30 per cent subsidy under an initiative that is expected to save filmmakers millions of dollars in production costs.
The media zone twofour54, along with the related Abu Dhabi Film Commission (ADFC), said international productions made in the emirate would qualify for a rebate on spending of up to 30 per cent.
"We want to properly encourage studios to see Abu Dhabi and the UAE as the go-to place," said Noura Al Kaabi, the chief executive of twofour54.
The incentive scheme was announced at the Cannes Film Festival, which runs until May 27. The Abu Dhabi Film Commission announced at the festival that several Emirati filmmakers had been chosen to promote the UAE film industry. The representatives include Nawaf Al Janahi, who directed the movie Sea Shadow.
Film executives said the incentive scheme, which starts in September, could result in the number of days in which films are shot in the emirate increasing by as much as half.
"It's definitely the answer to boosting the industry in Abu Dhabi," said Tim Smythe, the chief executive of the production house Filmworks, which facilitated the shooting of Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol in Dubai. "In 2013, I would say that there's going to be a 30 to 50 per cent boost."
The film rebate is billed as the "region's first incentive scheme", twofour54 said. It will apply to feature films, TV programmes, documentaries, and advertising and music video production.
Costs eligible for the rebate include contracting UAE-registered film crews, costs for temporary accommodation and flights booked on Etihad Airways.
However, Mr Smythe said that the scheme could attract productions away from neighbouring Dubai - and called for a nationwide system of rebates.
"It has a very strong potential of taking business out of Dubai, especially as more and more locations come online in Abu Dhabi," he said. "If it's done on a national level, it would boost the industry tremendously. Because it's not just Abu Dhabi locations that films would be looking at, it's locations throughout the whole of the UAE."
Ali Mostafa, the director of City of Life, the UAE's first major home-grown film, said he hoped Dubai would follow Abu Dhabi's lead.
"This is one of the first incentive schemes that has happened in the region," he said. "It's definitely a big step in the right direction. I hope Dubai follows suit with the same thing."
Ms Al Kaabi said twofour54 was in discussions to offer something similar in other emirates.
"We've been discussing with Dubai Studio City about how we will collaborate in the future with our scheme," she said.
Michael Garin, the chief executive of the Abu Dhabi film company Image Nation, said the 30 per cent rebate was in line with film incentives in other countries.
"This will make Abu Dhabi extremely competitive in the international arena," said Mr Garin. "We're delighted with this decision, because now it will allow Abu Dhabi to compete on a level playing field for production."
Image Nation is part of Abu Dhabi Media, which also owns and publishes The National.
Projects commissioned by companies based in the UAE will not be eligible for the scheme. However, co-productions between a UAE company and an international partner will be eligible for the rebates, according to the ADFC.
Mr Garin said Image Nation often collaborated with international companies, and so it would benefit.
"Image Nation will be able to further expand its activities and attract international productions and co-productions to Abu Dhabi," he said.
Examples of blockbusters to be filmed in Abu Dhabi include part of The Bourne Legacy, twofour54 said.
Government-sanctioned incentive schemes are common in big international film markets.
"The majority of films made are being shot in cities or countries where there are incentives," said Mr Smythe.
But such schemes have been slow to take off in the Gulf region. This is partly because they often rely on tax breaks in other markets, and there is only minimal taxation levied in countries such as the UAE.
bflanagan@thenational.ae
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
THE APPRENTICE
Director: Ali Abbasi
Starring: Sebastian Stan, Maria Bakalova, Jeremy Strong
Rating: 3/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
THE LOWDOWN
Photograph
Rating: 4/5
Produced by: Poetic License Motion Pictures; RSVP Movies
Director: Ritesh Batra
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra, Farrukh Jaffar, Deepak Chauhan, Vijay Raaz
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The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Gully Boy
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Producer: Excel Entertainment & Tiger Baby
Cast: Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Kalki Koechlin, Siddhant Chaturvedi
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Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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