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KUWAIT: A few months ago, a call for pitches from Kuwait-based National Creative Industries Group was shared on Instagram with an enticing invitation to pitch to Netflix. It simply read: “From Dreaming to Streaming.”
At first, readers of the post seemed reluctant to submit entries and the few who did later said that they felt it was “too good to be true.” Eventually, 150 entries came in, and two months later the six selected writers were announced.
The prize? The six writers would be part of a six-week program called TV Writers’ Lab 6×6. The three Saudi and three Kuwaiti writers would spend the six weeks honing their scripts under the guidance of experts with the goal of turning them into market-ready pitches for Netflix. The dream? To write a Netflix Arabic Original.
The six participants received mentoring and virtual master classes from several of the entertainment industry’s experts, including Farida Zahran of the hit show “Ramy,” and Wael Hamdy of the famous Arabic Sesame Street. They were part of a specially curated curriculum, including training sessions led by the world-renowned New York Film Academy.
All participants were granted NYFA-endorsed completion certificates at the end of the program.
“With Lab 6×6, although our program is based in Kuwait, it will also target the talented Saudi creative community,” Sheikha Al-Zain Al-Sabah, chairperson and CEO of NCIG, told Arab News.
“By bringing Saudi-based creators together with their Kuwait counterparts, this unique program aims to build the long-awaited creative bridges and lay the essential groundwork for the collaborations needed to invigorate our shared content-driven industry and allow our regional stories to inspire and entertain audiences the world over.”
Al-Sabah is the dynamic woman at the helm of NCIG. She describes herself as “a dreamer, a doer and a disrupter.”
“The beauty of this program is not only do they (the writers) go through this incredible program where they get access to the roster of masterclass sessions and mentors that we have, but they also get to pitch Netflix at the end of the six weeks,” she said.
Netflix gets the first right of refusal, said Al-Sabah, and if Netflix does not pick it up, the creator owns the intellectual property rights of their project completely. “So they can take it anywhere they like and I have to give credit to Netflix for allowing us to do that,” she said.
“We have invested six weeks heavily in these creators — both NCIG and Netflix. At the end of the day, at the end of the six weeks, they (the writers) have that kind of freedom to say, I own it completely and I can take it out to market.”
The insatiable appetite for viewers to delve into worlds created with a non-Western gaze has been in high demand recently as evidenced by successes such as “Squid Game” in Korean, “La Casa de Papel” in Spanish and “Lupin” in French.
Having Arab writers script their own stories and bring them to the streaming world is something that has been a long time coming, and something Netflix — and its subscribers — are fully embracing.
This is not the first attempt at helping Arab talent shine through on a global stage. NCIG, for example, produces, facilitates and supports multi-platform content for the whole region and beyond.
“We’ve had several programs in the last two years, but the Lab 6×6 program is a first initiative of its kind in the region that looks to incubate writers in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia and turn their ideas into market-ready pitch decks in six weeks,” Ahmed Sharkawi, director, Arabic series at Netflix, told Arab News.
“Kuwait has a long history of storytelling in the region, credited with pioneering Gulf drama, and the Saudi entertainment industry is rapidly evolving into a powerhouse for the region,” he said.
Dania Al-Tayeb, who self-identifies as “a creative” specializing in teen dramas, found out about the program while watching Harry Potter. She initially did not believe that she would land this opportunity.
“I just submitted what I had, and I didn’t do something new. That’s it. That’s how much I didn’t really believe it was going to happen,” she said.
Her story, “Recovering Dreamer,” is about a struggling ballerina in Jeddah who finds out her French mother only loves her because she is a ballerina. “And she goes on the journey to find true and unconditional love,” Al-Tayeb said.
Fellow Jeddawi, Rulan Hasan, started her career directing rap music videos. She worked in the first hip-hop studio in Saudi Arabia and loved it. She became a full-time writer in 2016 and has written for Netflix shows such as “Takki” and the first Saudi original Netflix drama, “Whispers,” or “Waswas,” in 2020.
Her show “The Silent City” is about a teen girl who was born deaf and is very insecure. She is kidnapped and finds out that there are people living outside of the city, and that everyone inside of the city is actually being controlled by sound waves. “And that’s when she has to make a big decision; either getting her hearing back, or pull this huge mission and save herself,” Hasan said.
Hasan gives credit to her supportive husband for encouraging her to apply to the program initially, but later, an unexpected little cheerleader came into being.
“I’m pregnant, in my second trimester. I think the program has helped me not to think a lot about the nausea,” she said.
“It did affect me because it made me think that I want to create a better world, even if it’s only in my story. I honestly hope for a world where children could be free and safe, and mostly healthy. I feel like those are the most important parts,” Hasan said.
The third Saudi participating, Osama Ali Shar, grew up in Wadi Al-Dawasir and studied psychology in Jeddah. He jokes that he was the unofficial storyteller of his family; they would tell him details of their day and then instruct him to “tell the story” to everyone else because he was able to convincingly articulate what happened through his natural charisma and curiosity, even if the events had not happened to him.
His script at Lab 6×6 merges the idea of psychology and religion. It centers on a psychologist who pretends to be a sheik, and refers to himself as a sheikologist. It is a story of deception, personal growth and community trust.
The Kuwaiti cohort of the program consists of accomplished writer Faisal Al-Beloushi, who has already won tremendous success in the Arab world with his previous work, which has been streaming on Netflix; serial careerist Jassim Al-Qames, who has dabbled in journalism and politics; and the Twilight Zone obsessive Mohammed Nedal Jalal Salam.
The program is a significant step for the region as it provides audiences with the opportunity to see stories about the region by people from the region. It is also an important step for regional writers as it gives them a global platform.
Salam summed it up best: “This experience was like visiting Disneyland. It’s like seeing the world you always wanted to see. I’m a child again.”
DHAHRAN: The opening day of the inaugural Sync Digital Wellbeing Summit raised some important questions for parents to ponder about their children’s relationship with technology.
The two-day event is being hosted by the The King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture, also known as Ithra. Abdullah Al-Rashid, the organization’s director, began his opening remarks by telling how he had shielded his eldest child from using digital devices for the first four years of the boy’s life.
When the pandemic began in early 2020, however, he was forced to introduce his son to a screen for the first time, as he and his wife had other demands on their time. As his son’s screen use rose from zero hours a day to nearly six hours, he said the boy went from being a very verbal, happy child to one who began to experience sleeping difficulties.
Two years later, Al-Rashid said, both he and his family continue to try to find the sweet spot for screen use.
Approximately 51 percent of the Saudi population is under the age of 25. Many children now grow up as “digital natives” and many millennial parents find themselves struggling to strike a balance between allowing their children screen time and protecting them from the perils of the online world.
“I think the focus on digital well-being is a really smart idea; it shows real foresight on the part of Ithra,” James Pearson Steyer told Arab News. He is a professor at Stanford University and the CEO of Common Sense Media, an organization that offers education and advocacy to families with the aim of promoting the safe use of technology and media by children.
“Real credit to Ithra for putting this together and building this extraordinary complex. Who would have thought that Saudi Arabia would be a host to such an event?”
Steyer took part in during a panel discussion titled The Science of Digital Well-Being, alongside two guests from the UAE: Mo Gawdat, a former chief business officer at Google, and Sunil John, president of PR agency ASDA’A BCW.
They debated the question of whether the responsibility for spending more or less time online lies with users or the developers of the platforms they are using. Gawdat said that it is “wishful thinking” to assume that the platforms will make any changes that address the issue, given that their business model is to keep users using.
Another session, titled The Psychology of Technology, explored what psychologists and behavioral studies can tell us about digital well-being, and how these insights can be used to design better technology.
Other panels on day one of the summit included Achieving Digital Balance — Addiction and Responsible Media Design, during which experts discussed digital addiction to smartphones, apps and video games and what we might expect from governments in terms of a response to this, and Digital Well-Being for All — An Imperative, Not Just an Idea, which explored the crucial aspects of efforts to place digital well-being on the global agenda.
DUBAI: This month E-Vision, a subsidiary of the UAE business e&, and ADQ, an investment and holding company based in Abu Dhabi, signed a joint deal to acquire a majority equity stake of 57 percent in regional streaming platform StarzPlay Arabia.
Maaz Sheikh, StarzPlay’s CEO and co-founder, told Arab News that the deal was an “organic evolution” that made “industrial sense for both parties.”
The streaming service already had a seven-year relationship with e&, formerly known as Etisalat Group, which was the first telecom company it partnered with on launch. The telco subsequently became a minority shareholder in 2017 and now, as part of a consortium with ADQ, is majority shareholder. The benefits of this to StarzPlay Arabia are clear, according to Sheikh.
“The business and the industry is getting more competitive, so we needed a strategic partner that can bring us the economies of scale and the strategic reach and distribution of a telecom operator like e&, which has operations in all the key markets that we are in,” he said.
Meanwhile, e& was looking for a digital business to invest in.
“Given that the race is already very competitive, it’s too late to launch a new over-the-top or streaming brand in the region,” said Sheikh. An OTT media service is one that is offered directly to viewers online, bypassing traditional broadcast platforms.
He added that unless you are an established brand such as “Disney and think you can launch your own service in the region,” it is too late to build a brand from a scratch and so you have to do it through mergers and acquisitions.
The recently announced upcoming launch of Disney+ in the Middle east, along with the recent rebranding of OSN, the dominance of MBC and Shahid, and regional investments by Netflix mean that the local streaming sector is increasingly competitive. Sheikh is not overly concerned by the arrival of a new player, however.
“I don’t see Disney+ launching in the market as an existential threat to any OTT player in the market,” he said. “This is a fairly complex market where you have to go into 21 countries and the credit card penetration varies country by country. So, the local players have a certain advantage.”
Time will tell whether this advantage is sustainable or not, Sheikh added, but he remains resolute in his belief that the localization of content and distribution will continue to provide a strong advantage for regional players.
In 2021, StarzPlay Arabia, Netflix and Shahid VIP were the local market leaders, together responsible for more than 60 percent of the share of subscribers, according to market research firm Dataxis.
Going forward, analysts expect Shahid VIP to lead the pack, followed by Netflix and then StarzPlay Arabia. The first two are forecast to hold a market share of more than 20 percent by 2026, as StarzPlay’s growth projections slow. Sheikh remains optimistic, however.
“Today we are partnered with 21 mobile operators in the region, and Netflix has yet to integrate with its first one,” he said. He admitted that Shahid has “done well with mobile integrations and mobile payment plans,” as has StarzPlay.
So far Hollywood content has been StarzPlay’s greatest strength and it has also made recent forays into Arabic and Turkish content, and anime. With e& and ADQ now on board, the company will be looking to expand further into sports content and Arabic originals.
“These are perhaps the two things that we could have done on our own but not at the scale that we can do now, said Sheikh.
In February, StarzPlay reported a five-fold increase in the number of monthly subscribers, driven by the addition of new sports content, and a 30 percent increase in average revenue per user.
In fact, the cricket match between India and Pakistan during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 helped the platform record the highest number of viewers in its history.
The service’s second-best day, in terms of new users and consumption, was when the UAE played Lebanon in the AFC Asian World Cup qualifiers last year, Sheikh said. StarzPlay Arabia was the most-downloaded app that day in the UAE across all categories.
Access to both of these sporting events was made possible by StarzPlay’s partnerships with e& and Abu Dhabi Media.
“These are two examples of what this strategic collaboration can do for the consumers and, going forward, you will see more of that,” said Sheikh.
In terms of original content, StarzPlay released its original series “Baghdad Central” in 2020. This year it worked with Discovery+ to launch a regional version of bridal fashion reality TV show “Say Yes to the Dress,” which was filmed and produced in the UAE.
The platform is preparing to release its next Arabic original, “Urban Legends,” after Ramadan. It will also release six shows during Ramadan, in partnership with Abu Dhabi Media.
“The new strategic investment allows us to bring those economies of scale when it comes to original Arabic (programming) and sports. And those two, in addition to our distribution, will be our strengths,” said Sheikh.
LONDON: The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the Taliban on Monday for detaining at least seven journalists, warning that the group “must cease detaining journalists for their work and lift all bans on news outlets’ operations.”
Since Saturday, the Taliban detained and subsequently released at least seven journalists and media workers, and have ordered local outlets to stop airing content from three international broadcasters.
“The Taliban must immediately release all the journalists who remain in their custody, and stop detaining members of the press once and for all,” said Steven Butler, CPJ’s Asia program coordinator in Washington, D.C.
“Such arbitrary detentions and recent bans on programming by several major international outlets are destroying the once-thriving media sector of the country and depriving the Afghan people of access to essential information.”
On Saturday, two Afghan journalists were detained, interrogated for hours and released without charge. The first, Mirawais Atal, director of the dependent local broadcaster Zema Radio, was detained after his home was raided by Taliban militants.
The deputy director for media and public affairs at the Taliban’s General Directorate of Intelligence, Jawad Sargar, said that Atal was detained due to his “feministic viewpoints.”
Before his arrest, Atal had published a post on his personal Facebook page praising local protests by female students against Taliban orders to close girls’ schools.
Atal was released from custody on Monday evening.
Similarly, Sarwar Hashemi, a journalist with the independent local broadcaster Salam Watandar, was detained by Taliban members while covering a protest against the school closures. He was later released after questioning.
Meanwhile, Sargar ordered all major local broadcasters to cease airing music and live entertainment shows, as well as any programming that he claimed was against national and Islamic values.
Sargar reportedly gave broadcasters a two-hour deadline to comply.
On Monday, Taliban members raided the Kandahar-based independent radio station Millat Zhagh, detaining news manager Farid Alizai, producer Rahimullah Noori and technical chief Mahmood Mehraban. The Taliban also shut down the outlet and sealed its office.
The three were charged with failing to abide by Sargar’s ultimatum.
Meanwhile, Taliban authorities on Sunday prohibited local broadcasters from airing Pashto, Persian and Uzbek programming from BBC, Voice of America and Deutsche Welle.
LONDON: Disney+ announced on Tuesday it would launch in Saudi Arabia and across 15 other MENA countries on June 8, with prices for the Kingdom set at SR29.99 per month or SR298.99 for an annual subscription.
Viewers will be able to stream exclusive original content, thousands of episodes and movies from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic and original Walt Disney animated movies, such as “101 Dalmatians,” “The Lion King,” “Mulan,” and plenty more.
Additionally, subscribers will be able to enjoy Disney and Pixar’s Academy Award-nominated “Luca,” Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Academy Award-winning “Encanto” and Academy Award-winning “Cruella” starring Emma Stone as the legendary Cruella de Vil.
Popular TV shows such as “The Mandalorian,” “The Simpsons,” and “Grey’s Anatomy” will also be available to subscribers across all regions.
Users will have access to high-quality viewing, up to four concurrent streams, unlimited downloads on up to 10 devices, and the ability to set up to seven different profiles, including for parents to set Kids Profiles that have an easy-to-navigate child-friendly interface to access age-appropriate content.
DUBAI: AIR Media-Tech, a global company that works with digital-first creators and brands, has released a first-of-its-kind report surveying YouTube creators in the MENA region.
The survey was conducted during VidCon 2021 and includes 60 YouTube creators, 80 percent of whom are local creators from the region. It provides an in-depth look at their content, challenges and ways of monetization.
Despite the popularity of new platforms like TikTok, YouTube remains among the top platforms in the region. As of December 2021, there were 227,000 YouTube creators across the Gulf region — with more than half from Saudi Arabia — generating more than 13.6 billion views monthly, according to the report.
40 percent of those surveyed said they work as full-time creators, while the majority view content creation as a hobby that they combine with other work.
About 33 percent of creators said that making content is their favorite part of working on YouTube, followed by working on optimizing their videos and promoting the channel and videos.
When it comes to issues that creators face in building their channel, there are two types of challenges, Vira Slyvinska, head of global business development at AIR Media-Tech, told Arab News: Challenges related to content creation and all others.
The top four challenges for YouTube creators are developing content ideas, growing subscribers and views, gathering a team for filming and quality editing.
Other challenges include earning more money (11.1 percent), finding investments for development (8.3 percent) and analytics (8.3 percent).
Moreover, none of the creators said that building a business on YouTube comes without challenges.
Addressing content-related challenges “requires developing creators’ management skills to manage time, processes and people,” Slyvinska said.
YouTube and third-party services provide tools to track trends, top-performing creators and more, which can help creators come up with ideas for new videos, she added.
There is also an abundance of resources available online, from advice on content creation to freelance videographers and video editors, but Slyvinska said that “one needs to learn how to use these resources effectively.”
Creators can most effectively address all non-content-related challenges by working with a third-party company, she added.
“Such companies contribute to creators’ growth on YouTube and other platforms; from boosting their channel and cross-platform distribution to scaling their influence to new markets and audiences,” said Slyvinska.
As much as creators like creating and distributing content, they are also looking to monetize their channel. “The most common sources for monetization on YouTube are automated revenue streams with AdSense and direct brand integrations into videos,” Slyvinska added.
However, revenues are highly dependent on the content niche and audience geography, which means that creators constantly need to grow their audience to increase their income, which is a key challenge.
The top way of additional monetization for creators seems to be launching their own brand or merchandise (20 percent), followed by content distribution to other platforms (17.1 percent) and working with brands (17.1 percent).
There are several monetization opportunities for creators, said Slyvinska. These include active usage of alternative monetization tools provided by YouTube, such as channel memberships, Super Chat, Super Stickers, content translation and localization into other languages, exporting content from YouTube to other platforms for monetization, and selling digital and physical goods to communities of YouTube fans.
As creators look to build their fan bases and content niches, they find themselves in need of investment. Only 22 percent have ever received any investment for channel development, but a massive 90 percent would like to receive some investment.
There are creator funds that exist to support the content ecosystem on social media platforms — both by the platform itself and independent companies.
For example, AIR Media-Tech created the AIR Investment fund to help promising creators grow their audience globally and monetize it in new ways. The fund provides support in one of three ways: An investment of up to $5,000 for channel development; up to $20,000 to launch a customized app or game and monetize it; and up to $25,000 to go global with a creator’s current content by launching additional channels with translated and localized content.
It is, however, critical for platforms to invest in the creator ecosystem themselves.
Slyvinska said: “We live in an era of fierce competition for human attention, and all digital platforms compete with each other for audience’s attention. Thus, interacting with their communities to ensure that the best talent in the world remains active on the platform and fuels it with brilliant content is crucial for YouTube.”
She added: “There should always be aggressive marketing from YouTube so nobody has any doubts that it’s the number one platform for videos, even when new platforms appear.”
An important part of YouTube’s marketing efforts should be direct investments in young creators, said Slyvinska, adding that the more financially substantial these investments are, the more loyal creators will be to the platform.
