TELFAZ11 commits to 9 productions at NEOM over the next 3 years

NEOM, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, June 1, 2023 - NEOM and TELFAZ11 have announced a pivotal partnership that will see the creation of up to 9 TV and film productions over the next 3 years.

The collaboration between NEOM and TELFAZ11 will accelerate the growth of NEOM’s media industries ecosystem, ensuring a rich pipeline of productions, including 2 feature films and 1 series currently in development under the new arrangement. Today’s announcement follows a recent drumbeat of high profile TELFAZ11 successes, including the debut of its latest theatrical feature film ‘Sattar,’ which has become the highest grossing Saudi film of all time.

In addition to productions, TELFAZ11 also plans to establish a physical presence at NEOM by opening offices this year in NEOM’s media hub. This new office will complement the TELFAZ11’s existing offices in Riyadh and Dubai. NEOM will also leverage TELFAZ11’s new NEOM offices to diversify its industry learning activities and multi-disciplinary talent development programs, creating a vibrant talent pool across the value chain and strong career pathways for graduates.

Wayne Borg, Managing Director of Media Industries, Entertainment, and Culture at NEOM, said: “Our mission is to create a new world-class media hub at NEOM, one that supports the region’s industry to compete and succeed globally. This partnership with TELFAZ11 complements and accelerates. This partnership, coupled with our evolving infrastructure, crew depth, industry learning programs, and highly competitive incentive scheme shows we are well on our way to achieving these goals.”

Alaa Faden, CEO and Co-Founder of TELFAZ11 added, “We couldn’t be more honored to be at the center of NEOM’s next-generation media and entertainment ecosystem. TELFAZ11 has consistently operated on the leading edge of innovation, from launching the first Netflix partnership in the region to leveraging our powerful social media presence.  And this new partnership with NEOM is yet another milestone in that effort.”

NEOM has provided the backdrop for 30 productions in the last 18 months, including Rupert Wyatt’s ‘Desert Warrior’, starring Anthony Mackie and Sir Ben Kingsley; ‘Dunki’ directed by Rajkumar Hirani and starring Shahrukh Khan; local acclaimed Saudi feature ‘Within Sand’ directed by Moe Alatawi; the first regional reality TV show ‘Million Dollar Island;’ and ‘Rise of The Witches’, the region’s biggest-ever budget TV show. MBC’s ‘Exceptional,’ a 200-episode-per-year TV drama series, is set to begin shooting in July.