International producers on a familiarisation trip to Abu Dhabi have highlighted the need for studio facilities alongside the city’s 30% filming incentive. The city’s main production company, twofour54 intaj, offers 11 sound stages, the largest of which are around 7,000 sq ft.
Bollywood movie Tamasha shot on the French island of Corsica over the summer and has become the first Indian movie to qualify for France’s formal filming incentive. The Tamasha team chose the Mediterranean island despite initially favouring Sardinia and Sicily.
Bollywood movie Baby has doubled Abu Dhabi for the streets of Istanbul for pick-up filming. Star Akshay Kumar filmed scenes in the emirate city in September, but the production returned for additional shooting for the upcoming thriller, mostly for scenes set in a surveillance van.
Dubai will celebrate the release of Bollywood movie Happy New Year tomorrow by hosting the film’s world premiere. The movie stars Shah Rukh Khan and is one of the biggest international films to have shot in the city in a year in which Indian cinema has dominated in Dubai.
Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar has spent ten days filming on location in and around Abu Dhabi for his new thriller Baby. The city is a particularly popular setting for Bollywood movies because of the proximity to Mumbai and films can now get a 30% filming incentive.
Dubai Film and TV Commission has launched a new online location permitting system. Producers can now submit, track and pay for their filming permits through the commission’s website, while scripts can be submitted for approval in the same way.
FilmWorks Dubai and New York-based Psyop worked with trained acrobats to film a new spot for luxury hotel Atlantis The Palm in Dubai. Smart Migration shows a ‘flock’ of men and women flying birdlike from around the world to the Dubai hotel.
Abu Dhabi has been officially confirmed as the first filming location for Star Wars: Episode VII. Lucasfilm is working locally with twofour54, the commercial arm of Abu Dhabi’s Media Zone Authority. The city offers a 30% filming incentive, which has helped boost its international appeal.