TWELVE-MONTH HIGHLIGHT(S):
In addition to the international titles that were filmed in KSA — such as DESERT WARRIOR, starring Anthony Mackie and Ben Kingsley, and KANDAHAR,
starring Gerard Butler, which released last May — MBC had a particular focus on Saudi homegrown content, including the big-budget fantasy-adventure
series RISE OF THE WITCHES; fantasy film HWJN, which opened the last edition of the RSIFF, was adapted from Saudi author Ibraheem Abbas’ novel, and was
released in the GCC and Egypt; and SUKKAR, a musical feature that surpassed $2m at the Saudi box office.
ZEINAB ABU ALSAMH
GENERAL MANAGER of MBC STUDIOS
SAUDI
CAREER HIGHLIGHT(S):
Selected as one of Variety’s Impactful International Women of 2023, Zeinab, who previously was the chief commercial officer of
the Saudi Broadcasting Authority, is responsible for overseeing all Saudi content and development projects for MBC Studios and for
expanding the content production industry in the kingdom, such as greenlighting the adaptation of Osamah Almuslim’s horror novel KHAWF in Dec 2023.
Samar Akrouk
Managing Director of MBC STUDIOS
Jordanian
CAREER HIGHLIGHT(S):
Since joining MBC Group in 1995, Akrouk has played a pivotal role in establishing MBC’s foundation and exponential growth.
Her previous position was the Group Director of Production, where she directly oversaw all of MBC’s non-scripted productions.
