According to Jamal Al Sharif, Director of Dubai Studio City, “We want to create a hub for the film Industry; act as a bridge between Hollywood and Bollywood. We realised that there is a huge demand for vertical and horizontal expansion – if Dubai Media City created a media hub, the Studio City will create a production hub.”

With such high aspirations in mind, talks have already been initiated with some of the big names in Bollywood on the possibility of possible alliances. George Clooney’s recent visit to the film festival held in Dubai has also provided a boost for the chances of success of Dubai Studio City.

In the meantime, the first project in Dubai Studio City has just been delivered. Called the Boutique Studios it is designed for broadcasters and television channels and comprises a mini-cluster of 18 buildings; each building will house a studio with a covered area of 1,000 square metres. Another indicator of the demand can be gauged by the fact that all available space has already been leased.

“Though these were designed for broadcasters, production companies are so eager to be in Dubai Studio City,” says Al Sharif. Elaborating on the future of Dubai Studio City, Al Sharif adds, “We have six other projects under construction, one being a tower which is for our headquarters. We have a sound-stage project coming up half a kilometre from here. It will comprise of three major big sound stages, the largest in the Middle East. One will be of 15,000 square feet and the other two will be 25,000 square feet with an elephant door in the middle that opens 30-metre wide – it is the largest in the world. There will thus be a complete square from all sides.”

Although creating residential space within Dubai Studio City is not a high priority for the promoters, it is not something that has been completely left out of the plans. Al Sharif explains, “We are not developing a lot because we are surrounded by residential projects. But we are developing something that meets the demand of our community – so we are going to do low-cost, studio type lofts and small bedrooms. We will have a lot of youngsters starting their careers here and we want them to have economical accommodation.”

The residential portion which Al Sharif alludes to is still in the design stage. Additionally a village centre will be developed as well as an entertainment zone which will feature a lake, two five-star hotels, a multiplex and an amphitheatre that can seat 7,500. These projects are slated for completion by 2012, by which time the developer expects an additional 35,000 people working in Dubai Studio City.