Sahar Yousefi Sahar Yousefi

Arab News: New $100m JV to drive global growth in media, entertainment, technology, and tourism

Australian Chinese investment company MCA Capital Group and Saudi holding company RMA Ventures have announced a landmark $100 million investment into a new joint venture fund that will drive global growth across multiple high-impact sectors, including media, entertainment, technology, and tourism.

Australian Chinese investment company MCA Capital Group and Saudi holding company RMA Ventures have announced a landmark $100 million investment into a new joint venture fund that will drive global growth across multiple high-impact sectors, including media, entertainment, technology, and tourism.

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Sahar Yousefi Sahar Yousefi

Variety: New $100 Million Saudi Film Fund Chief Talks Need for Investments in Production and Infrastructure

Ahead of Saudi Film Confex, Variety spoke with RMA Ventures chairman Redha Alhaidar, who noted that since the kingdom lifted its religion-related ban on cinemas in 2018 and started setting the wheels of Saudi Arabia’s film industry in motion “the quality of the [local] projects today is much better,” adding that he thinks “this will continue to develop because we see a lot of talent coming into the pipeline after realizing that the ecosystem is open and enabling.”

Alhaidar, who is also a former president of the General Commission of Audiovisual Media (GCAM) – which is the Saudi’s media industry’s regulatory body – took questions from Variety about the specifics of the new first-of-its-kind Saudi Film Fund.

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Sahar Yousefi Sahar Yousefi

Bloomberg: Saudi Arabia Pushes Deeper Into Entertainment With New Film Fund

A Saudi Arabian investment firm is setting up a $100 million fund to invest in the kingdom’s film industry, one of the first such bets on the region’s fastest-growing movie production markets.

The Saudi Film Fund, a partnership between MEFIC Capital and Roaa Media Ventures, will collaborate with major international studios and “provide content that reflects Saudi culture and values,” according to a statement Monday.

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Sahar Yousefi Sahar Yousefi

Arab News: Saudi Arabia announces inaugural $100m film fund at Cannes Film Festival

Redha Alhaidar, chairman of ROAA Media Ventures, told Arab News: “Saudi Arabia’s media and entertainment sector is rapidly evolving and plays an important part in the Kingdom’s cultural and economic transformation. 

“But we need to address three main obstacles to its growth: limited access to financial resources and international partnerships, infrastructure constraints, and talent shortages. 

“There is a wealth of untapped creative talent in Saudi Arabia and across the wider Middle East. By investing in local film projects, skills development and industry infrastructure, we can help unleash the region’s storytelling potential and support the creation of authentic, high-quality content that attracts international investment and competes on the global stage.” 

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