Saudi Arabia’s NEOM recently attracted 140 global leaders from across the TV and film industry to its showcase event. Its truly global offering of stages, production support facilities, talent and crews and highly attractive production incentives were on display, cementing its reputation as a leading production destination and industry hub for the Middle East and North Africa region. The two-day event was a rich and varied program as was the participation, with guests from KSA, North America, Europe (UK, France, Belgium, Germany, The Netherlands, Portugal), UAE, Turkey, India and Morocco. It is believed to be one of the largest ever single industry gathering to visit the country. It commenced with all experiencing NEOM’s extensive production facilities and then the stunning array of breathtaking locations across its vast and varied landscapes. The second day focused on the future and the challenges the industry is facing. The Future of Storytelling and Production was the conference theme, with a diverse background of participants from across the industry including TV and film producers, major global production companies, investors, industry financiers and service providers. It made for lively and dynamic sessions and proved to be truly thought-provoking and stimulating. Wayne Borg, Managing Director of Media Industries, Entertainment, and Culture at NEOM, said: “This event was a huge success. The response from industry attending was overwhelming.” “Our ability to attract the numbers and caliber of industry leaders we had at NEOM for our event demonstrates our offering is resonating and is competitive on the world stage,” he added. “Whether it’s our world class facilities, our amazing crews, or our globally competitive 40%++ production cash rebate incentive, the package is in place and working,” explained Borg. “Everyone experienced firsthand our rapid and dramatic buildup in capacity and capability reflecting the seriousness of our intent and ability to compete across the value chain internationally,” he confirmed. The showcase also celebrated the opening of NEOM’s second purpose built, industry standard, 2,400m² sound stage at its Media Village – the only ones of their kind in the region. This brings the total of operational stages to four, offering a total of 12,000 sqm of production space in addition to support and backlot facilities. A further six stages offering 10,000 sqm of production capability, including a volumetric stage, are under development and set to open by the end of 2023. NEOM’s facilities include resort style accommodation for 350 cast and crew rising to 500 by the end of the year. Guests got to experience firsthand this sumptuous accommodation as cast and crews would. Collectively NEOM’s facilities rank as the largest in the region reinforcing their position as the leading TV and film production hub in the region.