UAE’s take on sci-fi

DUBAI - A 23-year-old Emirati student of cinematography is producing a short science fiction movie about a man’s survival in an emergency situation in Dubai.

Ghanem Ghubash, who has a diploma in filmmaking from The University of California, San Diego, and is doing his graduation at the SAE Institute Dubai, spoke about the 15-minute film.

“I am doing this film as a project that is part of my studies. Indoor shooting and a third of the outdoor shooting has been completed. We are looking for a local rock band to do the sound track for the movie,” Ghanem said.

Why did he select this topic for his film? “I wanted to create awareness on Dubai and also wanted to show to the world that Dubai is not slow in making science fiction,” Ghanem said. The film is being directed by Ali Zaidi, a certified independent filmmaker and producer from Hollywood Film Institute, California. He has also written the story of the film. Ali has corporate films and music videos to his credit. The story of the film is based on the life of a person in Dubai who is caught in an emergency situation and how he struggles to survive, Ali said.

The film is being shot on Red Epic camera, the same used in the new Spiderman movie and in the forthcoming movie, The Hobbit. “Very few movies have been shot on this camera.

The lenses alone costs around Dh80,000,” Ghanem said. The film will be edited on Final Cut Pro. “We want to show what UAE filmmakers can do with special effects. The film will create awareness about what we are doing in the country and improve our image in filmmaking,” he said.

Ghanem and Ali plan to submit their venture in the short film category of Dubai Film Festival 2012 and also apply for the Cannes International Film Festival as foreign film from the Middle East region in the short film section.

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