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Partnership to Offer $75m to Produce Films

ABU DHABI — Imagenation Abu Dhabi, Hollywood-based Hyde Park Entertainment Group and Singapore’s Media Development Authority, or MDA, have formed a partnership to fund three to four films a year, worth an estimated production value of $75 million, over the next five years.

The multi-party venture will commence with an English language cross-cultural production to be named in the coming weeks, according to a release received here recently.

The new venture will soon open an office in Singapore, which will serve as the Asian headquarters and hire a management team.Hyde Park International President, Mimi Steinbauer, will be handling foreign sales for films produced by the company and Hyde Park EVP Patrick Aiello will supervise creative affairs. Imagenation Abu Dhabi COO Stefan Brunner will oversee business affairs.

Imagenation Abu Dhabi, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Media Company and Ashok Amritraj’s Hyde Park Entertainment, first partnered in November last on a $250 million financing deal to develop, produce and distribute up to 20 feature films over seven years — with additional financing for the production of local language and cross-cultural films.

Their partnership with MDA follows Hyde Park’s announcement last year to set up a multi-million dollar fund based in Singapore.

From its base in Abu Dhabi, Imagenation Abu Dhabi has established partnerships with high-profile, internationally-based producers such as National Geographic and Participant Media to develop and create content for distribution internationally. The company is also supporting Middle East filmmakers and Arabian film production.

Ashok Amritraj’s Hyde Park Entertainment Group has established itself as one of the most prolific and successful production companies in Hollywood — responsible for box office hits like ‘Bringing Down the House,’ ‘Shopgirl,’ ‘Premonition,’ ‘Raising Helen,’ and ‘Walking Tall.’

With partnerships in Singapore, India and the Middle East, Amritraj’s Hyde Park has pioneered the effort to build a bridge between East and West through cultural exchanges and providing a platform for Indian and Asian talent to be showcased globally.

Formed in 2003, the Media Development Authority of Singapore spearheads initiatives that promote industry growth in film, television, radio, publishing, music, games, animation and Interactive Digital Media.

· ramavarman@khaleejtimes.ae