Download the free DS app and be the fi rst to read the latest issue on your mobile devices. DS AWARDS 2020 Celebrating the winners COVID COPING Local media houses response during the pandemic Vol. 22 Issue 04 June-August 2020 PLUS NEWS OPINION INTERVIEWS TECHNOLOGY COMMUNIT Y TRENDS EVENTS PRODUCTS WINNER OF THE BROADCAST EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR 2020, STARZPLAY’S MAAZ SHEIKH SHARES HIS RECIPE FOR SUCCESSRCN Win Sports+, Colombia Arena OB Z, United Kingdom ROCK IN RIO, Brazil MediaParc, Switzerland HYPERX ESPORTS ARENA, USA GEARHOUSE COLUMBUS, USA GRANGER COMMUNITY CHURCH, USA World Cups and countless other games. Global album launches streamed live over the web, major rock festivals brought to millions, classical performances in any venue. Lawo is where the thrill is. By appointment to the most talented people on the planet. All over IP, in cutting-edge quality. Getting the Thrill Across. www.lawo.comCONTENTS JUNE-AUGUST 2020 5 UPDATE ANGHAMI PLEDGES $3M TO MIDDLE EAST BUSINESSES; ROTANA TV NETWORK LAUNCHES ROTANA COMEDY AND ROTANA KIDS; ROHDE & SCHWARZ RELEASES ENHANCED TV TRANSMITTER; SPACETOON AND SHAHID ENTER LIVE STREAMING PARTNERSHIP; PODCASTS ARE GROWING EXPONENTIALLY IN SAUDI ARABIA; EMIRATI SCI-FI FILM AERIALS PREMIERES ON NETFLIX 16 IN FOCUS HASAN KIYANI ON HIS NEW POST-PRODUC- TION MEDIA VENTURE 18 ANALYSIS STUDIOS AND PRO- DUCTION HOUSES ON COPING WITH COVID-19 22 COVER STORY MAAZ SHEIKH, CO- FOUNDER AND CEO OF STARZPLAY 30 EVENT FUTURE OF IBC 2020 34 DS AWARDS 2020 WINNERS INTER- VIEWS OF THE 16TH DS AWARDS 14 NEWS ANALYSIS OSN’s transformation fortifi ed by new personnel and content deals. 16 IN FOCUS During tough times success comes to those who innovate, Hasan Kiyani’s new business does that 22 COVER STORY StarzPlay’s Maaz Sheikh talks a collaborative game in growing his business 30 EVENT IBC announced the cancellation of its September event four months in advance, what’s next? 34 AWARDS The fi rst-ever Digital Studio Virtual Awards was a live stream to 08 18 24 34 30 16 22 www.digitalstudiome.comJUNE-AUGUST 2020 / 3 SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE WWW.ITP.COM /SUBSCRIPTIONS WWWWWWW W.W.W.W.W..WW ITITII P.COM/SUBSCR IPTIONS DON’T MISS AN ISSUE! CH-1CH-2 Published by and © 2020 ITP MEDIA GROUP FZ-LLC MEDIA PO Box 500024, Dubai, UAE Tel: +971 4 444 3000 Web: www.itp.com Offices in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, London & Mumbai ITP MEDIA GROUP CEO Ali Akawi Managing Director Alex Reeve EDITORIAL Editor: Nikhil Pereira Tel: +971 4 444 3427 email: nikhil.pereira@itp.com ADVERTISING Sales Manager: Thomas Lambert Tel: +971 4 444 3637 email: Thomas.Lambert@itp.com ITP LIVE General Manager Ahmad Bashour Tel: +971 4 444 3549 email: ahmad.bashour@itp.com PHOTOGRAPHY Senior Photographers Efraim Evidor, Adel Rashid Staff Photographers Aasiya Jagadeesh, Fritz Asuro, Ajith Narendra, Jessica Samson PRODUCTION & DISTRIBUTION Group Production & Distribution Director Kyle Smith Production Manager Basel Al Kassem Production Co-ordinator Manoj Mahadevan Senior Image Editor Emmalyn Robles CIRCULATION Distribution & Warehouse Manager Praveen Nair Circulation Executive Loreta Regencia MARKETING Director of Awards & Marketing Daniel Fewtrell Events Manager Teri Dunstan ITP GROUP CEO Ali Akawi CFO Toby Jay Spencer-Davies Subscribe online at www.itp.com/subscriptions The publishers regret that they cannot accept liability for error or omissions contained in this publication, however caused. The opinions and views contained in this publication are not necessarily those of the publishers. Readers are advised to seek specialist advice before acting on information contained in this publication which is provided for general use and may not be appropriate for the reader’s particular circumstances. The ownership of trademarks is acknowledged. No part of this publication or any part of the contents thereof may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form without the permission of the publishers in writing. An exemption is hereby granted for extracts used for the purpose of fair review. www.digitalstudiome.com4 / JUNE-AUGUST 2020NEWS UPDATE Leading Middle East music platform Anghami has revealed a $3m budget to help small businesses survive during the current coronavirus crisis. Co-founder Elie Habib revealed that, since March 15, the company has been running $850,000 worth of free audio ads for small businesses — supporting 90 SMEs so far. Streaming platform introduces range of measures introduced to support SMEs during Covid-19 pandemic ANGHAMI PLEDGES $3M TO MIDDLE EAST BUSINESSES EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT THIS MONTH IN THE TV AND FILM PRODUCTION INDUSTRY 06 UPDATE 16 EDITOR’S LETTER 22 COVER STORY 36 AWARDS COVERAGE Anghami is also granting more than 400 local independent art- ists $1.5m of ‘Amplify’ credits. Pic: Wesley Tingey He said: “Ads will reach over 13 million people in the Middle East and hopefully will help businesses get through these critical times.” Anghami is also granting more than 400 local independent artists $1.5m of ‘Amplify’ credits — a feature allowing artists to promote their content on Anghami to help them promote their current or future releases. Plans are in place to incorporate a ‘Support my music’ button of artists’ pages, while small businesses will soon be able to launch their own web and mobile storefront with free advertising to promote their businesses on Anghami. While a $6 family plan will allow six people to get the full Anghami Plus experience, a discounted price that will be valid for 12 months. Habib said: “As an active member of the Arab community at large and its start-up ecosystem, but also as a founding member of the digital music community in the region, we believe we have to be outspoken about the necessity for everyone who can, to do more.” He has also revealed a facility for members of the public to add their own suggestions on what can be done to help each other through the Covid-19 outbreak. “And we’re far from done. While more challenging times unfold, we’re all together in this, trying to play a part as much as we can. The ball is in your court now — got an idea that could contribute? Reach out to us at covidrelief@anghami.com. Together we will overcome this crisis, and tomorrow will play a better tune,” he added. www.digitalstudiome.comJUNE-AUGUST 2020 / 5 Saudi-headquartered Rotana TV Network has launched two new channels – Rotana Comedy and Rotana Kids - as part of its attempt to educate and entertain people of all age-groups. While Rotana Comedy is now available to all Arab audiences via satellite starting from Ramadan, a season that usually witnesses a spike in programmes and series viewership across the Arab world, Rotana Kids is dedicated towards children in the age-group of 2 to 12 years and aims at off ering the kids with both entertainment and educational programmes and series. Rotana Comedy frequencies are available on A-Quality HD and normal broadcast packages through Moon: Arabsat Badr 6. Rotana Comedy will be a hub for all pan Arab comedies such as Egyptians, Saudi, GCC, Lebanese, North African, etc. In addition to some of the biggest comedy blockbusters and series, the channel will ROTANA COMEDY AND ROTANA KIDS CHANNELS LAUNCHED ROTANA COMEDY FREQUENCIES ARE AVAILABLE ON A-QUALITY HD AND NORMAL BROADCAST PACKAGES THROUGH MOON: ARABSAT BADR 6 A COMBINATION OF THE PANASONIC VARICAM LT, EVA1 AND LUMIX S1 CAMERAS WERE USED ON LOCATION IN RUSSIA PANASONIC CAMERAS USED IN BBC2 DOCUMENTARY A range of Panasonic cameras were used to capture footage of young lynx cats being rescued, rehabili- tated and released back into the Russian wilderness for the BBC2 documentary Snow Cats & Me, made by wildlife fi lm- maker Gordon Buchanan and produced by Jonny Young and Ted Oakes. The two-part series, showing the work of Russian Big Cat expert, Dr. Victor Lukarevskiy, was shot on location in the forests of Russia by a small, mobile fi lm team. Three shoots across a period of seven also air some of the most memorable plays and sketches of all times within the comedy category; starring some of the biggest and most renowned Arab Comedians such as Ismail Yaseen, Adel Imam, Samir Ghanem , Najib Al Rihani, Mary Monib, Ahmed Helmi, Mohamad Henedi and others. Rotana Comedy launched with a show- stopper grid that included some of the biggest comedy productions for 2020 such as Omar & Diab, Al December, Sawaha Bakht, Ya Ana Ya Geddo and others. The Rotana Kids grid will be fully dedicated to off er children with an all Arabic content that was carefully selected to serve this category in the best way possible. The production list of the channel includes worldwide renowned titles, all dubbed to Arabic such as Sesame Street, Mowgli, Treasure Island, in addition to Arabic produced programs and series such as The Adventures of Maher, Sghar Stars and IBN Battuta. For the second and third shoots, the team faced long-days in the forest working in lots of dense undergrowth, which meant moving around with a tripod for the camera was a challenge. Instead, the team needed a camera that would be lightweight and por- table, but with all the features required to get the best possible fi lm, and so switched to a camera package consisting of the Pana- sonic EVA1 from VI Rental Bristol. “My shooting style is mainly handheld and reactive,” said Jonny Young, series pro- ducer. “When Gordon is interacting with the animals, I can be getting the linking shots from up to 10 to 15 metres away. The EVA1 became the main workhorse after we decided that the LT — though a fantastic camera on our fi rst shoot that gave us phe- nomenal pictures — was just too heavy as a handheld run-and-gun sync camera”. With a global market share for ATSC 3.0 transmitters approaching 90%, Rohde & Schwarz has enhanced its Next Gen TV solution for TV transmitters. “Next Gen TV is bringing wide-scale terres- trial broadcasting into the IP age,” said Manfred Reitmeier, VP transmitter and amplifi er systems at Rohde & Schwarz. Reitmeier was responding to news that Rohde & Schwarz has carved out almost 90% share of the global ATSC 3.0 market, with more than 60 R&S ATSC 3.0 transmitters already in commercial operation in South Korea. Currently, the company is supporting multiple customers throughout North America and Korea. ROHDE & SCHWARZ RELEASES ENHANCED TV TRANSMITTER Manfred Reitmeier Filmmaker Gordon Buchanan (pictured) and produced by Jonny Young and Ted Oakes. months were undertaken to successfully tell the story of the lynx cats. The team used the Panasonic VariCam LT camera for the fi rst shoot, having used it on previous projects. NEWS UPDATE www.digitalstudiome.com6 / JUNE-AUGUST 2020TwoFour54 revealed exclusive footage from a behind the scenes shoot with the crew of Sonic The Hedgehog in the capital. The Paramount Pictures fi lm was released digitally on March 31. Key scenes from the comedy were shot with a 25-strong crew in Abu Dhabi’s Liwa Desert, capturing explosions and footage of the landscape using helicopters and drones. The fi nal edit shows Sonic running at full speed through the Abu Dhabi Desert, which doubled as the dunes surrounding Egypt’s pyramids and sphynx, whilst coming under fi re from his nemesis, Doctor Robotnik (Jim Carrey). TwoFour54 provided full production services, including location assistance, travel, accommodation and transport services, as well as production management. Paramount, which also shot Mission: Impossible – Fallout in the capital in 2018, also took advantage of Abu Dhabi Video game tech created by companies such as Unity, which was used in the popular game Pokemon Go, are piquing the interest of Hollywood fi lmmakers to complete productions that have been delayed due to the Coronavirus. Hollywood has turned to computer- generated virtual sets for upcoming fi lms and series from big studios like Disney and Netfl ix, it has been widely reported. This news hardly comes as a surprise for Digital Studio readers — our October 2019 cover story with Andy Serkis (of Gollum / Lord of the Rings, Venom and Planet of the Apes fame) uncovered the rapid strides taken by the fi lm industry in embracing technology. TWOFOUR54 REVEALS DETAILS OF SONIC THE HEDGEHOG FILMING IN ABU DHABI HOLLYWOOD TURNS TO VIDEO GAME TECH TO COMPLETE STALLED PRODUCTIONS PARAMOUNT PICTURES RETURNED TO THE UAE CAPITAL TO FILM SCENES IN THE LIWA DESERT IN ABU DHABI STUDIOS HAVE TURNED TO COMPUTER-GENERATED VIRTUAL SETS FOR UPCOMING FILMS AND SERIES Hollywood hits such as Netfl ix’s 6 Underground, that have used Abu Dhabi as a location in recent years, benefi ting from its diverse array of locations, talented professionals, award-winning facilities and the 30% cashback rebate. In addition to assisting Paramount Pictures throughout the shoot in Abu Dhabi, TwoFour54 was involved with the production of the Sonic The Hedgehog movie premiere in Los Angeles. of work gets routed through his London studio – The Imaginarium. Technologies such as augmented reality and virtual reality have transformed the manner in which performance capture is done. The advancements of video game rendering engines have even helped lower production costs. Film Commission’s generous 30% cashback rebate and tapped into TwoFour54’s pool of 700-plus freelancers to fi nd the exact talent they needed to complete the shoot. The movie stars James Marsden, Ben Schwartz (voicing the titular video game character famous for his incredible speed), Tika Sumpter alongside Jim Carrey. Michael Garin, CEO of TwoFour54Abu Dhabi, said: “Abu Dhabi is used to hosting major productions, whether it’s Hollywood hits like the Mission: Impossible franchise or Bollywood blockbusters such as Tiger Zinda Hai. “The fact that these productions choose Abu Dhabi as a fi lming location is a demonstration of the collaborative culture of Abu Dhabi and why we are seeing the world’s biggest studios, such as Paramount Pictures, returning to benefi t from the production infrastructure on off er.” Sonic The Hedgehog joins more than 90 major productions, including other We have seen advanced green screen production in popular Netfl ix shows such as The Irishman and Disney’s Mandalorian TV series. It has been widely reported that Warner Bros., Paramount, Hulu and CBS’ television studio are turning to these technologies now. The migration toward virtual sets is likely to continue long after the crisis recedes. Unreal technology was used to create The Mandalorian, including the vast desert backdrop for the fi ght scene in the fi rst episode between Pedro Pascal’s character and the rhino-like Mudhorn creature. Apart from a successful acting career, Serkis has been involved behind the camera in several diff erent fi lms. A lot Virtual sets created from a green screen NEWS UPDATE www.digitalstudiome.comJUNE-AUGUST 2020 / 7 Spacetoon and Shahid have announced a new partnership, that will bring Spacetoon’s exclusive and classic kids’ content to MBC Group’s video streaming platform. This follows Shahid’s latest deals with a host of international entertainment content providers, including Disney and Fox. The new alliance will grant the audience of Shahid VIP hundreds of hours from Spacetoon’s rich content anytime and anywhere, with the launch of Spacetoon’s live channel on the platform. The addition of Spacetoon’s live TV channel makes it the fi rst and only channel outside of MBC GROUP’s own network of TV channels to be available on Shahid. As one of the biggest family entertainment content providers in MENA, and with more than 20 years of content delivery Spacetoon presents a wide range of Arabic dubbed works which has attracted more than 118 SPACETOON AND SHAHID ENTER PARTNERSHIP MENA’S TOP KIDS’ TV CHANNEL AND THE REGION’S LEADING VIDEO STREAMING PLATFORM BRING A NEW EXPERIENCE FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES DIRECTED BY S.A. ZAIDI AND PRODUCED BY EMIRATI GHANEM GHUBASH, AERIALS IS MADE AVAILABLE ON NETFLIX FOUR YEARS AFTER ITS COMMERCIAL RELEASE EMIRATI SCI-FI FILM AERIALS PREMIERES ON NETFLIX Aerials, regarded as the fi rst Emirati Science Fiction Film, has premiered on Netfl ix. The fi lm was fi rst announced with its trailer at IGN Middle East Abu Dhabi in 2015. The fi lm was distributed by VOX Cinemas and had its world premiere on the 16th of June 2016 across cinemas in the UAE. Aerials is directed by Dubai based director S. A. Zaidi and produced by Emirati fi lm producer Ghanem Ghubash. “In fact it’s the fi rst Arabic Science Fiction Film in the GCC region,” Zaidi million viewers across the region, and this partnership will give access to a wider audience. Kamel Weiss, strategy and business development director of Spacetoon: “We are so impressed with the way Shahid has enhanced premium Arabic content in the region, which has been our approach and focus over the past 20 years. Together, we will bring our audiences the content they most love on television to experience anytime, anywhere, through any screen on Shahid VIP via our live channel. claimed. Zaidi and Ghubash own company Fat Brothers Films, which is the production company that created Aerials. Aerials stars veteran Emirati Actor Mansoor AlFeeli who is well known for his role in the Bollywood blockbuster Dishoom. AlFeeli is also set to star in Rami Jaber’s debut fi lm The Misfi ts. The lead actor is Sagar AlYasery, who previously collaborated with Zaidi in 2013 on an Emirati Post-Apocalyptic science fi ction fi lm called The Sons of Two Suns. Aerials is a Sci-Fi drama about a couple living in Dubai who are stuck at home because of an alien invasion from outer space. “Ghanem and I have held a long tradition of pioneering science fi ction Arabic fi lms in the region, a genre that is synonymously known around the world as ‘Sinbad Sci-Fi’,” Zaidi said. Dolby On - a free, music and video recording and streaming has been made available on Apple iOS and Android Google Play store across MENA region. The Dolby On app is designed to easily record and live stream audio and video with superior Dolby sound quality by using the smartphone’s mics. Dolby On listens to the sound coming in and automatically applies audio effects like compression, EQ, limiting, noise reduction, stereo wid- ening, de-essing and more. Users can further edit the sound with filters, allowing application of sonic profiles to recordings. The partnership combines two strong platforms - Spacetoon TV and Shaid DOLBY RELEASES AUDIO-VIDEO RECORDING APP FOR PHONES S.A. Zaidi on the sets of Aerials. NEWS UPDATE www.digitalstudiome.com8 / JUNE-AUGUST 2020Broadcast technology solutions provider NativeWaves has ap- pointed telecommunications ex- ecutive Eva Wimmers as the company’s new CEO. Wimmers has over 24 years of experience as an executive in the technology and telecommunications industries, most recently as president of Huawei/Honor Europe and vice presi- dent of Honor Global. Prior to joining Huawei in 2016, she held senior positions at companies including T-Mobile and Deutsche Tele- kom (DT). During her fi ve years at DT, she was the company’s chief procure- ment offi cer, managing a €30bn annual budget and leading a team of 2,500 people in 50 countries. A founding investor in and former vice-chair of the NativeWaves advisory board, Wimmers has extensive experi- ence working with technology start- GB Labs, a storage solutions manufacturer, has appointed Howard Twine as chief prod- uct officer. Twine joins GB Labs from EditShare where he held the post of director of software strategy for the QScan Brand. Twine’s experience spans many dif- ferent sectors of the industry. Prior to EditShare, he was the chief operating offi cer at Vidcheck. With a strong back- ground in workfl ow and technology he has been instrumental in bringing MAM solutions to market as well as the fi rst productisation of LTFS for the industry. At GB Labs, Twine will be leading the interface between GB Labs users, EVA WIMMERS JOINS BROADCAST SOLUTIONS PROVIDER NATIVEWAVES GB LABS SHAKES UPPER MANAGEMENT WITH NEW APPOINTMENTS FORMER HUAWEI-HONOR BIGWIG WILL LEAD EMERGING BROADCAST TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS PROVIDER EDITSHARE’S HOWARD TWINE IS NEW CHIEF PRODUCT OFFICER WHILE GB LABS ANNOUNCES DUNCAN BEATTIES’S MOVE TO CHIEF SOLUTIONS OFFICER “This unique technology enables user immersion into live formats, opening the market for various value streams. I am excited to lead our team as we drive broad market adoption of this essential technology for broadcasters to reach younger target groups who are used to innovative, fast paced and interactive social media formats.” Harland concluded, “Beattie’s unpar- alleled storage expertise, together with Twine’s 23 year experience, is vital to our business continuity strategy and the timing of this announcement couldn’t be better.” ups, focusing on developing teams and strategies. Wimmers will continue to serve in board positions with various tech and consumer companies. Educated in Europe and the US, she holds degrees in law, business management and marketing from Frankfurt, Webster, and San Diego Universities. Wimmer speaks five languages. “We are proud to welcome Eva to lead NativeWaves as it scales its revenues and expands its entrepreneurial team”, said board chairman Pascal Levensohn, who also represents investor Dolby Family Ventures on the NativeWaves board. “Her clear vision and calm leadership will be invaluable during the unprec- edented challenges and opportunities created by the global pandemic. Native- Waves provides the steppingstone into interactive TV”, said Wimmers. technology partners and the devel- opment of new technologies – in an attempt to maintain and enhance GB Labs market leadership. Dominic Harland, CEO-CTO, GB Labs said: “Twine joining has enabled us to promote Duncan Beattie to the role of Chief Solutions Offi cer. This is a newly created position in response to market demand and our customer/part- ner requirements. “It allows Beattie to concentrate on the identifi cation, development and de- livery of our solutions to a wider market demographic, as well as working more closely with our sales team, strategic partners and end customers.” Howard Twine and Duncan Beattie Eva Wimmers NEWS UPDATE www.digitalstudiome.comJUNE-AUGUST 2020 / 9 Next >