Dubai’s MForMedia & Arcana Labs Sign AI Production Pact For Middle East

EXCLUSIVE: Dubai’s MForMedia will look to add AI workflows into its productions following a deal with Arcana Labs.

The two companies have struck a strategic partnership to incorporate Arcana’s software into MForMedia’s production workflows, Arabic-language co-productions and staff training. The overaching goal is to build AI-native film and television production capabilities across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

Arcana Studios, the production arm of Arcana Labs, and MForMedia will also co-produce original content for MENA audiences, with unnamed titles already in development. MForMedia staff are also provided with a five-day training workshop on AI-native production this month.

“The Middle East and North Africa region is one of the most active production markets outside the United States, yet premium original Arabic-language content has struggled to keep pace with soaring demand,” said Arcana Labs CEO Jonathan Yunger.

“With this model, we are embedding an AI-native pipeline inside a regional studio from day one. Content can now be created in Dubai, in Arabic, faster and more cost-effectively than ever before, ensuring Arabic-language production stays in the region.”

MForMedia, led by co-founders and Managing Partners Ralph Matar and Khalil Homeissy, produces Arabic versions of Carpool Karaoke and The X Factor and also makes the likes of the Mahzooz Lottery Show, Eisha Sah, Celebrity Escape Room and Celebrity Advice Bureau.

The news comes soon after MForMedia hired MENA television industry veteran Ziad Kebbi as Managing Director, as we revealed two weeks ago. At the same time, the company announced it was pivoting toward AI production, original content and IP ownership, as opposed to its more production services-focused past.

“This collaboration marks a significant step in MForMedia’s evolution and reflects a shared ambition: to bring people, creativity and technology together to expand the possibilities of storytelling across the region,” said Matar and Homeissy in a statement.

“At the heart of the collaboration is a commitment to empowering creative talent. With these tools, directors, producers, designers and storytellers will have greater freedom to experiment and move more efficiently from concept to production, while retaining creative control and artistic vision.”