Abu Dhabi plans $1b movie production investment

Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi will lay out plans on Wednesday to become one of the biggest movie producers in the world, with $1 billion to invest in productions from Hollywood to Bollywood, according to reports.

Abu Dhabi's government will provide enough funding to support up to eight films a year over the next five years, Edward Borgerding, chief executive officer of the Abu Dhabi Media Company, told the Financial Times newspaper.

The media company will announce its first co-production partnerships within weeks, the FT said. Borgerding, a former Walt Disney Co. executive, declined to comment on which movie studios the company would work with, the newspaper said.

Abu Dhabi is attempting to overtake Dubai as the Gulf region's leading media hub, the FT said.