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In the MENA region, the film industry is currently in full bloom, with the revival of historical centres, such as Egypt, and the birth of new centres in the Gulf countries. Although much research exists on the film industries in the Western countries and in India, little attention has been devoted to the study of MENA cinemas as cultural industries. The aim of this seminar is to launch an international research initiative on such issues.A preliminary task will be to identify the cinemas present in the region. Three cinematographies dominate the region : Egyptian cinema, Hollywood and Bollywood. But the area is also host to European and Asian productions (China and Hong-Kong). French films are for example widely distributed in French-speaking countries. As far as television series are concerned, Turkey and Syria are the main production centres. Many different artistic and cultural models thus compete for the spectator’s attention. Artistic, cultural, but also economic and political issues are at stake here. There are influential players in different areas: creation (director, actors, …), business (producers, distributors, …), state (ministries, state policies, …) and civil society (audiences, consumers, …). Our studies will focus on the four main stages of a film’s life.The first area is production. For MENA directors, the main problem is to find financing. Innovative funding sources have to be set up, such as the Doha Film Fund or the internet crowdfunding website Aflamnah. Many directors also turn to Europe. On the other hand, MENA investors sometimes prefer to support foreign films, and notably Hollywood films, as they consider them as more profitable investments. ImageNation (Abu Dhabi) for instance financed Hollywood films such as The Help (2011) and Men in Black 3 (2012). Another issue at stake is the role of the State, which can be a force to promote filmmaking, but also an obstacle. Are there specific measures aiming to organize, support or control the cultural industries in these countries ? What room for maneuver do film institutions have when they exist ? What is the State’s reaction to the development of digital technologies ? Has the State’s attitude changed in the countries now led by Islam-inspired governments? What is the State policy when it comes to film shootings? Nowadays, film locations around the world are fiercely competing to attract foreign film crews. This is also the case for the MENA countries. The filming of foreign production in the area provide short- as well as long-term gains (accommodation, catering, employment, tourism, film personnel training…). Morocco and Tunisia have been attracting foreign productions for decades. Jordan and the Gulf area entered the game more recently. International coproduction Black Gold (J.-J. Annaud, 2011, France, Italy, Qatar, Tunisia) was the first foreign film shot in Qatar. State incentives, such as tax rebates or organizational support, are determinant in defining a country’s attractiveness. On the other hand, States sometimes stand in the way of film production, notably for local directors. Issues of censorship have to be examined thoroughly. It can appear at the script level, such as when the Doha Film Fund refused to finance a project by Sabah Haider as it was deemed too controversial. It can also prevent a shooting from taking place, for example in mosques. Finally, discussing production also leads to discussing the issue of film personnel training, from actors to technicians. The recent revival of film industries in the MENA region was accompanied by the creation of several film workshops, curricula and schools. A noteworthy aspect is that many of these initiatives derive from a North/South partnership, such as the collaboration between Jordan’s Red Sea Institute for Cinematic Arts and American university USC.&#160;The second area to be explored is distribution, a point of intersection of economic, technological and cultural issues. The structure of the film industry sector is to be described, but also interrogated. Indeed, foreign distributors are frequently excluded from the distribution sector either because de facto monopoly exists (Morocco) or because the sector is nationalized (Kuwait). Presenting the economic keyplayers will also lead to an assessment of the distribution sector’s health. Technological considerations will add another dimension to economic analyses with the recent development of digital distribution. With distribution, one also is led to consider film circulation across the region. In Europe, local films are rarely distributed outside their domestic market, in sharp contrast with the worldwide circulation of Hollywood films. Is the situation in the MENA region comparable to Europe ? Do local productions travel to neighbouring countries ? Or do films from Hollywood and Bollywood tend to squeeze them out ? How do local distributors deal with locally-produced films? What kind of MENA films get international distribution ? Are they distributed outside the film festival circuit ? Cultural issues will also surface, notably when it comes to the flagrantly underdocumented practices of dubbing and subtitling. This neglect is undeserved as linguistic strategies depend as much on financial choices (the least expensive option is often favoured) as on cultural choices (the level of adaptation to the local audience). Exploring linguistic practices means exploring cultural contacts. Are the translations and technical operations done in the MENA region ? Are all the films dubbed in Arabic ? What variety of Arabic is favoured ? Here again the role of the State is to be questioned as dubbing has also been used to censor parts of the original dialogue seen as inadequate to specific local circumstances, thus distorting the original work. These linguistic questions can also be understood in the light of the film’s circulation. American films dubbed for the French audience are then sent to North Africa. However, to what extent are translations which are made for a French context adapted to another cultural context ? The same interrogations on adaptation and localization appear when one considers the marketing of foreign films. Finally, one should not forget the distribution practices specific to film festivals, which are very numerous in the area. These festivals have many roles, both as artistic and cultural showcases, and as economic markets. They fully participate in the film revival by awarding grants to young local directors. Festivals however also raise specific concerns such as their relationship to the political players, as well as the fierce competition between a series of new events.&#160;The third area to be considered is exhibition, a sector which is currently in an accute acute state of crisis. Movie theatres are outdated and decaying. Many have closed down and have been replaced by shopping centres. On the other hand, a few firms are launching a wave of multiplexing, building state-of-the-art multi-screen theatres, such as Empire in Lebanon and Iraq, and Gulf Film/Grand Cinemas in the Gulf countries. The exhibition sector is thus in the hands of a small number of companies acting across the region. Multiplexing, a phenomenon which started in the USA in the 1980s and later spread to Europe and Asia, raises the question of the type of films which will be privileged by exhibitors : spectacular Hollywood and Bollywood films or local films? Although Western countries are increasingly adopting 3D technology in theatres, this does not seem to be a priority in the MENA region. Beyond the discrepancy between largely derelict theatres and a few modern multiplexes, another striking element is the unequal access to theatres not only between countries, but also within each country. This inequality has led to the development of alternative film practices.Reception, the last stage in the film’s life, is another important area that this seminar wishes to explore. In a region where theatre-going is not the most common way to access films, a mapping of the actual modes of consumption is in order. Free and pay TV, DVDs, downloading from the Internet are alternative ways to have access to films. Besides, along legal alternatives to the theatres, consumer very often resort to illegal means. The predominance of piracy in the MENA region does influence both the equilibrium of the exhibition sector and the way the audiences receive the media products. Here, a sociological approach is necessary as different modes of consumption are to be observed between the different countries in North Africa and the Middle-East, but also between social classes. One should add a cultural approach to this sociological analysis. In 1997, Hoskins et al. defined the notion of ‘cultural discount’ : a program which has its roots in a certain culture is not as well perceived outside its domestic markets as spectators find it more difficult to identify to the characters. By resorting to such concepts as active reception, acculturation and appropriation, one can scrutinize the way audiences perceive the different cinemas that they are exposed to. Egyptian, Hollywood and Bollywood films all offer very different universes and world views. Which cinematography do MENA audiences feel closer to ? In Europe, spectators sometimes tend to prefer Hollywood films to European films. What about the MENA spectators ? Apart from the relationship to films from the area, could one envisage that the MENA audience feel closer to Bollywood than Hollywood ?While exploring these four paths, one must also keep in mind the international political context. When studying the circulation and influence of national films, it is currently not so much the concept of propaganda which can be useful as the concept of ‘soft power.’ To what extent is film still a factor of cultural predominance ? In the 1950s, the large circulation of Egyptian films was occuring at a time when Egypt held an influential place in the region, and one consequence of this predominance on screens was the spreading of Egyptian Arabic. More recently, Hollywood films have recurrently been accused of being the source of Americanization of the world population. As for Bollywood films, does their popularity correspond to the strenghtening of a cultural and political South-South alliance ? Is it possible to identify these influences and how audiences react to them ? The MENA film industries exist in a global context and international diplomatic relationships have an impact on them. Analyzing the dynamics between the different cinematographies present in the region requires an understanding of the South-South and North-South relations. On the one hand, the link with the former European colonizers remains strong, both economically and culturally. On the other hand, the USA is increasingly present, and, in films and in other industries, has tended to introduce itself as an alternative to older relations. This cooperation is visible through bilateral free trade agreements, for example with Morocco, Bahrain, Jordan and Israel, agreements which could have negative implications, as the American insistence on copyright protection shows.&#160;The goal of this seminar is threefold. It aims to map out the cinemas present in North Africa and the Middle-East, to identify the economic players and their strategies, and to develop a sociological analysis of reception by local audiences, thereby raising economic, political and cultural issues. This research initiative is ambitious. The seminar will thus be the opportunity to create an international academic network around these issues. A first step will be to assemble a complete review of literature, as existing research often remains isolated due the linguistic barrier, whether it is French, Arabic or English. In terms of methodology, this seminar will hold an interdisciplinary view, as approaches from media economics, political economy, sociology, history, area studies and political science will be needed to make sense of the diverse issues explored.Nolwenn Mingant, Abdelfettah Benchenna