In 1948, Turkey, Iran, and Iraq saw growth in their film industries. In Iran, Esmail Kushan founded the "Mitra" film company which could produce sound movies. This was important because until then sound movies had to be filmed in Europe. In Iraq, "Alia and Issam" the first Iraqi movie was produced. In Turkey, the government decreased the tax on cinema tickets which increased the demand for films and the production of films. The State of Israel was established and in 1949, the "Israeli Motion Picture Studios" opened.