New Arabic soap opera ‘lives and breathes Saudi’
The story of two Saudi families embroiled in a battle over inheritance has laid the foundations for a groundbreaking Arabic soap opera.
The first season of Al Mirath (Inheritance) will begin on MBC 1 tonight and will comprise a whopping 250 episodes, with the show running well into next year. Four 23-minute episodes will air every week, from Sunday to Wednesday. Ali Jaber, MBC Group’s TV director, says the launch of
Al Mirath was a pioneering moment for the company. “We have created the very first authentic Saudi soap opera,” he says. “It lives, breathes and speaks Saudi in terms of the locations it is set in, the events, the relationships and the family dynamics.”
The show, which was developed by MBC Studios, twofour54 and Image Nation Abu Dhabi, also has a special connection to the UAE as most of it was filmed in a warehouse in Mussaffah, Abu Dhabi. The warehouse doesn’t exactly look like a typical set for a TV show, but within its walls of corrugated plastic lie the Baroque-style rooms of the palaces of two warring Saudi families. The hallways inside the warehouse are decked out with crystal chandeliers and grand paintings of horses, there are bedrooms with silk sheets, grand pianos and staircases with gilded banisters that coil up to the ceiling.
Construction of the studio started in July last year and took 73 days to complete, just in time for filming to begin in December. Arab dramas are well established, but the daily, shorter soap opera format hasn’t yet caught on. So why has MBC decided now was the time to adopt the format in the Arab world?
While Emirati filmmaker Abdullah Al Junaibi, who is part of the directorial team of Al
Mirath, didn’t offer many clues as to why the genre had not appeared on regional screens, he says Ramadan provided at least some of the impetus behind this show. “The uniqueness of the month in the Arab world and how families come together to watch television inspired filmmakers to concentrate their efforts for the holy month,” he says.
But now MBC has taken a stride into the realm of soap operas, Al Junaibi says he expects other production companies to follow suit. “Especially after they see how effective the genre is at reeling in viewers and advertisers,” he says.
Al Junaibi, who has directed short films and feature-length thriller Kaimrah, says the biggest challenge when directing a soap opera is the clock. “You need to be precise and accurate, not a single minute can be wasted,” he says. “The turnover rate is pretty quick and we have to be sure to deliver episodes in time. There isn’t much room for mistakes.”
However, he also says a good script can make his job as a director a lot easier. It allows him to know what details to focus on in a scene, while keeping the overall story in mind.
Nour Sheshakly, one of four scriptwriters on the series, says the process of writing a soap opera was different to the dramas she has previously worked on, such as Jareemat
Shaghaf. That is especially true in terms of the number of scenes in a soap opera, the pace of the story and character development.
“We began writing the show last year,” she says. “We’d alternate between month-long brainstorming sessions, where we’d come up with ideas and plot elements, and then going to write the script. We approached it 50 episodes at a time.”
However, Sheshakly says there will be room for changes in the script, as plot elements in TV are often reflective of ratings and viewer opinion. “If viewers like a particular character, we have to adapt the script to give them more screen time.”
Jaber says Al Mirath takes Arabic TV in a new direction. He says that while numerous Arab productions have long relied on well-known stars to attract audiences, the formula is not common in soap operas. “As a result, viewers can expect to be introduced to a host of new faces on Al Mirath,” he says.
One fresh face is Rana Al Shafey, who plays Shahad on the show. “She has a very strong character. She loves to be challenged and to overcome that challenge,” Jaber says. “She has a dream she wants to realise – to become a ballet instructor – and though she is scared of her parents’ reactions, she won’t allow anyone to hinder her.”
Al Shafey says she hopes viewers will be inspired by her character, and will find the strength and determination through her storylines to pursue their own goals.
Al Mirath has its premiere tonight at 8pm on MBC 1