SEVEN FILMS. THREE ACTS. ONE LIVE STAGE.
Commissioned by Expo 2020 Dubai, Al Wasl was the UAE’s first opera — an ambitious three-act production bringing together more than 100 artists and musicians to tell a story spanning thousands of years.
Produced in collaboration with Welsh National Opera, the opera was composed by Mohammed Fairouz, written by Maha Gargash and directed by Sir David Pountney.
Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy and SOC Films were commissioned to create seven original films that became part of the live theatrical experience. Working closely with Fairouz and Pountney, the SOC Films team conceived, produced and directed a cinematic narrative designed to move in synchronisation with the orchestra, performers and score. The films appeared at key moments throughout the opera, extending the world of the stage through moving image.
Like the opera itself, the films move through time. The story begins in an ancient desert landscape, travels through the transformation of the UAE and the building of its modern cities, and arrives in an imagined future shaped by the choices humanity makes about the planet. Across three acts, cinema and live performance come together to explore connections between generations, between people and place, and between progress and responsibility towards the natural world.
For SOC Films, Al Wasl was an opportunity to work at an entirely different scale — bringing cinematic storytelling into conversation with opera, orchestral music and live performance. Seven films were created to become part of the performance itself.
