According to William Higbee, professor of film studies at the University of Exeter, “Morocco offers a safe solution for Hollywood studios that want to shoot films set in the Middle East.

Alongside the studios that cater to Hollywood productions, Morocco has a vibrant film industry of its own, making many skilled workers available to foreign companies, which cuts costs because only key staff personnel are needed.

It’s not just the Middle East that the Moroccan studios are easily transformed into. From snow-capped mountain tops to deserts, beaches and picturesque cities with narrow streets and vibrant markets with loud tradesmen, spices and snake charmers, there isn’t much that can’t be filmed here. Cities such as Casablanca, Rabat and Marrakech have several studios attracting productions ranging from feature-length films to documentaries and big budget television dramas.

Morocco has a long history of welcoming foreign film crews, especially historical dramas set in ancient Rome or Greece, including « Troy », « Kingdom of Heaven » and « Gladiator ».

Middle Eastern countries sometimes refuse to accommodate films of a certain political nature, Higbee says. « Body of Lies », which was set in Jordan and starred Leonardo Dicaprio and Russell Crowe is one example.

The Moroccan Film Institute is accommodating and will even help the Hollywood directors negotiate with the Moroccan government and armed forces, says Higbee. « If they need to ship in any arms or military equipment, there wouldn’t be a problem getting that into the country.